Posts tagged with "Spray Park"

Just over 30 kilometres north of Edmonton lies the town of Morinville, Alberta. The 11 square kilometres that comprise the town are inhabited by almost 8600 residents. The 36 minute drive time to the city makes Morinville a desirable location due to this proximity, yet distance from larger centres. In the near vicinity are Namao, Bon Accord, Gibbons, and Legal.

Current Day Jean Baptiste Parish. Image Credit WinterforceMedia

By the late 1800’s French settlements had begun to arise in the area led by Father Morin, the town’s namesake.  Following this influx, a large group of German pioneers arrived, contributing heavily to the town’s unique French and German heritage. Many family lineages still exist today with prominent names such as Riopel, Labonté, St. Laurent, Maisonneuve, Bokenfohr, Krauskopf, Rustemier, and Meyers.  The settlement became official in 1894 upon the opening of its first post office, and shortly after in 1907 the St. Jean Baptiste parish was built.

Main Street Morinville in 1910. Image Credit: Morinville Museum

Always an economic frontrunner, Morinville opened one of the first Royal Bank locations (1910) and a credit union (1940) as well as the original location of Champion Pet Foods (now a world-wide exporter). Presently Morinville is home to many chain and locally run businesses, as well as 18 restaurants, salons and spas, veterinarian clinics, art and music supplies, auto shops, and every other amenity a resident could have need for.

Aerial View of a Morinville Street. Image Credit: Morinville News

The cultural diversity of Morinville’s residents creates interesting and exciting community events. With a highly bilingual population (French/English) even the Catholic church hosts an exclusively French mass on Sundays. There are festivals and events year round expressing a variety of cultural facets including a Jean Baptiste festival, the “In Our Community” Fair, Oktoberfest, and many more.

Here is a promo video for this years Saint Jean Baptiste Festival:

Due to the rural nature of Morinville, the area lends itself particularly well to recreational and outdoor activities. Along with extensive walking and running trails, the city has set up many clubs designed to specifically motivate and encourage recreation in a supportive and social environment. Additionally there is a trout pond, splash park, skateboard park, hockey arena, a curling rink, as well as new outdoor fitness areas.

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The communities of Royal Gardens, Greenfield, and Duggan comprise part of Edmonton’s Southwest, partially bordering the Whitemud Freeway.

Royal Gardens spans 119 Street to 111 Street, and south from Whitemud to 40th Avenue. Bordered by main thoroughfares, this almost exclusively residential community has some of the easiest access to shopping and and public transit in the city. Smaller shops are available in the neighbouring community of Greenfield, while the larger Southgate Centre (as well as the Southgate transit centre and LRT station) are just a stones throw away.

The area has been part of the city since 1912 when it was first dubbed “Royal Gardens”, however the historical significance of the name has seemingly been lost since. It wasn’t until the 1960’s that a push was made for residential development, when many of the area’s single family dwellings were built. The area also has a mix of apartments, apartment style condominiums, row houses, and duplexes; just under half the residences are rental properties.

Royal Gardens Winter Festival. Image Credit: Community League

The neighborhood has a tendency towards higher tenant mobility, yet this is contrasted with strong community involvement in this incredibly social neighbourhood. The hub of the community is the Royal Gardens Park, where the community league hosts a range of year round activities including an annual car rally, a winter carnival (with sleigh rides!), holiday parties, as well as children’s summer camps and recreation programs.

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Sharing Royal Garden’s southernmost border of 40th avenue, is the community of Greenfield, which spans as far south as 34 Avenue, and runs from 119 Street to 111 Street. Though officially titled Greenfield, in honour of Alberta’s fourth premier Herbert Greenfield, the locals sometimes refer to the area colloquially as Petrolia; the small shopping area in the community also bears this name.

Greenfield Spray Park. Image Credit: Community League

The family friendly area also has a very active community league, whose fundraising and lobby efforts led to the installation of a new spray park in 2009. Strong shinny, and soccer program keeps neighbourhood youth active and involved, while parents host and participate in yearly community events and fundraising efforts, such as bingo nights, fireworks, yoga, and tai chi classes.

A unique program of note is the community league’s Greenfield Scholarship. Two scholarships are awarded each year to post-secondary applicants living in Greenfield, in commemoration of former upstanding residents. This program was designed embody the community values of Greenfield locals.

Nearly all the residences are single family dwellings, with a handful of apartment complexes and duplexes comprising the remainder; the rental rate in the area is less than 10%.

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Duggan falls on the East side of Greenfield, sharing a mutual border of 111 Street and carrying on until Calgary Trail. It’s northern border runs along 40th Avenue and goes south to 34 Avenue.

The community league has a full calendar of events on a nearly daily basis. Unique actives on the go include Bridge club, and weekly square-dancing. Duggan also has a large yearly Mother’s Day Soccer Tournament which focuses heavily on sportsmanship and participation. Here’s an exciting recap of last years events, and a great reiteration of Duggan’s community league values:

The neighbourhood is comprised of about sixty percent single family dwellings, with the remainder mostly apartment complexes and row houses; about half of these properties are owner occupied. Duggan has fairly low mobility rates, half of residents have resided in the area five years or more, and most cited no plans to move.

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