In a few days Drumheller, and the nation as a whole, will be celebrating one of the biggest days of the year. On Sunday, July 1, the streets will be alive with patriotism for Canada.

    Downtown Drumheller is going to have a little summer cleaning thanks to the businesses that call the area home. On Wednesday, June 27, downtown businesses will take some time out of their day to give the heart of the town a little sprucing up.
    There is no formal time set for the clean up, but during the day businesses will clean the area in front of their stores.
    “It’s really simple a straight forward. We’re basically organizing the businesses downtown to clean our own doorstep. Cleaning up the fronts of business, sidewalks, gutters. If there’s anything that needs repairs, document it...to get it resolved. The simple stuff can be tackled right away and the bigger stuff we can work on,” said John Shoff, owner of Reality Bytes who are located downtown.
    The goal of the cleaning and documenting needed repairs is to make the area more inviting for tourists and for locals.
    The idea was sparked from a conversation on the Downtown Drumheller Facebook page. A former resident had posted some ideas for improvements and business owners and community members discussed ways to improve the area. Eventually, the idea was suggested to start reinvigorating downtown with a little tidying and a few other quick fixes.
    “I asked if other retailers if they wanted to take a day to clean up. If there was any bigger things we could tackle it then,” said Shoff. “They could clean up, hang a plant, and just help get the town ready for summer.”
    The clean up may not be a one time event either. It is hoped the momentum here will carry on with subsequent downtown clean ups or spread throughout Drumheller.
    “It’d be nice to do it a couple times a year to stay on top of it. I’d love for it to take off and maybe turn into a town wide cleanup to all do our part and spruce up the town for the summer,” said Shoff. “If everyone does their little part, it makes a big difference.”