Where Have We Been? Where Are We Going?

The first question is very easy to answer. The second quite a bit tougher but they could well be intricately joined. Our Heritage Initiative, an umbrella organization comprised of representatives from the Crowsnest Chamber of Commerce, Community Futures Crowsnest Pass, the Crowsnest Historical Society, Bellevue Underground Mine, the Frank Slide Interpretive Centre, the Municipality, Coleman Community Society, and the Bellecrest Association, has been working on initiatives for a decade now to create a future for the Pass by building on our past.

The organization, co-chaired by Fred Bradley and Shar Lazzarotto, has been successful in establishing a heritage route through the Pass complete with route signage. The logo above will identify the route and will also be visible on all highway signage directing traffic in Crowsnest Pass. The program to encourage tourists to"Discover Crowsnest Heritage" is no small accomplishment and will be the envy of many other towns in the province. The organization deserves a pat on the back and could sit back for a bit and revel in this accomplishment but knowing much more has to be done held a workshop Saturday in Historic Downtown Coleman (Parks Canada has designated it a National Heritage Site) to explore ways to capitalize on this project and to determine the steps needed to fulfill our desire in revitalizing Crowsnest Pass through the promotion of our heritage.

Saturday was an absolutely gorgeous day here and would have been a great day spent in the pursuit of the trout that make their home in the Crowsnest River but I am glad I resisted their call and spent it enjoying the excellent presentations and listening to the innovative ideas and suggestions articulated by participants and presenters alike. Aside from the workshop session the highlights had to be the presentations by Randal Macnair Mayor of Fernie, Ted Stilson of Lethbridge Business Redevelopment Zones, and Daryl Cariou Senior Heritage Planner of Calgary. They amazed everyone, I am sure, with what can be accomplished with vision, committment, and investment. We would do well to aspire to what they have achieved in their respective jurisdictions.

We will not get there by following past practices. We will not get there by repeating past mistakes created by our desire to climb out of recession by accepting any proposal that brought minimal investment dollars into our community. The investment community is looking at Crowsnest Pass. It is time we put in the bylaws, procedures, planning, and protocols to insure those investment dollars are used to rebuild our Pass in manner that showcases our uniqueness.

Main street in Crowsnest Pass's National Historic Site