Ideas flourished among the 30 people who met in Oak Lake Community Hall, Jan. 16, for the second Oak Lake Community Development Board public meeting.
The OLCDB is seeking changes that can re-vitalize local businesses and stop the bleeding of precious services. Chair of the development board, Wayne Lees guided the meeting.
He said, “We’re seeing a lot of red (lost businesses) and if we don’t do something, in the long-term we’ll see even more red. Things will evolve, but they won’t evolve in the right way.”
He opened the floor for input and people spoke up, some saying they moved to Oak Lake because of its location and quiet nature.
Residents also said that in order to attract newcomers or patrons to a town, it is important to see life going on in a community, to see people out and about – a rarity right now in the town which has lost their gas station, restaurant, lodging and hardware store since 2006.
Sifton councillor Scott Phillips noted, “Oak Lake looks tired. We need to invest in our own place...if you want to make the town a better place.”
He wasn’t alone, with a handful of comments recommending the Oxcart sign, Oak Lake town’s historic emblem, needs some attention.
Phillips also pointed to Deleau’s Farmers’ Market where 500 people showed up, noting that even the most unlikely little places can make their mark. A meeting that started slow, with a gloomy view of lost ground, finished on an optimistic note as some 20 large Post-it Notes were gathered in from the crowd, some with multiple suggestions on ways to bring vitality to the largest centre in the RM of Sifton - Oak Lake.
Business ideas revolved around tours of the fantastic marsh, (Lees suggested it rivals Oak Hammock Marsh in its importance to wild life), historic tours including Griswold’s church; and the opportunity of developing hubs of activity/services – which Lees termed “business clusters”.
Louise Stitt, a partner in the very successful Pumpkin Patch business was asked her opinion on finding ways forward in the community. She stated, “Fill a void ... looking at the resources you have.”
As the meeting drew to a close, Councillor Dave Roulette spoke of a concrete development, an issue that had been front and centre of the December meeting. He reported that architects had recently been to the community hall’s kitchen, measuring it for a potential renovation there.
Stitt, also on the OLCDB noted it was a different crowd at this meeting, with members of the Oak Lake Foundation present and several other community groups represented as well.
Recreation Director/Economic Development Officer Carleigh Babiak was brimming with enthusiasm as she spoke of opportunities she felt the community has. She was quick to promote the first ever Winter Festival coming up in Oak Lake in February.
