News Release: Sooke awarded top honours as BC “Community in Bloom”

September 18, 2018
[Sooke, BC]

The District of Sooke participated in the British Columbia “Communities in Bloom” program for the eighth time this summer, with judges touring Sooke from July 16 – 18, 2018.

During their time in Sooke, the judges were hosted by members of the Sooke Program of the Arts Committee and traveled through Sooke with municipal representatives, evaluating community efforts related to six categories:

  • Tidiness
  • Environmental Action
  • Heritage Conservation
  • Urban Forestry
  • Landscape
  • Floral Displays

The BC Communities in Bloom program hosted their provincial awards ceremony on September 15, 2018 to recognize all participating communities and announce the results of each evaluation. For the fifth consecutive year, Sooke was awarded 5 Blooms – the highest possible recognition. Special mention was made of the Turf Field project recently completed at Fred Milne park.

Following the announcement of Sooke’s award, Councillor Brenda Parkinson, who chairs the Sooke Program of the Arts Committee and spearheads the Communities in Bloom initiative stated, “I am ecstatic that Sooke has received 5 Blooms once again. This year’s committee worked extremely hard to highlight the beauty and uniqueness of our community and it was wonderful to have staff and volunteers working hand in hand”.

Mayor Maja Tait further congratulated all who contributed to the success of this year’s program, stating “it is always a pleasure to identify and celebrate the many ways our residents, businesses and community organizations come together to make Sooke a place we are proud to call home.”

A comprehensive report outlining tour highlights and suggestions for improvement is expected to be received by District of Sooke Council in the coming weeks.

Please visit the Communities in Bloom website at https://www.bccib.ca/ for further information on the organization.

Media Contact:
Maja Tait, Mayor
Tel: (250) 642-1634
Email: mtait@sooke.ca

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