Chatham-Kent is located in Southwestern Ontario and is home to just over 100,000 people. CK is known for their abundance in agriculture, with over 2,000 farms, which account for 4% of Ontario’s total farmland (Some Remarkable Stats About Chatham-Kent Agriculture, 2021). Besides the heart of the town, Chatham, the rest of the surrounding towns are rich in agriculture. There are many parts of the area where you could drive for many kilometres and only see fields, with the odd house every so often. The towns are proud to say how appreciative they are for our farmers that work hard to ensure their crops are successful and bountiful.
Over the years, citizens of Chatham-Kent have witnessed many stages of growth all over the area that help make the community an improved and stronger town. However, with all growth, there is always deterioration and decline. When one big, fancy new building gets constructed, it almost always causes another one to close. For example, when Chatham got a new Galaxy Cinemas, this forced the old Cinema 6 to close and leave the building abandoned for many years. As a result of Chatham-Kent having a smaller population, the town couldn’t support two movie theatres so the older one was forced to close. Luckily, four years ago, a few local people bought the old building and transformed it into a brewery called, Sons of Kent, that has brought a new variety of entertainment to the area for the members.
Everything and anything all over the world is constantly evolving, and if people and towns don’t evolve with the flow than they will fall behind. In order to meet the growing demands, people must accept that there will be changes which may cause closures of buildings and abandonment. The citizens need to understand that these closures are only (for the most part) happening to make Chatham-Kent a better place to live.
There has been decline in many sectors including, industrial, manufacturing, and retail. The abandonment may not be noticeable to the community members because they have gotten used to seeing it on their everyday routines. However, to somebody who has never been through CK, they may notice the amount of deterioration and desertion. Many people find opportunities to expand and explore in larger cities and will move their business elsewhere. Due to Chatham-Kent being a less populated area, it doesn’t allow for a lot of growth and expansion.
Resources
Some Remarkable Stats About Chatham-Kent Agriculture. (2021). Retrieved from Chatham-Kent Economic Development: https://www.chatham-kent.ca/EconomicDevelopment/media/Pages/Releases/Some-Remarkable-Stats-about-Chatham-Kent-Agriculture.aspx