The Battleford and District Parks and Recreation Board has been discussing the possibility of moving the Battleford Parade from its usual Friday-of-the-Handcraft-Festival slot to Canada Day. That would include moving the fireworks date as well.
The possibility was discussed at the March 17 meeting of the board as an item of business arising from the minutes and has been tabled until the next meeting.
The meeting minutes of the Feb. 18 stated the board had been asked by the Battle River Settlement Committee to move the fireworks and parade date to July 1.
It was in 2013, its 30th anniversary, that the parade route was changed to form up and end at Fort Battleford, rather than at the St. Vital School grounds. The move to Fort Battleford was made to allow for the Battle River Settlement Foundation Inc. and Friends of the Fort to hold some activities at the Fort in conjunction with the parade.
The Battle River Settlement Foundation Inc. is an umbrella organization developed locally to preserve, protect and interpret for the public, the historic Battle River Settlement area which includes Telegraph Flats on the Battle River, Territorial House "Government House" foundation, the Land Registry Building and Colonel Otter Park. The Friends of Fort Battleford, which falls under this umbrella, operates the visitor centre at Fort Battleford, co-ordinates Urban Treaty Days and helps out with Curious Events, weapons demonstration and other events at Fort Battleford.
At the March meeting, the recreation board also talked about finding out if the juried provincial craft show, Dimensions, that used to be debuted at the annual Saskatchewan Handcraft Festival in Battleford each year could be brought back.
According to the Saskatchewan Craft Council, Dimensions came into being when the late Alex Dillabough, mayor of Battleford, lobbied the Government of Saskatchewan for some promotional assistance linking craft and the tourism industry. Exhibitions were organized by the Saskatchewan Department of Industry and Commerce in 1974 and 1975 in conjunction with the Handcraft Festival. The newly formed Saskatchewan Craft Council provided a jury in 1976, and the first Premier’s Prize was awarded in 1977. From those beginnings, until 2009, Dimensions was presented annually. In 2011, it became a biennial exhibition.
It continued to tour the province, however its appearance in the Battlefords now takes place at the Chapel Gallery in North Battleford, rather than the Alex Dillabough Centre in Battleford where the premier's prize and people's choices awards ceremonies attracted provincial attention.
