Sylvan Lake certainly has a storied history as a tourist mecca, the jewel of Central Alberta, an oasis for relaxation during the long hot days of summer.
Yet Sylvan Lake is so much more now that it’s home to over 13,000 permanent full-time residents.
It’s a vibrant community with schools catering to close to 3,000 students, churches, recreation and cultural facilities, all that a thriving community can support.
The only thing that’s lacking are jobs for everyone who lives here. Our commercial and industrial base is miniscule compared to other communities with equally lengthy histories.
Our problem appears to have been that we grew at the wrong time. While Lacombe or Innisfail grew to populations that proclaimed them regional hubs in the early years of their history, Sylvan Lake’s growth has boomed in the last 15 years.
Why is that important? Because other communities have seen their business cores and job opportunities grow in an era before it was acceptable to travel 15 minutes, a half hour or more to find a pay cheque.
At Monday night’s council meeting we again pondered the growth trend of Sylvan Lake as councillors longed for the past — a time when we had a sand beach.
And they’re willing to spend $100,000 of their budget to try and recreate that memory. Yes, we understand that positive impressions will benefit our tourism sector. After all we’ve spent millions in the past five years sprucing up our lakeshore area, not just so we can attract visitors, but also so we can attract our own residents to an area many say they avoid like the plague during summer months.
Adding a beach, even just pondering how to add the beach, will certainly provide a positive impression among those who like to lay in the sand or watch their youngsters play there. But is it a good use of our money?
By the end of the summer we’ll know quantitatively how much tourism contributes to Sylvan Lake’s economy. That’s because the town, in partnership with the province, is conducting a survey to gather the information.
Lowering the lake level, we’ve heard will not get us a beach back. We’ve also been told the water level is cyclical and will ebb and flow at times uncovering an expanse of sand. Other speculation is that the seawall’s installation has affected that cycle. But how else can we protect the raised road which runs along the waterfront.
All these thoughts roll around. And while they do we happened across a beautiful beach on the lake — Petro Beach of course. Yes, it’s been eroding and encroaching close to the road in the past few years. So close the summer village had to do some ‘armouring’ this winter. And no, it’s not big enough to house all the tourists we attract. But it is an option for those people who Mayor Sean McIntyre knows are travelling to other lakes, such as Gull Lake, because of their beaches.
In the meantime, more effort will be expended to benefit the tourism industry. But our final question is, wouldn’t that money and effort be better directed to assisting other sectors of the economy in Sylvan Lake? It seems we’ve contributed an inordinate amount of tax dollars to boost the investments of a small sector of our community.
In the meantime, if we wait long enough, the cycle will turn, as it appeared to be when we took a brief stroll earlier this week — and the beach will reappear on its own.