Jasper managed to charm provincial Communities in Bloom judges Gillian Evans and Linda Tomlinson Wednesday, July 28. 

The two judges were welcomed to Jasper in the morning, and received a private tour of the town, where they saw the best of the community. 

While they were unable to comment on what they had decided, Evans and Tomlinson couldn’t hide their excitement at the wine and cheese reception held in the evening of the 28th at the Jasper Artists Guild. 

“I’m thrilled,” Evans said. “We just had a wonderful tour.”

That tour included something in all eight categories the Communities in Bloom is weighted on – tidiness, environmental action, heritage conservation, urban forestry, landscape, turf and groundcovers, floral displays and community involvement. 

“It was excellent,” Evans said. 

One of the things the Communities in Bloom judges look for is that the town is not blocking out natural landmarks. 

“You don’t do things that take away from the natural surroundings,” Evans said. With mountain peaks stretching far above the town on either side of the Athabasca Valley, Jasper surely excelled in that category. 

“It’s all about quality of life, and making the community bloom so it’s a great place to live,” Evans said, and that doesn’t necessarily mean having plenty of flower beds. 

Communities in Bloom encourages every member of the community to get involved, from youth, to seniors, city council and industrial workers. 

“It involves the community as a whole,” Tomlinson said. 

The industrial part of each town is always included in the tour, because Tomlinson said it is not common for towns to decorate or beautify these areas. 

“You don’t go home there at night,” she said. Because customers don’t often go to the door of industrial businesses, most do not strive to decorate those areas. 

The two ladies had lunch in the Lion’s Park, and were happy to see an area of Jasper that visitors might overlook. 

“I’ve always been a tourist, and you only see a certain part,” Evans said. “It was a treat for me to see the whole of Jasper.”

“Driving through, you wouldn’t know it was there,” said Tomlinson of the Lion’s Park. 

On this private tour of Jasper, Evans said she got to see the people of Jasper, and experience lesser known attractions. 

“I think people that live here can be really proud of Jasper,” she said. 

Each community is different to judge. For Jasper, being in a park influences what the buildings can look like, and other aspects. Evans said they also have to take into consideration native plants and vegetation for each different community. 

“Every community is judged for itself,” she said, adding that criteria is based on whether the town does the best they can with the climate they have. 

Two years ago, the two judges were set to arrive in Jasper, but the town cancelled the Communities in Bloom tour at the last minute, and Evans said she was disappointed. 

“We were really pleased that Jasper came back into the program,” she said. 

The official judging will take place September 15, and Evans hopes someone from Jasper will be on hand to hear their decision.