Construction crews are planning to erect a gazebo at the old Martin Browne school site in Lloydminster.
The new green space has been quietly under planning since about February with the background being to provide more accessible recreation areas for residents.
Jason Arden with Jason Arden and Associates that represents the Co-operators Insurance teamed up with the City and local artist Brandi Hofer who is supplying eight foot murals to go on three of the external walls of the gazebo.
“Jason Arden and Associates Limited partnered with EcoPlast Solutions, the City of Lloydminster and Brandi Hofer to put in a gazebo at the Martin Browne location. This gazebo is going to be at the centre of everything that’s going to be happening there. It’s kind of a rest area, so there will be picnic tables. It will be similar to that space at Bud Miller.”
Arden says the background for all of this goes back to the shutdown in 2020 with schools being closed and no activities for anyone to do including children. He said as the City of Lloydminster is working on re-purposing the land around the old Martin Browne school site they readily wanted to lend support to that project and the gazebo is the first phase.
“So it was important to us to be part of this project. We got wind of it and it was something we jumped on right away. A big part of Co-operators is giving back to the community and this was an opportunity for us as a local business to be able to give back to the community.”
Arden says this first phase will not be officially opened for some time yet, but the erection of the structure timed out with Co-operatives Week which is being observed at this time and has been on the national calendar in Canada since 1982.
“I think the backbone of this country actually is run off of co-operatives. I don’t know if many people understand how many of them there are across the country and the way that they are structured. And what they do for the communities that they serve.”
