For the second straight year North Battleford has won its category in the provincial edition of the Communities in Bloom competition.
In the 10,001 to 20,000 population category, North Battleford was declared the winner, receiving Special Mention for Volunteerism and Community Pride.
According to North Battleford co-chair Nora Rongve, North Battleford won four out of five "Blooms," the same number as last year. Last year, North Battleford won its category receiving special mention in Urban Forestry.
Other winners in the Saskatchewan edition of the competition include Eatonia (pop. 1-500 category) with Special Mention for Remarkable Tidiness; Ituna (pop. 501-1000 category) with Special Mention for Overall Tidiness of the Community, and Indian Head (pop. 1001-2000) with Special Mention for Volunteer Recognition.
News of the solid results for North Battleford has the local committee pumped up, noted Rongve. "It's really gotten us excited for next year," she said.
"Just by getting such a great score once again, it's really given us a real boost and makes us want to continue," said Rongve.
The local committee still needs to digest all the details of the judges' findings, but Rongve expressed pride in the city's showing and in the efforts of all the volunteers.
North Battleford was one of 33 communities across Saskatchewan to participate in the provincial competition in 2012, which is aimed at fostering civic pride, environmental responsibility and beautification. Other area communities that entered the provincial competition included Battleford, Unity, Turtleford, Lashburn and Hafford.
Participants in Communities in Bloom are judged on eight criteria: tidiness, environmental action, community involvement, heritage conservation, urban forestry, landscape, floral displays, and turf and groundcovers.
According to the Saskatchewan Parks and Recreation Association's news release Wednesday afternoon, the winning communities all excelled in these eight categories.
This year's strong showing by North Battleford did not come without adversity for the local Communities in Bloom committee. A fierce storm had ravaged the Battlefords on June 25, downing countless trees across the city.
Despite that setback, the city cleaned up in time to provide a winning impression to Communities in Bloom judges who visited in late July. Rongve said the judges took the storm damage into account, and the local committee was able to show them pictures of how bad the damage was in the aftermath.
"They got an idea of the magnitude of the storm," said Rongve. "They could see how much the people in the community, as well as the city, did to get us looking as good as we did for that day."
Now the planning for the North Battleford Communities in Bloom committee begins for next year. The local committee will be again looking for volunteers as they intend to enter the provincial competition next year. They also plan to do a project in conjunction with the city's 2013 Centennial celebrations.
