I’m very surprised that Mayor Jakubeit wonders how to get tourists to this city.
When a great deal of forests in Chemainus were cut down and industry was down and people were leaving the area, the people in town created 44 murals and 10 sculptures. And, though they don’t list actual numbers, on the official site it says that there are “hundreds of thousands of visitors annually.”
Castlegar created a wonderful community of art with over 30 sculptures — drawing lots of tourists (again, no numbers), and Lake Country had over 3,000 paintings on display this year. I was impressed with the enthusiasm, energy and joy at the festival.
We could have beautifully decorated streets, colourful murals, sculpture walks and other art walks. Art can make this city vibrant. Art is why we moved here.
If you want money for infrastructure, you might want to champion the arts. We’ve got a good start.
Lynn Greene
Penticton