Residents of Ponoka were invited to the Kinsman Community Centre this afternoon (Oct. 26) to look at the Town’s New Downtown Action Plan, and were impressed with what they saw.

Road upgrades, wider sidewalks and river valley improvements were among many projects highlighted.

Director of Planning and Development for the Town of Ponoka Tim Schmidt was particularly encouraged with the feedback and excitement surrounding the provincial building downtown.

“The provincial building downtown is a heritage building and quite prominent, which is adjacent to our old town office site. It gives us the opportunity to highlight the provincial building and create a civic plaza.”

One concern that came up was from long-time resident Rick Welch, who’s worried with the Town trying to attract larger businesses.

“We can over saturate ourselves. Now I see, across from Shoppers where Busted Ladies used to be, a big sign saying I.D.A. Can we handle another drugstore? I like Jamil at Ponoka Pharmacy, he’s great. I don’t like the big pharmacies.”

Schmidt added it’s a day to celebrate the downtown planning success over the last 11 months and the approval from town council, allowing them to get started on the revitalization of downtown.