Once again, the businesses in Campbellton have rallied together to get some action on improving the oldest part of the city.
It seems like this is a regular occurrence. Like clockwork, the Campbellton business community has to rattle some chains to get City Hall to notice them. Previously, it had to do with crime and prostitution. Other times, it was just getting decent services or some beautification.
It begs the question, when will they get the attention they demand? Can there be anyone in the city who is not familiar with the challenges Campbellton faces? Given that nothing much changes, are we to conclude that nobody at City Hall cares? That’s hard to believe, yet nothing happens.
The contrasts are blatant. Willow Point gets millions spent on improvements but there’s nothing available for Campbellton. Certainly, Campbellton got the new Inland Island Highway. That was a provincial project. Move a block east and you get the hodge-podge of commercial, light industrial and residential properties and dusty old streets with few sidewalks and a lot of ditches.
Campbellton is not as popular for residential development as the south end of the city. It’s not likely to become another Georgia Park but that doesn’t mean it can’t find an identify of its own – different from the “other side of the tracks” image it has now. Urban renewal is not a new concept.
It’s going to take more than a few planters to improve the city’s northern entrance. Certainly, these kinds of improvement projects are dependent on federal and provincial funding programs but the city puts forward projects for their consideration.
Maybe it’s time to put Campbellton’s name in for some improvements.