2020 was a challenging year for individuals, businesses and municipalities across the world.
The truly unusual year saw many conflicts and problems crop up that had be dealt with in new ways.
Sylvan Lake Mayor Sean McIntyre called 2020 a “challenging year,” but one with many positives to go with those challenges.
“I’m the type of person to always look at the positives… So for me it is important to really look at how far we have come.
“It is important to look at and really celebrate the positives,” McIntyre said.
McIntyre says that despite the numerous challenges the last year brought, the community banded together like never before.
He said it was encouraging to see the support the community gave each other, from donations to charities, birthday parades and the drive to support local business.
A major challenge the Town of Sylvan Lake had to contend with in the last year was the crowds of people during a pandemic. To ensure the safety of residents and visitors, and to follow public health requirements, the Town created a pedestrian zone.
The Town also invested in an increase in signage to remind everyone to physically distance themselves from others, and increased cleaning.
“We really had to change how we operate,” McIntyre said.
With the challenges the Town faced, they also saw successes with the completion and start of many capital projects.
In 2020, the Town had many construction projects on the go. The reservoir and pump station construction was completed as were some “significant redevelopment projects” and upgrades to the skate park.
McIntyre says the infrastructure updates were important to residents to be completed, and had the added benefit of providing jobs in a difficult year.
“In 2021 we will balance our projects off of what we did in 2020,” McIntyre said, adding more infrastructure projects are on the horizon which will “keep people working.”
McIntyre described 2020 as a “weird, scary and lonely” year, but says locals must look to the future.
“We need to focus on the future we are building together. We have to remember it won’t always be like this.”