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The Mayor of the City of Grande Prairie, Jackie Clayton, led the city through a tumultuous 2021 and despite many challenges, she still sees a string of successes that will point the city toward a more optimistic 2022.
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For Clayton, he will always remember 2021 as the year the COVID-19 pandemic had a lasting impact on the city’s people, businesses and social agencies.
“It seemed like there was always something,” Clayton said. “We never got our heads out of the water, we started to feel fine, and then the next wave came.”
2021 brought stress for families, difficulties for businesses, and challenges for nonprofits in the community.
On a personal note, Clayton says the passing of former City Councilor Helen Rice in November was another shocking moment for her in 2021, and brought to the fore the positive influence Rice had on the community.
“The passing of Councilwoman Helen Rice was important, not just for me and my fellow elected officials, but for our community and for people across the province,” Clayton said.
Although it was a difficult year for everyone, Clayton says the city also made positive strides in several tangible ways.
To help offset the economic malaise created by the pandemic, the city opportunistically decided to go ahead with its increased capital investment in infrastructure and services.
Clayton says the city was able to leverage $ 37.1 million in grants from the provincial and federal government, which helped the city pay just twenty cents on the dollar for a number of projects related to road improvement, trail improvements, crosswalks, and storm water drainage.
Grant money is also helping the city build a number of new facilities such as the Reception and Activity Center, North Bike Skills Park, the Coordinated Care Campus, and the Downtown Street Rehabilitation and Landscapes Project.
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“When the province or the federal government offers project funding, they look for out-of-the-box projects,” Clayton said.
“For us, these projects were on the books and unfunded or were going to be funded later,” Clayton said.
Clayton also points to the opening of the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital and GPRC becoming the Northwest Polytechnic, as big steps forward that will help the city create jobs, skilled workers and innovation.
Clayton believes that another positive side of COVID is that it has created better working relationships between different cities and municipalities.
“To be successful, we must work together, and I think the relationship in the region between Mayor Potter, Reeve Beaupre, Reve Olsen and myself is very strong right now,” Clayton said.
Clayton says he will also fondly remember 2021 through a series of community events and organizations that used creativity to overcome the lingering effects of the pandemic.
Clayton was inspired by the resilience of groups like the Grande Prairie Regional Tourism Board and the Grande Prairie Art Gallery, who still found ways to attract visitors during COVID.
Clayton also feels that the Bear Creek Music Festival in August was another positive turning point in 2021 that brought the community together.
“We can still do fun things,” Clayton said, “things that are important to the fiber of our being and our community.”
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Another significantly positive moment in 2021 for Clayton was Orange Shirt Day in September for National Truth and Reconciliation Day.
“I was really proud of our community, of how we support each other and support the indigenous members and leaders of our community,” Clayton said.
Looking ahead to 2022, as pandemic uncertainty continues, some economic indicators have Clayton cautiously optimistic for the next few years.
“Home construction has increased for 2021, compared to 2020, and even slightly more than 2019. Drilling rig activity has increased and we see the housing market start to move,” Clayton said.
To end the year, Clayton wishes to wish everyone in the city, the business community and the people of the region a Happy Holidays and a fruitful 2022.
“I believe that 2022 is the year that we will see a lot of hard work materialize, and we will see our community and our region take another turn on other successful years ahead,” said Clayton.
Reference-www.dailyheraldtribune.com