North Battleford has won its category in the 2011 provincial Communities in Bloom competition.
The announcement was made in a press release issued this week from the Saskatchewan Parks and Recreation Association.
North Battleford was awarded a "4 Bloom" rating in the population category 10,001to 20,000. It received a Special Mention for Urban Forestry, one of the criteria considered in the judging.
The eight criteria are: tidiness, environmental action, community involvement, heritage conservation, urban forestry, landscape, floral displays, and turf and groundcovers. Judges toured North Battleford in August and gave positive feedback at the time.
In total, 33 communities in Saskatchewan entered the Communities in Bloom competition. As it turned out, North Battleford was the only community in the province to enter the 10,001-20,000 category.
Other Northwest-area communities that participated in the competition this year included Battleford, Hafford, Maidstone, Turtleford, Waseca and Blaine Lake.
The other winning communities were Eatonia, Eston, Indian Head and Maple Creek, with Indian Head being awarded 5 Blooms.
North Battleford and the other four winning communities now will have the opportunity to represent Saskatchewan in the national Communities in Bloom program in 2012. The city will also be recognized at an event acknowledging the provincial winners on Friday, October 21, 2011, during the SPRA's annual volunteer awards banquet.
The 2011 national Communities in Bloom will take place Oct. 29 in Quebec City. At that ceremony the town of Unity will be honored as Saskatchewan's representative in the category of population 1,501 to 3,000.
