Taking Steps

We are taking steps to move to Crowsnest Pass. The building we love is both a potential home and potential income. We are spending money like there is no tomorrow and developing our old Brazzoni Building and turning it into Minestead - Holiday Vacation Homes.http://www.minestead.com/

I love creating logos and graphics so now you have to look at this:

Finally we can quit whining and start doing things that help add some charm to Bellevue while getting us one step closer to being able to move.

How to save a shrinking community

Crowsnest Pass is amazing, beautiful, full of historic charm, and experiencing a decline in population. I want to suggest some ideas with my usual lack of logic or order to bring population back to Crowsnest Pass.
1. People need to move here. Wow, and you thought these would be intellectual insights and instead you get the obvious "duuuhhhh" answer. Sometimes the obvious has to be stated.
2. Why do people choose to move? If we can figure out people's motives, we can try to meet them.

• Job opportunities.
• Entrepreneurial opportunities.
• Lifestyle/Ideals.
• Be close to family
• Get away from an unpleasant place
• Facilities: athletes go where they can train, families go where their kids can be kept busy etc.
• Educational Institutions.
• Health. Special clinics or to escape pollutants, allergens.
• Affordability.
• Cool factor.

3. For almost all people, they simply can't just move somewhere - they need to be able to make a living.

4. Business has to be created to bring outside dollars into the region. Tourism brings in outside dollars but has to attract the customer to the area. For true economic benefit, businesses that sell products or services to far reaching and varied regions are most desirable.

5. Crowsnest Pass should work at attracting educational institutions to the area. Say a branch of SAIT or UofL. I'm sure there are niches with education - what are they? What unique features of the Pass would be of interest educationally?

6. Bring education and you lay the foundations for future families and short term prosperity. We all know students are poor yet they throw around money like crazy - great for the area. We also know students need jobs - allowing local industry an endless resource of skilled and unskilled labour.

7. Chase a dream or two. Find a couple things that Crowsnest Pass could be world famous for - besides wind and mountains that fall over. I personally think Crowsnest Pass could be a mountain bike mecca - seems like a tiny thing but research the economic impact of mountain biking on places like Moab, UT, Fruita, CO, Downieville, CA, Kamloops, BC or Whistler, BC. With the proximity to Calgary, Crowsnest Pass could be the most easilly reached affordable cycling mecca in North America. Adventure racing: We already have Full Moon in June, Sinister 7, Trans Rockies etc. Extreme Sports; build facilities for the crazy youth to learn their skills.

8. Now I'm tired: brainstorming done.

How does this work?

I'm not much for blogging. This is my first attempt and I thought after putting my heart and sole (and at least 45 minutes of my valuable time) into this thing - I thought I'd have people emailing saying how they love old buildings or some other flavor of feel goodness.
So how does someone like myself get the message out? Where are other people who love cool old buildings and cool old towns? I know you're out there, when Andrea and I walk around places like Butte, Montana with our jaws dropped in awe we see a few others doing the same. Or Downieville, California - besides being a mountain bike mecca it also drags people from hours away to marvel in its gold-rush-era coolness.
WHERE ARE ALL YOU PEOPLE? Come join me in Crowsnest Pass - lets buy all the unspoiled old buildings and turn this place into heritage eye candy.