It was an incredible year for the Village of Rockyford, from hosting 1,000 when it celebrated its centennial, to improvements to its downtown core.
The Village turned 100 in 2019, and Mayor Darcy Burke said it was an incredible highlight.
“The big thing for Rockyford is we turned 100 years old. We hosted about 1,000 people at the end of June. We had a fantastic day and the community came together. It was a homecoming for many people,” said Burke. “ When you plan an event like that you just never know how it was going to turn out and it was just perfect all around.”
The day featured a pancake breakfast, parade, tours, reminiscing, banquet, fireworks and a “dance in the dirt” featuring Drew Gregory and Renegade Station.
On top of the celebrations, the Village took on a number of projects to create a lasting legacy. This included the rehabilitation of the Union Cemetery, and creating a boardwalk on Main Street with historic style lighting and historic walk.
“There are a lot of things to see when people visit Rockyford,” said Burke.
Another milestone for the community was the reopening of its curling rink. The rink had been closed for two seasons for renovations and improvements.
“The board from the Curling Club got some money put together and this year it reopened,” said Burke.
It is a $170,000 project and the community raised funds without any provincial grants. Even after two years, the curlers came back and this year there are 10 teams playing in league.
“I really tip my hat to the Curling Rink Board of Directors for their due diligence and their desire to have the rink open again. To see 10 teams come back to curl, and young people curl, it is a real tribute to what thet wanted to do,” said Burke.
Looking forward to 2020 Burke sees some serious challenges going forward. Many to do with its budget. Recently the provincial government announced that small communities would begin to pay for policing. In the first year that means Rockyford is responsible for paying an extra $5,744.
The village also learned its Municipal Sustainability Initiative (MSI) funding has been reduced by $30,000. This is funding for capital projects. Burke said this means that projects they have been looking at will have to be delayed until the village has funding.
Despite this, he is looking forward to the coming year with all the interesting things that Rockyford has to offer including the 63rd annual rodeo. They are also hosting an outdoor bullarama with a family concert on June 30.
