By Shawn Jeffords, www.theobserver.ca The Observer
Sarnia has captured the prestigious Five Blooms ranking at the annual Communities In Bloom competition in Vaughan.
Coun. Anne Marie Gillis said the community unexpectedly took home the honour in its first year in the national competition. Sarnia needed a score of at least 82 to snare all five blooms. The city won the award Saturday convincingly with a score of 87.6, besting some larger cities like London, Gillis said.
“I’m unbelievably ecstatic,” she said. “It’s nice to see all the work the community did get recognized.”
Sarnia was also competing against other municipalities with 55,000 to 150,000 people in the national competition. The city failed to win that category, with the prize ultimately ending up in Kamloops, B.C. Still, it was a great effort, Gillis said.
“We were able to go nose-to-nose with cities like Kamloops that have been in the competition since the beginning, and have more money to play around with,” she said. “I think that’s pretty good.”
Judges Jim Baird — a retired commissioner of planning and development from Saint John, NB — and Gérald Lajeunesse — chief landscape artist for the National Capital Commission in Ottawa — evaluated Sarnia in August in eight categories: tidiness, environmental awareness, community involvement, heritage conservation, urban forest management, landscaped areas, floral displays and turf and ground covers.
The city will not compete next year but will instead host the provincial Communities in Bloom conference from Sept. 24-26. It will give the city a chance to showcase its beauty to delegates from across the province, Gillis said.
“We’re going to really focusing on doing it up right,” she said.
Gillis’ long-term goal is to enter the Communities in Bloom’s international competition by 2014, she said. Being part of the national competition will help bring the exposure needed to earn an invitation.
Observer Article ID# 1917435
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