Town council has been presented with a final committee report on Innisfail's extensive preparations for its key role in this year's world-class Tour of Alberta cycling event.
The report, delivered by Tammy Oliver-McCurdie – operations coordinator of the local organizing committee, outlined how the town will present its festival and celebration areas, the neutral zone bike ride area, team and spectator parking areas, signage, event sponsors, communications, festival entertainment and exhibitors, security, volunteers, scheduling and additional community engagement. Following her presentation council formally approved the necessary road closures required to stage the event in the downtown core.
“I am comfortable with where we are at in the planning stages,” said Oliver-McCurdie, who is also the town's Family and Community Support Services manager.
The five-stage second annual Tour of Alberta event, which will be broadcast in more than 160 countries across the world, begins with Stage 1 in Lethbridge on Sept. 2 and ends in Edmonton on Sept. 7.
Innisfail was chosen to host the start of Stage 2 on Sept. 4. The local route with an estimated 120 riders will start with a double loop through Innisfail's downtown. It will exit town to Highway 54, north towards Sylvan Lake on Highway 781, and then along Highway 20 through Sylvan Lake, then to Highway 597 and through Blackfalds, and ending in Red Deer. The total distance is 145 kilometres.
“The operations and logistics of it is fairly large, however, the benefits to the community outweigh our efforts,” said Oliver-McCurdie. “This is a great event for our community for economic stimulations and social benefits through community engagement.”
Council was told road closures for the event will begin at about 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 3 on 50 Street between 50 and 49 avenues for the mainstage and hospitality build, as well as 50 Avenue between 53 Street and 52 Avenue for the festival build area. Between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. on Sept. 4, there will be further road closures, including expanding the zone at 50 Street between 49 Avenue to 53 Street, closing 52 Street from 50 to 49 avenues for team parking, and expanding the festival area on 50 Avenue between 50 and 49 streets.
When the race begins with a shotgun start at 12:10 p.m. next to ATB Financial, bike riders will complete the downtown neutral zone twice, which is expected to take participants about six minutes to complete before they head out of town.
Oliver-McCurdie told council that the festival area will be open at 9:30 a.m. and close at 2:30 p.m. She said there will be numerous exhibitors and vendors set up in booths at the festival area on 50 Avenue. A free pancake breakfast, hosted by the Rotary Club of Innisfail, will run from 8:30 to 10 a.m. There will be musical entertainment, provided by local musician Tom Lindl, on Main Street from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. As well, the event will have street performers – including stilt walkers, a juggler and balloon artists – face-painting, dance demonstrations and entertainment from Easton, the Innisfail Eagles' mascot. And there will be a free barbecue from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.
Debra Stoski, the president of the Innisfail Downtown Association and a volunteer for the local Tour of Alberta festivities, said she accepted an invitation to host a mini car show as well as a mini Scarecrow Festival exhibit at the festival area. Her organization is hosting this year's fourth annual Weekend of Wheels on Sept. 13, and bringing back the popular Scarecrow Festival on October 11 and 12.
“What I am telling people is that the Tour of Alberta is like having the Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers coming to play hockey at our arena. That is how big it is,” said Stoski. “We have a lot of people coming that are not from Innisfail that are coming to the Tour of Alberta.
“This is just to advertise that these later events are the larger ones we do in Innisfail,” she said of the booths she will set up. “Everybody who attends is going to be given a hand-held white flag with the Innisfail town logo and we are going to have everyone wave as the racers take off. It is going to be awesome.”
Oliver-McCurdie is encouraging local citizens to participate in the Tour of Alberta's Paint the Province promotion, which gives Albertans the opportunity to purchase a variety of items to decorate their businesses and homes to show support for the event. Anyone interested in obtaining a kit can get more information on the Tour of Alberta website at http://tourofalberta.ca/Partners/Paint-The-Province
