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It just gets better and better

I took a drive around town last week, specifically to drink in the many changes.

BY LORNE ECKERSLEY

I took a drive around town last week, specifically to drink in the many changes—almost all to the positive—that are happening.

First stop was Millennium Park, where a group of volunteers and Creston Rotary Club members was busy installing seating on the concrete curbs that form the tiers in front of the Elks Club Pavilion. What a brilliant idea. A Rotarian had sent me a photo and it jogged my memory that this plan was in the works, but to just take a minute to sit down and realize how much more pleasurable that lovely bowl will be was a joy.

Later that afternoon I stopped by again, this time to just wander around and think about what a gem Millennium Park is, and how much the efforts of the Creston and Creston Valley Rotary Clubs mean to our Valley. Foremost in my thoughts was the role played by Bill Pfeifer, and how deserving Bill and Dorathy are of the Citizens of the Year status bestowed upon them on Friday night.

As I circled around and came back to Canyon Street from 20th Avenue South, I drove passed the former Aldo’s restaurant and was again tickled to see the SOLD sign. The property’s purchase by Tony and Eunice Mulder paves the way for their son, a Red Seal chef, to open a restaurant, and won’t that be a nice change for a great facility that has sat unused (the restaurant portion, that is) for years.

As I drove westward along Canyon, I smiled at the site of the exterior work now going on at what will be Jimmy Karountzos’s liquor store, and then at Casey’s Community House, where the wrought iron work is gorgeous and the brickwork is nearing completion. A few more feet to the west the finishing touches were going on at the new downtown public washrooms, just in time for Blossom Festival. Let’s hope that the idiots don’t ruin what is a great thing for locals and visitors alike.

My drive on that day ended with a stop at the Ramada, where I checked out the outdoor music area, envisioning many happy Saturday evenings to come this summer, with three months of weekly concerts being organized by the lovely and talented Velle Weitman. The idea of music, along with a beer garden and food service, seems almost enough to confirm that summer is indeed upon us.

On Friday I kicked off coverage of Blossom Festival events with a visit to the Community Complex, where a huge crowd was on hand for the Youth Powwow. By now most readers will have heard the story of vandalism in which one or more dim bulbs took scissors or knives to some of the students’ powwow costumes, which they themselves have sewn. The event took on a special significance, with explanations of how the students overcame their disappointment and set to work to repair the damage in time for Friday’s event. To see hundreds of kids circling the hockey arena floor in time to the traditional drumbeats was a joyous vision indeed.

Later, I photographed the “grand opening” of the public washrooms, and that got me thinking that in my 38 years in the Creston Valley, there hasn’t been a year gone past where someone wasn’t making a plea for such a facility. It took a creative deal between the Town of Creston and the Ralph Casemore/Tanya Wall team to make it happen though. And if you have never thought a washroom could make you smile, check out the little children’s toilet in the loo on the right.

My travels on the weekend took me down to Spectrum Farms, where the amazing Eric Kutzner and his team continue to rejuvenate the property once known as the Endicott Centre. I was there to see the sheep shearing, but couldn’t resist a stop at the market, where I picked up cookies, bagels and a bag of soup mix, all created on site. It is heartening to see how this valuable piece of real estate is being so well used.

The Sculpture Walk connection continues to produce benefits, thanks to the hard work of the local committee, and the addition of the bronze rabbit in the Walkthrough Park and the large steel sculpture on the northwest corner of Northwest Boulevard and Pine Street are inspiring.

I’ll end with a mention about the great Blossom Festival opening ceremony at Prince Charles Theatre, where the aforementioned Bill and Dorathy Pfeifer were honoured, along with teenager Matthew Lengyell, who is a great selection as Junior Citizen of the Year. The soldout auditorium was treated to a terrific evening of music, with Daniel Huscroft being joined by his fiancé, Lindi Ortega, and buddy, JJ Shiplett (and his band). Ortega, who joked that she and Daniel will retire in Creston, was a joy on stage, and Shiplett clearly enjoyed playing before a Creston audience again.