A Letter to Our Local Communities…
Cedar – Yellowpoint – Cassidy – South Wellington
Community Plans & Events, & Canada 150
Dear Friends & Prospective Community Partners,
With this letter I am pleased to bring our ‘Heritage & Beautification’ project to your attention.
The project began when we asked ourselves what we could do for our communities, and the districts of Cranberry and Cedar? And, with Canada’s 150th celebrations on the horizon, how could we remember our past and help beautify our small towns, rural roads and the walking paths between?
A ‘Heritage & Beautification’ project was our best answer. There’s nothing quite like finding a nice empty bench to sit down on during a hot summer day, take some time to relax and look around, talk with an old friend who’s passing by, maybe sip a lemonade and smell a few roses!
We think our communities lend themselves to this rural life and Island approach to living.
And we think that this project offers a way we might work together to enjoy our neighbourhoods, as well as the sweep of the great river and stretch of rolling countryside that reaches through Cedar, Yellowpoint, Cassidy and South Wellington. And too we’ll be looking next door to the Snuneymuxw for their ideas, inviting one and all to work with us.
To date we’ve been well received as we prepare to get underway. The City of Nanaimo has generously donated some 16-18 planters to get the project ‘off the ground’ …and the Wheat Sheaf Pub has agreed to store them all over the next few months, in back of the baseball fields, while our communities decide where they should go!
The Regional District of Nanaimo has also written a very supportive letter – pleased that this initiative complements the recent Cedar Village design workshops, and the Official Community Plan.
Our next step is then to talk with local organizations and businesses, and invite residents to let us know what they’d like – how best to spruce up the communities where the planters will go? And with local economic, tourism and heritage benefits that could follow we’d also like to start a Canada 150 initiative.
We share a long, rich and proud history throughout these rural lands and coast. With this in mind it is our privilege to work with neighbours in our communities, and to further a project that reflects our heritage and remembers those who’ve given so much before us.
The attached poster provides a quick overview and invitation to upcoming public meetings. On April 22nd we’ll begin to look for places for the 16-18 planters we have, and see what we’ll need to get our gardening and greening efforts underway by the summer.
We’d be very pleased then if you might consider coming out to a meeting and share your thoughts and ideas. Or if you can’t at this time perhaps you could pass along this invitation to friends, organizations or businesses who may have an interest.
You can also have a look to our website for regular updates, and of course if you have questions, suggestions, or would just like additional information, do please get in touch.
all the best,
Laurie Gourlay
President, VICCS
March 30, 2015