Week of June 13, 2024
- comms957
- Aug 15
- 2 min read
40 years ago (June 13, 1984)
“Sigh of Relief: Flood Alert Passes”
40 years ago, heavy rain had Sherwood Park on high alert for flash floods. Our hamlet did not yet have sanitary sewer relief lines to handle heavy rains, and County engineers determined that the area was completely saturated. There were fears that storm sewers would flood the sanitary sewer system, causing flooded basements throughout Sherwood Park. The County switchboard was being kept open 24 hours per day, and sandbags were available to home owners at the County yard. Emergency pumps were in place to drain storm water away from the sanitary sewer system and County crews were on standby. In the end, major flooding was avoided as the rain finally let up, but everyone was greatly looking forward to the upgrade of the sewage system planned for 1985 and an end to flooding concerns.
30 years ago (June 16, 1994)
“Janvier finally recognized 18 years after mural finished”
30 years ago, world renowned Dene artist Alex Janvier was finally acknowledged as the artist responsible for the mural above the spiral staircase in County Hall, a full 18 years after he painted it. When the mural was commissioned for the new building in 1975, Janvier was relatively unknown, and there was no information posted with the artwork about who had painted the iconic mural, or what it signified. The mural follows time as it circles from top to bottom, denoting the prehistoric era of Strathcona County at the very top, the fur traders and first peoples of the Beaver Hills in its inner ring, the European settlers on its lower ring, and suburban living and modern industry on the lower staircase. Eight grade 6 students from Wes Hosford school were responsible for spurring the County to recognize Janvier’s artistic achievement, inspired by the Municipal Government module in their Social Studies class. They convinced the County to create a plaque explaining the artwork and acknowledging Alex Janvier as the artist. The students and Janvier himself were present at the unveiling of the plaque, where Janvier noted that “since that time, my career has expanded, and gone beyond my wildest dreams.” The mural can still be seen in County Hall, and is well worth a visit.
