Ideas coming to life

Just about 20 years ago this week, the Town of Athabasca’s council passed the first reading of the Athabasca Landing Area Redevelopment Plan.

According to a two-decade-old Athabasca Advocate article, the plan was “hammered out over seven months by a council-appointed steering committee and a consulting company” and called for the waterfront to be turned into a town common park.

Speaking to people who were politically and socially active at that time it’s easy to see that this issue really moved people.

There were several public meetings and hearings and I’ve also heard several people mention an epic meeting in the basement of the local community centre.

The work the community did then means that we now have the splash park, the community vegetable garden, the signs and boards that explain historical elements and local features. We have a beautiful stage surrounded by natural beauty, a great gathering place for pancake breakfasts, outdoor church gatherings and music festivals.

For me, it’s interesting to read about how these pie-in-the-sky ideas became tangible reality. Athabasca is obviously not the only place where this kind of things happens. The region is crowded with small communities that have brought their great projects to life.

It just goes to show that when we move, shake, publicly gripe, stand our ground and event compromise, we can eventually get nice things.

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