New brand can’t promise what Ponoka’s not

After our community thinkers are through with this branding process, what are the odds Ponoka will be known for more than kooks and cowboys, as someone so eloquently put it?

Ask anyone who’s ever heard of Ponoka what the first thing is that pops into their mind and there’s only two answers: The Centennial Centre for Mental Health and Brain Injury, or the Ponoka Stampede.

Having two world class institutions intrinsically linked to your town would be enough of a hook to drag most communities to economic prosperity, but apparently, not for Ponoka. The stigma of mental patients walking the streets and the stench of cattle on auction day or during the rodeo in July must be prohibiting the town from realizing its full potential. It certainly wouldn’t have been the exclusory policies of former town councils and businesspeople.

What do residential developers and industrial businesses want from Ponoka that currently we cannot provide? An expansionist council has annexed enough land to serve its growth ideals for the next 50 years — if only they can get the landowners to share their vision.

It’s not clear whether Ponoka intends to develop a community brand or simply brand itself a tourism destination. Branding Ponoka as a destination would, for all intents and purposes, attract new money to the community, create jobs and diversify the tax base. But this growth might be restricted to the “tourist season” — that season in Alberta between Mud and Snow.

Ponoka already has some great small town amenities, few of which can truly be considered “attractions.” While the proposed splashpark in Centennial Park will be a tremendous addition to summer fun in Ponoka, it’s unlikely busloads of tourists will jostle with locals under the showerheads.

The new Ponoka Ag Event Centre promises to build on Ponoka’s reputation as an agricultural community, attracting new events and providing a better venue for 4-H events, bullaramas, stock shows and indoor rodeos. Moving some of these shows from the arena will also free up space for the town to attract other complementary events.

Certainly Ponoka would benefit from a slogan that sums up what the community is and what it offers residents, visitors and businesses. Like any small town that needs a world-class ego boost, Ponoka already has its icon — the World’s Largest Bronze Bucking Bronc With Rider Facing East in a Park Along a Highway.

On the business side of branding, what’s wrong with developing a community of medical and social services excellence spun off from the 100 years of expertise we have developed in Ponoka? We could do worse than to have more well-educated, well-paid professionals living and working among us. We’ve been told we need more doctors.

Several brainstormers in the branding exercise a few weeks ago observed Ponoka is lacking for retail services. Typically, some of these stores and services will surface when the town hits certain population benchmarks or when there is a certain volume of traffic on Highway 2A. Perhaps it seems like all we have are second-hand stores because we have so little of anything else downtown. Ponoka’s entrepreneurs may have to develop a variety of tenant spaces as an option to the older buildings that offer little versatility.

Before committing to a brand, town council needs to ensure its municipal development plan, land use bylaw and other visioning documents jibe and won’t unnecessarily stymie change and redevelopment.

What Ponoka shouldn’t do is promise more than it can deliver.