INNISFAIL – Council is moving to create better first impressions for the town.
And that means cleaning up the unsightliness at both the main east- and west-side entrances to the community. This includes the area around the QEII entrance in the east and the one at the intersection of Highway 54 and 42nd Street in the west.
"I think it is a big deal for the community,” said Coun. Doug Bos following council’s Agenda and Priorities Meeting on Jan. 2. "Our town doesn’t look good from any entrance coming in to town. As residents we kind of have a blind eye to it now. When we pull into Innisfail we don’t look at that stuff.
"But a first-time person coming into Innisfail says, ‘this doesn’t look so great,’” he said.
During the Jan. 2 meeting Bos told council that before Christmas he took several photos of both the west- and east-side entrances into town. He said he was motivated by prior suggestions by other councillors about bringing in a bylaw to clean up derelict properties. However, he said if the town is serious about fixing up unsightliness in the town the first priority should be the entrance areas to create a better first impression for every visitor to the community.
"Do people want to settle in a town that looks like this, their first impressions? Do I want to start a business in a town that looks like that?” said Bos.
He said the town could start with the simple and inexpensive fix of selective tree plantings. He said it would take eyes in a different direction, and would not offend owners of highway frontage properties.
"You can definitely train someone’s eyes to go in a different direction,” said Bos.
Mayor Jim Romane said he agrees with Bos but took special aim at the 42nd Street western entrance that bypasses the West Gate Industrial Park.
"I think there could be some things done to that entrance on 42nd Street coming in from the west that would certainly improve first impressions, and on the QEII side I would love to see some way of dressing up the edge of town,” he said, adding he would like to see aesthetic improvements for the entire 42ndStreet side of the industrial area instead of focusing on individual properties inside the industrial park.
Business owners in the park have raised objections over the newly amended Landscaping Bylaw and its requirements for individual landowners, and Romane is suggesting the 42nd Street option may be a solution to address their concerns.
"To me that makes more sense than anything, and that is what we are hoping, to bring it up in more discussions in the meeting with that group,” said Romane. "It will be interesting to see what comes of it.”
In the meantime, town staff is already looking for solutions. Todd Becker, the chief administrative officer, said one initiative that is soon coming to improve first impression aesthetics for the community is the town’s Wayfinding Signage Project, a three-phase program that will start with the first signs going up in spring. They will include directional signage to the different amenities in town, followed by trail signage, with the final phase being entrance signage.
"We should make sure the eyes are drawn to the parts of the community that are quite pleasing to help with first impressions,” said Becker.
