Over the years, one of the recurring complaints about Estevan has been the appearance of the city.
It鈥檚 been called a dusty, dirty community with an abundance of unkempt properties. There are too many gravel roads and too many gravel parking lots. The parks are not well-maintained. And there are too many areas where esthetics seemingly have not been a priority.
Some of the complaints have not been valid, and have been the musings of perpetual malcontents. Other comments are mere hyperbole. But a lot of the complaints have been legitimate.
We have never accused Estevan of being ugly or unappealing. There are parts of the city that are very attractive. But beautification hasn鈥檛 always been a local priority.
It appears that the City of Estevan is making efforts to shed this reputation.
The hiring of Rod March as the city鈥檚 parks manager was a big step forward. March has quickly proven himself to be a strong manager with a lot of good ideas to enhance the appearance of Estevan鈥檚 parks.
The medians on Souris Avenue North will look much better once the project is finished. The paving stones make a big difference. Boulevards are starting to look better, too.
The promotion of Norm Mack to the roads and drainage manager portfolio has also helped out with Estevan鈥檚 appearance. When Mack was promoted five months ago, most people applauded. He鈥檚 a well-known local resident with nearly three decades of experience with the City of Estevan. Mack is also easy to interact with, and knowledgeable and passionate about the community.
But he wants to see the city looking better, too. Witness the Operation Clean Sweep cleanup campaign. He鈥檚 not the only one responsible for Clean Sweep, or the asphalt patch program happening in the city, but he deserves his share of the credit for the initiatives.
And while the weather has been ideal for street sweeping, Mack also deserves credit for efforts to get the street sweepers out early, rather than waiting for the traditional street cleaning season to begin.听
It鈥檚 going to take a lot of work over the years to make a big difference. To borrow the old clich茅, 鈥淩ome wasn鈥檛 built in a day.鈥�
If the renewed push is to be successful this time, then it will need consistent support. It can鈥檛 be abandoned after two or three years. Steady investment, including taxpayer dollars, will be required for the parks and the pathways, for tree planting initiatives, and for other efforts to keep Estevan鈥檚 appearance on a gradual upswing.
With the 2016 Saskatchewan Summer Games coming to Estevan, there is a lot of talk about the city looking great for the event and the visitors it will bring to the city.
But beautification can鈥檛 end with the Games. Hopefully, the resolve to have Estevan look great won鈥檛 end with the Games, either.
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