In late July our beautiful city was showcased to Matt Robertson and Cody Cacciotti, who represented the judging process for Communities in Bloom.
The judges left very impressed says Hariett Madigan, Chair of Clean Green Beautiful.
"We took them all over the City to give them an overview. On the third day, we wanted to hear if there was anything missing in the evaluation, and they said there was nothing missing.
"Our goal is to really be inclusive because it's everyone in the community, right? So the judges saw how we really came together as a community. They saw collaboration big time, and that's important to them. We successfully demonstrated ongoing initiatives in each category and the judges were blown away by our dedicated volunteers."
Madigan says there were no weak spots and the judges were impressed by everything, especially the involvement of the Indigenous community.
"They hadn't had much exposure to Indigenous participation in other communities, for whatever reason, it hasn't been included in many other cities."
The judges were even given a helicopter ride to get a wide overview of how North Bay looks from the air.
"They just loved that."
The last thing on the agenda was a ride on the Chief Commanda for the judges and volunteers.
"The sunset cruise was the grand finale. What the judges saw were senior staff, representatives from many organizations, and 95 of our volunteers, and they were very impressed with the collaboration and the sense that everybody is included in this community-based effort, and that's what they wanted to see," Madigan told BayToday.
"We will be going in Communities in Bloom next year, that's for sure."
See: City preps for Communities in Bloom judges. Here's how you can help
And: 'Great opportunity to showcase our beautiful city'
Results are expected in late September or early October!
“Communities in Bloom is a friendly competition between cities our own size (50,000 to 100,000)," explained Madigan. 'The judges will be evaluating us on a scale of 1 to 5 blooms. Our goal is to win 5 Blooms (82 to 100%) and move up to the national competition level."
