CULTURAL MASTER PLAN

2014 STATUS REPORT

Town of Stony Plain

Culture is an important resource in building vibrant, resilient and sustainable communities. Stony

Plain embraces arts and culture and aspires to become a more creative community. The creation of the cultural master plain in 2012 demonstrates

our commitment to this vision. Stony Plain is dedicated to enhancing arts and culture within our community and is working to ensure the contents

of the document are achieved.

The cultural master plan is an important document as it provides

the vision for culture and focuses on how to achieve this vision.

The master plan identifies 4 goals for cultural development with

29 recommended actions developed to be phased in over ten years.

The Town of Stony Plain along with its Cultural Roundtable is pleased

to share this update of our activities for 2014. The activities and

achievements highlighted in this report reflect our ongoing focus

of providing support for the arts and cultural sector.

Learn more about how the future of arts and culture will be

shaped in the community with the Town of Stony Plain

Cultural Master Plan at stonyplain.com/culture

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WHAT WAS ACCOMPLISHED

IN 2014?

CULTURAL SUMMIT

On May 14 the Cultural Development Office and the Cultural Roundtable (CRT) brought together over 145 members of the region to witness an evening of culture unleashed. The event, held at the Heritage Pavilion, was the first annual Cultural Summit. The Summit, which is a mandated event, was comprised of local food, art, dance, music, cultural industry, spoken word, drama and heritage. Guests were led room to room throughout the evening and in each treated to a new array of experiences to tempt their senses. The evening was both a showcase of the region’s wealth of culture and a testament to the accomplishments brought forth via the Cultural Master Plan since 2012.

At the culmination of the evening a creative annual report outlining the value of arts and culture to the community, the responsibilities of the CRT, accomplishments in 2013 and upcoming projects of 2014 was given out to attendees. The report was avaliable online at stonyplain.com/culture, at the Town Office and Visitor Information Centre, and at multiple community events.

CULTURE DAYSOver the weekend of September 26-28 92 organizations in 50 communities celebrated Culture Days. Stony Plain celebrated as one of 5 Feature Celebration Sites chosen throughout the province. There were 18 events in Stony Plain, planned by a committee made up of members from the Stony Plain Public Library, the Parkland Potters’ Guild, the Multicultural Heritage Centre, Stony Plain & Parkland Pioneer Museum, and the Town of Stony Plain.

The Town produced the marketing and planned the kickoff Street Concert. 51 Avenue was alive with Canadian talent as 5 Albertan acts rocked the stage. Artists included Scenic Route to Alaska, Alex Vissia and Martin Kerr; the community participated in a sidewalk chalk art challenge, interactive art tents, and enjoyed amazing food truck fare.

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ABORIGINAL DAY PARTNERSHIP AND AMBASSADOR PROGRAMThe second annual Youth Ambassador Program, planned in conjunction with the Aboriginal Day committee, was a successful evening honouring 16 upstanding youth citizens from surrounding First Nations. The banquet room at the Stony Plain Golf Course was full with 75 guests and alive with sounds of Canada’s heritage as prayers were said and honour songs played. Each ambassador was presented with a ribbon shirt or dress, a Métis sash, and a framed portrait and biography of their accomplishments; and each was applauded as they paraded in the Grand Entry ceremonies of Aboriginal Day the next morning.

CANADA DAY

For the second year in a row Stony Plain was honoured with the opportunity to host a Citizenship Ceremony in partnership with Citizenship and Immigration Canada. Over 80 New Canadians gathered amongst dignitaries and more than 300 spectators to become citizens. At the end of the ceremony a birthday cake was cut in honour of Canada’s birthday and everyone was treated to delicious cupcakes, both prepared by local business Sugarleaf cupcakes.

After the ceremony concluded visitors were welcomed to enjoy the Canada Day activities happening around Town. These included live entertainment on Blueberry Stage, Stony Plain Art Walk, the Stony Plain Show & Shine, and the Kids Zone.

Canada Day was planned and implemented in partnership with the Department of Community Services and community partners the Stony Plain & Parkland Pioneer Museum, Stony Plain Art Walk, and Stony Plain Show & Shine.

COLOUR THAT BRIDGE

For the second time the Cultural Roundtable participated in the Stony Plain-Kinsmen Farmers’ Days Rodeo and Exhibition by placing a float in the parade. The float represented the red bridge in Rotary Park and assisted in promoting the Colour that Bridge program for the 2014 season. Over 1000 flyers explaining how to become involved in the program, along with 300 organic lollipops, were given out along the parade route.

All 19 of the town bridges are now painted a vibrant colour offset by the beautiful nature around it. The CRT is grateful for all of the effort and work that the community has put into this program. It is the people who come out for projects like this that make Stony Plain the amazing place it is.

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CHRISTMAS ORNAMENT PROGRAM

A new commemorative Christmas ornament program was started in partnership with the Parkland Potters’ Guild. The Guild created 500 hand crafted clay ornaments stamped with the Town of Stony Plain logo and the community was able to claim one via a coupon included in the Winter Experiences and Events Guide.

TRI-REGION TOURISM PARTNERSHIP

The ongoing partnership between the Town of Stony Plain, Parkland County, and the City of Spruce Grove allowed the Tri-Region Tourism initiative to apply for funding from Travel Alberta’s Cooperative Marketing program. Successful in this application the partnership worked towards a new website, regional map and informational brochure that will be completed in early 2015.

CultureFWD

CultureFWD is a networking initiative with the goal of helping our community to understand creative industry, its role in the region, and its positive impact on the economy. CultureFWD recognizes innovative ventures in the creative economy and provides a social setting to discover opportunities for further growth. The creative class gathers quarterly to connect creative entrepreneurs and workers to network and do business. Two CultureFWD events were held in 2014, May 14 during the Cultural Summit and October 23 during Small Business Week.

During each event local creative industry contributors are asked to tell attendees their story. These success stories are captured on video and used as marketing through posting on the town website, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

BANNER PROGRAM

The banner program was expanded through the installation of 12 new banners at Heritage Park.

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New Murals

• In partnership with the Stony Plain United Church, “Reflections”, a new mural depicting the life story of Mrs. Cornelia Lucinda Wood was unveiled in November. The original mural of Mrs. Wood, which was decommissioned when the building it was on was renovated, was not recreated in this project, rather reimagined. Mrs. Wood’s significant life achievements, contribution to the Town of Stony Plain/region and ongoing legacy are explored in the mural.

• “The Project of Heart” a mural created by the Stony Plain Youth Centre and community youth was brought into the program as an official mural, and placed on the west side of the Youth Centre building. The mural was part of the Project of Heart program, an inquiry based, and hands-on, collaborative, inter-generational, artistic journey seeking truth about the history of Aboriginal people in Canada.

Maintenance

The maintenance program continued and saw the restoration of “The Evolution of Junior Golf” and minor repairs to “The Book”, “The First Peoples”, “The Life and Times of Murray & Esme Byers”, and “Many Faces, One Heart”.

MURAL TOURS

Throughout the summer season the Multicultural Heritage Centre held 9 horse and wagon mural tours on behalf of the Town. On average the tours were 72% full, and participants reported learning about the tour from various sources including the Live out Loud Summer Guide, the Stony Plain Reporter, and social media.

MURAL PROGRAM

The Murals Program was initiated in 1990 to tell our story, keep our heritage alive, and revitalize our downtown area. Magnificent outdoor paintings, currently numbering over 35, have been created by artists from across Canada and are located throughout the town.

Persons and events depicted in the murals are real, with many of their immediate family members still living in our town. We still have past and present stories to tell with many more coming up in the future!

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Social Media Presence

In an effort to better engage the community, potential visitors and new residents The Town of Stony Plain Facebook page was launched in July by the Cultural Development and Community Services departments. Since then the page likes have more than doubled and the community is interacting with posts and the Town on a regular basis.

COMMUNITY FUNDING

Three local organizations, the Stony Plain & Parkland Pioneer Museum, the Multicultural Heritage Centre and the Visitor Information Centre (Stony Plain & District Chamber of Commerce), collectively received over $185,000 in operational funding through the Cultural Development department.

COMMUNICATIONS

Increased Website Information

The Cultural Development section of the town website has been expanded to include information on ongoing programs and local events.

Live out Loud Experience and Events Guides

The Summer Experiences and Events brochure program was continued and expanded from 2013. This year the events calendar started in May rather than July, the interior included a section on annual events, 10,000 copies were printed and distributed locally by unaddressed ad mail, through mail to Visitor Information Centres (VIC) across the province in partnership with our local VIC (Stony Plain & District Chamber of Commerce), at the Town Office and VIC, via local businesses and at various events. The guide was available to view or download online at stonyplain.com/culture and all of the events were uploaded to the Town’s online community calendar.

A Winter Experiences and Events guide was a new initiative this year highlighting all of the amazing things happening throughout the off-season. Similar in design and distribution to the Summer Guide, the winter version ran from October-April and featured local organizations and annual events.

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T: 780.963.2151 W: stonyplain.com

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