Raise your glass as The City of Dryden proudly toasts the winner of the ‘Win This Space’ contest – Little Mod Nest (check them out on-line), which will be opening a manufacturing and retail space in downtown Dryden for organic cotton baby apparel in 2018. The owner (and Mom of three) believes in supporting other entrepreneurs and will be incorporating additional earth friendly products such as lotions, bags, and cloth diapers into her retail space. Congratulations, Morgan Shepherd! This contest was supported by various groups including the City and was spearheaded by the Dryden District Chamber of Commerce to help promote growth and diversification in Our Wilderness City.
The Dryden Native Friendship Centre (DNFC) is undergoing renovations currently to install an elevator and office/service area in the second floor of their building, enabling the Friendship Centre to provide more services along with new program staff. We wish them every success in their expansion and look forward to continuing our partnership on joint initiatives.
Another local committee, the Dryden Recreation Extension and Modification (DREAM) committee, has been fundraising and seeking grants to give back to the community through improvements to a cornerstone of Dryden – the Dryden Memorial Arena. To date, this dedicated committee has raised more than $150,000 and received $50,000 in grant funds which was used to improve accessibility to the facility and to public washrooms. The final phase of DREAM’s project will see the addition of new accessible change rooms with the needs of our female athletes in mind. The City would like to thank all members of the community who are working to make this DREAM a reality.
The municipality in 2017 completed a critical infrastructure project – LED street lighting. This project, completed on time and on budget, will yield significant savings in electricity costs annually and is projected to provide a return on investment in three to four years.
In the business world of Dryden, our local Best Western Plus hotel is taking part in a national rebranding of this hotel chain. Improvements are ongoing, from exterior signage to room upgrades and a just completed renovation and reopening of B&B’s Restaurant on-site. The Community Development department within the Municipality is excited to work with local management on recruiting and hosting new and returning events, conferences and tour groups.
A new and eagerly anticipated senior housing complex is expected to break ground by mid-2018 and will provide condominium style homes to 20+ senior couples thereby providing available mid-range single family homes in the marketplace and helping address gaps within our housing market in two ways. The community is also excited to welcome aboard two new small businesses on Highway 17 – Highway Dollar & More and Backwoods Grill – both located within the Golden Mile Plaza directly across from the overpass.
The City of Dryden owes a lot to its hardworking volunteers and local businesses. All of these projects and more will surely help move Dryden forward, and the City of Dryden is grateful to those who commit their expertise, business acumen, personal time, who donate, and who provide goods and services to retain and grow our community every single day.
