Aerial of Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan.
With one hockey rink and three lumber mills, you might think Meadow Lake, Sask., was like any other prairie town.
About four hours northwest of Saskatoon, it's the type of place where people only tell you four digits of a phone number, because the first three are always the same. A few years back, Meadow Lake got its first McDonald's - a big day - and the mayor knows offhand how many businesses are putting up new buildings on his community's main street (four).
But Monday the town entered the next stage of its small-scale boom, when Premier Brad Wall flew in and signed off on the community's promotion as Saskatchewan's 14th city.
As his government scrambles to tighten its belt amidst collapsing potash revenue, Mr. Wall sought to characterize Meadow Lake's city status as a sign of continued development amidst the recession.
"It is kind of a good story, you know. It kind of goes to psychology a little bit. We're not immune to the recession, we've certainly felt its impact, but we're still comparatively strong," Mr. Wall said in an interview. "It's a psychological lift for Meadow Lake, and for the whole province."
The community had long been clamouring for city status, a largely symbolic move that won't change anything financially for the community or its residents.
"What it means is, we are moving forward in growth," Meadow Lake Mayor Darwin Obrigewitsch said. "We are moving forward in the province, we live in a province that is now a 'have' province. We've seen growth even through a recessionary time in Canada."
Mr. Wall and Mr. Obrigewitsch held a barbecue to celebrate the new status Monday, but had until then kept it a secret. Some residents hadn't heard about their new status when contacted by The Globe.
The town has grown recently on the strength of its lumber industry - a sawmill opened in 1971, a pulp mill in 1992 and a strand board mill in 2003. It has introduced new subdivisions (a new lot is about $60,000). The local minor hockey association, which served about 230 youngsters four years ago, now has about 350.
"The town's been increasing every year for many years," Meadow Lake Minor Hockey Association president Steve Benz said.
"Everybody in town is more than positive about [the city status] We like to compare ourselves to some of the smaller cities in Saskatchewan…And it's nice to keep pace with them."
The move was made based on health card numbers that show Meadow Lake now has about 6,500 residents. The last census, in 2006, put it just under the 5,000 mark required to become a city.
Martensville, a town near Saskatoon, has also applied for city status and could soon become number 15. Mr. Wall declined to confirm they were next, but said the province would likely soon grant city status to a second community. It would be the first time since 1913 that the province added two new cities in a year.
The last time Saskatchewan added a city was in 2000, when Humboldt made the jump.
Mr. Obrigewitsch, who will face the voters in an October election before the new city status becomes official in November, said Meadow Lake is a community hub in northwest Saskatchewan, serving nearby smaller towns and native communities. He touted the town's new hospital and high school, and said city status will help in recruiting professionals to the community.
The promotion was a long time coming. In 1931, Meadow Lake became a village. Five years later, in 1936, it became a town, said Cecil Midgett of the local historical society.
Since then, it has grown and changed, with pulp mills replacing the grain elevators. But it has kept that small town feel.