Sept. 7, 1988
Sunpine Forest Products had been gradually expanding its new plant facility west of Sundre. Over the long weekend, the office staff had moved into their spacious building at the new site. According to Sunpine director Ross Creelman, the sawmill, which is the last phase of the plant, was being constructed and an official opening ceremony was scheduled to be held by the end of the year. The dry kiln, planer and the pressure treating facilities were already constructed and operating.
The Creelman family acquired the mill from Revelstoke in the winter of 1987 and later that fall bought land west of Sundre to establish a new site. The new facility would enable Sunpine to manufacture finished wood products in Sundre to be shipped to outside markets. Eastern Canada provides a large market for dry lumber, while markets in Central Canada as well as in England had been added on, the Round Up reported.
Sept. 9, 1998
Sundre was blooming that summer, and judges took notice. On Aug. 29, Sundre was awarded second place in its category in the provincial version of the Communities in Bloom competition. Receiving four blooms on its certificate, the Town of Westlock placed first in the category of communities with populations ranging between 1,500 and 5,000. Sundre received three blooms, which was a notable achievement considering there had not even been plans to enter the contest.
“We thought we were only going to be evaluated, not judged, this year,” said Nita Bartholow, Sundre's assistant administrator. “We found out only a month ahead of time we were going to be judged.” The community was judged based on the following criteria: community involvement; environmental effort; heritage conservation; tidiness; landscaped areas; turf areas; floral arrangements; and urban forestry. Sundre's results revealed high scores in floral arrangements and environmental efforts.
