Communities in Bloom

Merritt wins Communities in Bloom Heritage Award

Lois Ward and Lorraine Macdonald from the City of Merritt and Kris Andersen, program manager for the PCC.

Communities from around British Columbia were rewarded for efforts in enhancing their local environments at the provincial Communities in Bloom awards ceremony held Sept. 24 in Sooke. Five blooms were awarded to Clinton, Fruitvale, Hope, Kaslo, Kelowna, District of Kent, Mission, Qualicum Beach, Sooke and Vernon. Logan Lake, Merritt and Oliver received four-bloom recognition, while Port McNeill and Prince Rupert took home three blooms. First-year participants acknowledged included Lake Country, 100 Mile House, Mackenzie and the Lax Kw’alaams Band Community.

The program inspires communities to enhance the visual appeal of their neighborhoods, public spaces, parks and streetscapes and to preserve heritage and cultural assets. Participation stimulates community pride and encourages tidiness, beautification and environmental initiatives.

This year, the PCC’s Provincial Heritage Conservation Award was presented to the City of Merritt. This special criteria award looks at natural heritage as well as the integration of landscape and streetscapes as they pertain to the community’s built heritage. Recognition is also given for traditions and customs through festivals and celebrations, events and parades, heritage foods and the arts.

In presenting this year’s award, judges recognized the Baillie House and preservation of other heritage buildings within Merritt’s community.

"Merritt also has maintained the historic Coldwater Hotel and a local businessman is restoring a set of buildings once owned and operated by a Chinese family back in the 1800s," says city councilor Shelley Sanders.

Since 1997, more than 80 BC communities have taken part in this program. The Provincial Capital Commission is a Platinum Bloom Sponsor.

Restoration of Baillie House recognized

Merritt’s historic Baillie property may have remained relatively unchanged since the early 1900s, but its taken time, money and energy from a dedicated group of volunteers to keep the house, barn, store, shop and heritage-style garden maintained and safe for future generations to enjoy.

In 1997, the Nicola Valley Heritage Society was formed with an urgent goal to save the Baillie buildings from being torn down. The society’s 45 members drew widespread community support through a petition and now hold a 25-year lease on the property from the city.

Ongoing fundraising efforts helped provide for some much-needed TLC and the 100-year-old buildings now sport new paint and benefit from a maintenance program. In addition to the museum house, the former store is now a visitor information centre and the heritage gardens boast plants taken from old homesteads around the area. Interpretive signage educates visitors to both traditional and First Nations usage of the various botanical specimens.

The heritage property sees about 13,000 visitors each year.