Rosemère ranks second internationally at Communities in Bloom
This year again, the Town of Rosemère did well at the Communities in Bloom Canadian awards ceremony recently held in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.
Over the years, Rosemère has carved out an enviable position in this competition, having been recognized as one of Canada’s leading towns in its category. These recognitions have earned it a berth in the International Challenge – Medium-Size Towns since 2011. Once again, it has retained its perfect 5-bloom score, finishing second right behind the town of Gemeente Weert in the Netherlands.
In fact, the very tight score earned the Town an honourable mention. "The entire population can rightfully be proud of this success, since the competition’s judges take into account all of a community’s sectors of activity, i.e. commercial, institutional, residential and, of course, municipal,” noted Mayor Madeleine Leduc. It should be mentioned that criteria considered are tidiness, environmental action, heritage conservation, urban forestry, landscape areas and floral displays.
In addition to its five blooms, Rosemère also received a special mention for its Public Banner program, which consists in adorning its main street and municipal buildings with banners in seasonal colours. Reflecting the Town’s environmental awareness, since 2007, these pennants have replaced the traditional hanging baskets of annual flowers, in an effort to save water and reduce greenhouse gas emissions generated by frequent watering operations. Another notable advantage: the pennants also enhance the environment in all seasons.
In fact, the judges found the idea of involving citizens in a drawing contest to produce the next series of banners quite delightful. Held during the summer that has recently drawn to a close, this contest made it possible to uncover new talent that will shortly been unveiled, and whose works our citizens and visitors will be able to admire as early as next year.
It should be recalled that every year since it first participated in the Communities in Bloom competition, Rosemère has earned a different special mention. In the International Challenge, these mentions related to the Hamilton House gardens (2013), urban forestry (2012), and volunteer gardeners (2011).
Finally, we note that Rosemère is part of a very select group of five Canadian towns to have participated in the Communities in Bloom competition every year since this competition was first launched, twenty years ago. Only the best municipalities of each province are eligible to compete while the best on the national level are eligible to participate in the International Challenge. The organization marked this consistent involvement by awarding a medal to each of these five towns.
Communities in Bloom is a Canadian non-profit organization committed to the promotion of civic pride, environmental responsibility and the improvement of the living environment through community involvement and the vitality of a national program. The improvement of green spaces in urban environments is at the heart of its mission. This is perfectly consistent with the considerable importance Rosemère and its citizens attach to their living environment’s distinctive country charm.
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Source:
Town of Rosemère
For
information:
Michel Girouard
Director of Communications
Tel.: 450 621-3500, ext. 1243
Email:
mgirouard@ville.rosemere.qc.ca