Hard is the journey,
Hard is the journey -
So many turns.
Commemorative Chinatown Rock, Nelson
Li Bai
701 - 762 C.E.
The long and winding road
Let It Be
The Beatles
1960 - 1970 C.E.
Collective-Connective Heritage
Images
Wang DongLing
Andy Warhol
Astrid Heyerdahl, Director
dirctor@touchstonesnelson.ca
Joy Barrett, CD Officer
cultural@nelson.ca
Deb Kozak, Mayor
dkozak@nelson.ca
City Council
nelsoncouncil@nelson.ca
Provincially
"The Chinese Historical Wrongs Consultation Final Report recommended legacy initiatives to help British Columbians understand the impact of these historical wrongs and the achievements of Chinese Canadians.
It was recommended that historic places be inventoried, and from that a legacy initiative to formally recognize significant historic places under Section 18 of the Heritage Conservation Act has been developed. A public nomination process was held, and 138 nominations representing 77 places were received for consideration for recognition."
(One for Chinatown Nelson)
"... was to create a shortlist of places, organized by level of significance, to be put forward to the Minister responsible for Heritage..."
"The evaluation process followed a value-based model, ensuring that the evaluators reviewed the nominated places based on how they represent the overarching heritage values of the Chinese Canadian community of British Columbia. Evaluation was guided by the historical context statement and thematic framework that provided a summary of the history of the role of Chinese Canadians in the development of British Columbia."
"In total 19 historic places were selected to be recommended to Minister Thomson for formal recognition."
Heritage BC, 2 Apr, 2015
Particularly noteworthy is that the terms heritage and historic/historical are frequently applied here - while never in Nelson - in connection with the Chinese.
Out of 77 nominations of individual places 19 are accepted, and these 19 are listed in order of significance. Chinatown Nelson is ranked 4th.
"Following a thorough evaluation by sector and community experts, Chinatown Nelson was selected to receive provincial recognition.
...
Places chosen for formal recognition will be included on the B.C. Register of Historic Places, and will be put forward for inclusion on the Canadian Register of Historic Places."
Richard Linzey
Director - Heritage Branch
Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resources Operations
29 Jan, 2016
May 2017 - Chinatown Nelson is registered provincially and nationally. This includes a separately requested image of the Commemorative Chinatown Rock, Vernon/Hall.
Locally
2017 Heritage Award, City of Nelson
"Background:
The City of Nelson will present an annual heritage award to an individual, group, or collective who has made an outstanding contribution towards the preservation and/or promotion of the City's cultural heritage.
The City's Heritage Working Group established this award to recognize and publicly appreciate individuals, groups, businesses, or other organizations who have demonstrated leadership in heritage restoration, renewal or promotion, and thereby acknowledge the contribution heritage makes to the City of Nelson's vitality, well-being, and identity.
The award comes with a $1000 honorarium, which will be presented at the Annual Reception on December 11th, 2017."
APPLICATION FORM, 27 Sep, 2017
An application (of color) for this award is made based primarily on the official provincial/national recognition and subsequent registration of Chinatown Nelson, while also on the Commemorative Chinatown Rock, and an acclaimed radio program about Chinese on Kootenay Co-op Radio: where they came from and how, ending-up here - archived at Touchstones, the Rossland Historical Museum and Selkirk College, Castlegar reference library.
The award goes elsewhere.
"During the 2017 Council Gala Monday at the Prestige Inn, local historian Greg Scott was awarded (the) City of Nelson's annual Heritage Award or (sic) his dedicated work in the education, promotion and preservation of Nelson's local history."
...
"Greg Scott as (sic) an extremely worthy recipient of this award," says Heritage Working Group's Chair and Touchstones Museum Executive Director Astrid Heyerdahl. "His commitment to Nelson's heritage is invaluable, and we are lucky to have such a resident, dedicated to keeping Nelson's history alive."
The Nelson Daily
Contributor (as in Submitted), 12 Dec, 2017
There is lots more - gushed by one may guess whom? - certainly more than a press release.
Of interest here should be the Heyerdahl/Scott connect and her praise with benefits. She is the Chair - while also the executive director of Touchstones - of the group originating the Heritage Award concept and choosing the recipient; he is a Touchstones Board Member, closely involved with Touchstones in various roles for ages.
She praises "his commitment to Nelson's heritage" and "keeping Nelson's history alive" - the latter a bit rich (and ignorant?) - while Scott's focus over the years has pretty much been colonial.
Nelson Colonial does as Nelson Colonial is. "Keeping Nelson's history alive" is not achieved by omitting parts of it; white-washing it is essentially racist.
In the same gush - to show the scope of possible local interest in Nelson's heritage aside from Scott's - the Heritage Working Group might at least have presented a list of all award-applicants/nominations and their criteria.
But no - they and their attempted contributions don't actually figure. In this scheme of things.
And The Daily doesn't ask, not having written this paean.
With not-so-nice national discrimination, indigenous issues, human rights issues, xenophobia, immigrant issues, religious issues, racism - all folded into colonialism - popping-up more and more forcefully (again!) among nice Canadians: at long last - within a factual local socio-historical context - said Group could have made a statement of Nelson's all-inclusiveness, diversity embraced with this year's award. Could have! Also an indirect welcome for our today rapidly increasing number of citizens of color.
It will be interesting to watch Columbia Basin Trust's position on real-time heritage issues warts-and-all - entrenched since Day One - in its seemingly generous Heritage, Museum and Archive Grants.
Surely eagerly prepared for by Touchstones/Heritage Working Group - already beating their collective P.R. drums above.
To be continued
Image Credits:
Lao XunKe
Astrid Heyerdahl, Director
director@touchstonesnelson.ca
Joy Barrett, Cultural Development Officer
cultural@nelson.ca
Deb Kozak, Mayor
dkozak@nelson.ca
City Council
nelsoncouncil@nelson.ca
Xmas literally is THE big time for downtown-shops. And what with most attempting to sell stuff differing little from that of stores to their left and right in a very compact area: it would seem logical to show it off most advantageously i.e. for maximum profit.
Nelson's same old sad green-and-red-plastic-fantastic street-decorations and few colored bulbs never contributed to anyone's shopping-high. That ultimately being the (profit-)goal of it all.
While having potential customers finance such or similar new lighting and decor through their taxes is bizarre - without such lights, etc. these same people seem to find it impossible to psych themselves into stores. Go figure!
According to Mayor Kozak, on this topic in the Star, Dec 13, 2017,
"... the City purchased lights for businesses downtown to decorate their buildings, ... but (most of them) are not plugging them in, and I don't know why."
Why doesn't she, with jazzing-up Baker at Xmas an issue every year! When were these lights handed out? Why didn't the City step on this ages ago? How about finally assessing what's going on light-wise with businesses and - if need be - kick some butt! Keeping in mind: downtown-businesses habitually are more inclined to take than give.
For shopkeepers genuine festive emoting isn't part of it: that's just a come-on to get locals to spend much money on much stuff they wouldn't buy if it weren't for the pressure of the 12 Days of Christmas. When my true love gives-gives-gives to me-me-me! And vice versa. And everybody.
One would think that with e-shopping cutting into their business, shopkeepers would be eager to do whatever it takes to make up for that by promoting themselves any way possible.
Eh, Chamber of Commerce!
Like - in order to beat the competition - all shop-windows without exception should be spectacular. You don't achieve spectacular profits with sparse Walmart-inspired outdoor lighting/decorations. In larger cities anywhere stores will outdo each other with magical window-displays and store-fronts. A tradition. And people will go from store to store to ooh-and-aah. While in that swoon - allowing themselves to get lured inside.
There are official competitions in which onlookers judge windows and store-fronts to then choose the winner.
An event like this could become an annual Nelson thing, hello Nelson and Kootenay Lake Tourism! With serious local and tourist money to be made!
As already suggested in posts years ago: Xmas windows and store-fronts of individual businesses could be guided efforts comprising the Cultural Development Committee in all its manifestations, the Arts Council, Columbia Basin Trust and the Downtown Business Association. While mostly paid for by the owners.
According to Pam Mierau, Development Services, in the same Star item, the City has "... a general lighting plan for the downtown as well as a holiday lighting plan."
While it makes sense to wait for these, one needs to be concerned with the possibility that the "holiday lighting plan" will be Xmas-specific: tax-payered and clearly only for the material benefit of downtown-merchants and 2 months tops per year.
Yet multi-purpose, year-around festive lighting would be good. Sooo - "holiday" meaning which or what? Victoria? Eid al Fitr? July 1? Chun Jie? Hanukkah?
Or only (glossed-over, crassly commercial) CHRISTmas!
Shopkeepers -
You want to make money-
You've got to spend money!
Yours!
Image Credits:
Jun Ong, Penang/Malaysia
Pam Mierau, Development Services
pmierau@nelson.ca
Deb Kozak, Mayor
dkozak@ nelson.ca
Council
nelsoncouncil@nelson.ca
Colin Innes, Public Works
cinnes@nelson.ca
Tom Thomson, Chamber of Commerce
tom@discovernelson.com
Dianna Ducs, Director
dianna@nelsonkootenaylake.com
