With a soft “Hallelujah,” dozens of deviled eggs and the quick clip of a purple ribbon, the new Boyle Municipal Centre officially opened its doors to the community on Oct. 13.
About 60 people from all over the region joined local officials and residents in the opening ceremony, which included a tour of the building, a light lunch and music from local artist Tatyana Beer.
Village of Boyle Mayor Bob Clark said it was a “wonderful turnout” for a facility that was built with the community’s future in mind.
“A great addition – I think it went over very, very well with the community at large,” he said in an interview. “We built it not for just today, but for an opportunity to grow. You know, it’s a little oversized in some places, but that’s for the community to grow, and it’ll be used.”
The $5-million centre houses the Boyle Regional Library, the Seniors’ Drop-In Centre, the Boyle Archives, the municipal office as well as the village’s council chambers. The facility has been open since June 13, when staff from the library and municipal office moved in.
Nearby dignitaries joined the Village of Boyle’s representatives celebrating the milestone, including Edmonton-McClung MLA Lorne Dach, Summer Village of Bondiss Mayor Peter Golanski and Athabasca County Reeve Doris Splane.
“Each of the above-mentioned provincial and local governments have made a very significant contribution to the funding of our new facilities,” said Robert Bourassa, the president of the Boyle Seniors Drop-In Centre, during his speech. “Without their support, and the support of many local businesses, organizations and individuals – this facility would still be an idea rather than the reality we see today.”
Dach said Boyle should be extremely proud of its new municipal centre, and offered his congratulations to everyone involved in building it.
“It’s an important day for your community, and by community I mean the various municipalities that make up this region and the partnership behind the Boyle Municipal Centre,” Dach said during the ceremony. “Folks who live in rural areas know well what partnership means. You just call it being good neighbours. It’s second nature to come together to contribute to common goals.”
Clark reflected on all the work that was needed to make the facility come to life. During the ceremony, he said the project was first broached as early as 2006, when the community was looking at getting a new municipal office. He said that after doing some ground work, they found it was not feasible at that time. After the RCMP’s integrated traffic unit moved into their old building, the idea was revived.
“Lo and behold, today we’re going to cut the ribbon on this beautiful new building,” he said.
Funding for the building was provided by several sources. Athabasca County gave $500,000 for the library and senior’s drop-in. Another $350,000 came from the Alberta Community Partnership program, and $10,000 each came from Meawatha Beach and Bondiss. The Boyle and District Seniors Association also raised $30,000 from their Elvis concert fundraiser.
The library received $25,000 from Pembina Pipeline Corporation for the children’s section, $4,000 in computers and desks from Enbridge, and $3,500 cheque for furniture and equipment from the TransCanada Corporation. The library committee also gathered at least $50,000 from grants and donations.
Athabasca County Reeve Doris Splane touched upon the “many hours of planning, and then the following hours of hard work” put into the facility in her speech at the ceremony.
“Today is a proud day for the Village of Boyle,” she said. “A dream has become a reality.”
She also noted Boyle chief administrative officer Charlie Ashbey, a former county councillor who she said supported the facility even before making the move to the village.
“Charlie was a real support to myself and supporting the needs of Boyle when he was still a county councillor,” she said.
Clark added during the interview that staff put in a lot of hours getting everything done and moved into the new building.
“It’s going to be a relief that it’s all finished, that’s one thing,” he said. “With the new facilities, the library’s doing really well … And the seniors are going to be really happy in their building once they get every little thing done.”
Cheri Grabski, former village councillor and chair of the Boyle Public Library, said this is the first specifically-designated space for the library. She noted the different roles libraries now fill, providing children’s programming, tourism information, disaster services, résumé support, internet access – all in addition to the regular book lending program.
“We’ll provide partnerships with work, school and other organizations, because we can provide a safe and friendly space that welcomes everyone,” she said. “Our job is to foster a thoughtful community.”
