Sackville shone in 08, much to look forward to in 09, says mayor

2008 will go down in Sackville's history books as the year the town was celebrated for its diverse arts and culture scene.
And Sackville Mayor Estabrooks said she couldn't be prouder of the community she calls home.
"I believe Sackville had one of its best years with its designation as the Cultural Capital for 2008," said Estabrooks in an interview earlier this week where she talked about the highlights of '08 and plans for the coming year.
"It was fantastic. We were blessed with a lot of musical groups, cultural aspects and sculptures . . . I think it was a wonderful year," she said.
"Sackville residents, and the entire region, were exposed to some of the best bands, music, art and culture that one would only see in the larger centres."
Particularly noteworthy, she said, is that even with tourism numbers down throughout much of the Maritimes during the summer season, Sackville's numbers were up.
"There was much activity in the town and business merchants indicated that their summer especially was excellent," she said.
The mayor was also especially impressed with the visit this fall from representatives from Morden, a town in Manitoba that shared the Cultural Capital title with Sackville last year.
"The visit from the Morden folks and the presentation of the play The Long Journey Home (a one-man play about the corvette warships HMCS Morden and HMCS Sackville), I believe, was one of the best events of the year."
Estabrooks said it's always a great experience to bring people from outside the region into the community, who tend to view the town with a fresh perspective.
"Sometimes we don't always realize what we have here but other folks can sometimes remind us of what we have to offer," she said.

Highlights of '08
Other events that brought hundreds of people into Sackville in 2008 were Sappyfest, an ever-growing summer music festival hosted by Struts Gallery, and the annual Fall Fair, particularly the agricultural day at the Doncaster farm.
"That brought in a large number of folks from outside the town and created lots of interest with the various agriculture events."
The new outdoor farmers' market on Bridge Street this past spring and summer was also a highlight of the year, said Estabrooks.
"It really opened up the area and again made people aware of what we have to offer."
She said there are plenty of opportunities for the farmers' market to expand even further and is an initiative she'd like to see continue in 2009.
"I think it really added to the atmosphere in the community."
As for the business world in Sackville, Estabrooks said she is very impressed with the positive energy that has been developing in the past couple years by local merchants, which she believes has resulted in less empty storefronts in the downtown area.
As well, there has been continued growth in the industrial park with a new business expected to open there in '09 and further land being developed for future growth.

Over the next year, town council will be looking to establish an economic development board, made up of the general public, to generate new ideas on attracting new business to the area.
Estabrooks said she believes the key to economic growth is networking.
"I'm convinced that today, advertising is great, but networking will bring you even greater results," she said, noting more involvement in trade shows and tourism fairs is important.

Decisions, decisions . . .
2008 brought in a new town council - made up of four incumbents and four new councillors and a new mayor. The first few weeks following the May election were spent reviewing and becoming familiar with staff and their departments, including their programs and budgets, said Estabrooks.
"There were various projects and budget items that the new council had to review and make a decision on," she noted.
Sackville's dream of a new track and field facility, as well as co-hosting an international sporting event in 2010, came to an end in '08 after town officials continued to receive no response from the city of Moncton or the provincial and federal governments on funding approval.
"This was not an easy decision but one that had to be made," she said. "Council agreed that Sackville could not afford to build a track on its own."
Council also agreed to delay long-awaited renovations on town hall and look at the feasibility of including a new municipal office as part of the police/fire hall building instead.
A decision was made by council this fall to adopt a policy in which the town will now reveal the price it pays for land purchases.
"I believe this is a right step for council to provide this information and to be more open on large capital expenditures such as land."
The new council also worked on a car pooling initiative, continued its doctor recruitment efforts, established a policy to ban bottled water within municipal buildings, and is currently working on plans to host a climate change conference next month.

What to expect in 2009
Although two main priorities will top council's agenda in the new year - the water tower and the new police/fire building - Estabrooks said 2009 will be a time when council will be keeping a close watch on the town's revenue and expenditures.
"It will be a year of keeping a close eye on things," she said. "We have to look to the future because we don't know what's going to happen in 2009 or 2010. I don't think we've really seen the full impact of the economic downturn yet so I think we have to really watch ourselves."
This coming year, a review will be conducted of the various programs and services offered in the community, including staffing, she said.
"We really have to look at whether there are services that we could look at cutting back because we never know when there could be a reduction in our tax base," she said. "And if we're not prepared, we could be in some trouble."
The mayor said she is optimistic infrastructure funding will be coming in the new year for the long-awaited water tower, a project that has been in the works for more than five years.
"I'm hoping we're going to hear soon," said Estabrooks, who noted that provincial representatives recently visited the proposed site for the water tower off Hesler Drive.
The town will also move forward in 2009 on planning for the new police/fire station on Main Street (across from Moneris Solutions), which could also house town hall.
Council will also be looking to adopt a new municipal plan this spring, which will open up more land for future development, said Estabrooks.
The various reports and studies that will hit council's agenda in 2009 will also be up for review - including the town's recreation master plan, the downtown redevelopment vision document, and a review of Renaissance Sackville's mandate.
"This will give us a good overview of what we have and where we need to go from here."
2009 will also bring a new vision from council, who will prepare a strategic and sustainability document that will guide the town as it moves ahead.
"This won't be something that will be carved in stone but it will provide a guideline for us . . . I think if you don't have a plan, you're in trouble."