Westmount eyes top honours in Communities in Bloom

In an unprecedented show of support for the cross-Canada floral competition, the City has been flying the Communities in Bloom flag outside City Hall since July 11. It is replacing the Westmount flag, leading up to the judging, which takes place on Aug. 13.

During a flag-raising ceremony last month, Mayor Karin Marks noted it was the first time the competition's banner had been raised in Westmount since the City's reconstitution. During the four-year merger with the City of Montreal, Westmount was unable to participate.

"It's significant that we are participating nationally as the City of Westmount," she said.

"I think we'll do extremely well, because we have a city that is very preoccupied with maintaining its beauty and its live-ability. It's not only council and the administration, it's the citizens who do that. So that's very visible to the people who come and see our community."

Flying the flag at city hall sends a powerful message that Westmount considers Communities in Bloom to be important and that the City is in it to win, said Councillor George Bowser, chairman of the Horticulture Advisory Committee.

"It's all about civic pride and demonstrating to people right across Canada how much we love the beauty of Westmount and the lengths we're willing to go to make our city a wonderful place to live," he added.

The raising of the flag coincided with the launch of a new section of information on the Westmount web site www.westmount.org) regarding the Communities in Bloom competition. It includes a history of Westmount's past involvement in several floral competitions.

Communities in Bloom began in 1995 and in 1998 Westmount won the coveted five-bloom rating, with special mention for landscaped areas, to become the national winner in the 20,001 to 50,000 population category.

With this honour came an invitation to participate in the international level World in Bloom competition, in which Westmount was accorded five blooms with special mention for private landscaping. In 2000, Westmount was paired with St. Helier, Jersey, Channel Islands, and in 2003 with Dungannon, Northern Ireland.

Westmount has also taken part in provincial competitions. Fleurir le Québec was a provincial contest in which, over the years, Westmount won top honours with three and four Irises. In 2006, 103 municipalities in Quebec participated in a new program, now called Fleurons du Québec, where horticulturalists and environmental consultants visited participating communities, giving them a rating.

This year in the Communities in Bloom contest, Westmount is competing against Langford, BC, Lloydminster, SK, Grande Prairie, AB, Charlottetown, PEI, and Westbank, BC. While Westmount's population dipped below 20,000 in 2007, the city remains in the 20,001 to 50,000 population category.