Get into the fun of a Whitecourt Park Party

Residents who have recently moved into a new neighbourhood or don’t know their neighbours well will get a hand in building a sense of community in the areas of town where they live. Once in June, July and August, the Town of Whitecourt will be holding Park Parties. “They are asset community gatherings to provide the opportunity for neighbours to socialize, build a stronger sense of community, and enhance the safety in the areas where they live and play. We thought this was something good to come out of COVID-19 where people could start mingling,” explained the Director of Community Services, Chelsea Grande, during last week’s Regular Council Meeting.

Each party will feature resource tables containing various take-home information from local agencies and groups such as the Whitecourt RCMP and Whitecourt Fire Department. “You don’t have to live in the specific neighbourhoods (where the parties will take place) to go. We are just trying to get people together in those neighbourhoods,” said Grande, adding that people joining, who live elsewhere in the community, would get to explore other neighbourhoods that they might not typically hang out in.

“We are starting out with three parties this year. All three will take place from 5:30 to 7:30. The first one is Wednesday, June 22 at Wedow Park,” said Grande. The second party will occur on Wednesday, July 20, at Athabasca Park, and the third will be on Wednesday, August 24, at Pine Park.

When it comes to parks, Whitecourt is no slouch. Twenty playgrounds are situated throughout the community, with fourteen in the valley and six uptown. On top of that list are seven more parks, such as Anniversary Square in downtown Whitecourt, Centennial Park, Memorial Point and Riverboat Park. A map on the town’s website shows the location of every park in the community, making it easy for residents to visit each one.

“The Whitecourt Park Parties are a partnership program between the POWER Group of Whitecourt, the Town of Whitecourt, the RCMP, the Fire Department and the Rotary Club of Whitecourt,” said Grande. The Rotary Club is providing a BBQ for the events. Town councillors will be in attendance to meet and mingle with residents too.

Councillor Derek Schlosser asked how the event would be advertised to reach residents. “It has gone out through inter-agency and in the Community Spectrum. It’s also going to be on the (announcements) sign down on Dahl Drive, and we are also handing pamphlets out in those neighbourhoods, door to door,” explained Grande. “It’s pretty cool, and I hope it’s successful,” said Schlosser. “It sounds like a really fun idea.”

Councillor Braden Lanctot asked about the resources that would be available for residents to peruse and wondered if the CAPTURE (Community Assisted Policing Through Use of Recorded Evidence) program through the RCMP would be one of them. The program is a voluntary registry that residents join, letting the RCMP know that they have home security that includes a camera. When something happens in a particular part of the community, officers would check the database and see where the home cameras are, enabling them to reach out to those residents. His idea to share resources on it was noted.

Councillor Lanctot added that he didn’t realize how many parks were in Whitecourt until he began looking into it. “They are all over the place! We have new places to walk the stroller now,” he said with a big smile. Councillor Lanctot then asked if there was a way to know how many people participated. “When we do these get-togethers that are recreation-based, and we are not selling tickets to them, do we have a way of gauging interest, and how many people come? Just so we know if we need to make it bigger or smaller, or make any changes?”

Grande explained that they would be taking attendance numbers and that there would be an FCSS survey for residents to take part in. She said they would have some kind of door prize for attendees to enter, which would help gather a number of those who came. Dates and locations are Wednesday, June 22 at Wedow Park, Wednesday, July 20 at Athabasca Park and Wednesday, August 24 at Pine Park. Residents from throughout the community are welcome to attend.