April 23, 6 a.m.
It didn’t take a lot to turn PENTICTON into PENTICTEN — just a few burlap sacks and a few people’s time on a sunny spring afternoon.
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| Sunday evening, the Penticton sign changed to Penticten. Image courtesy Facebook. |
The update to the iconic sign on Munson Mountain appeared late Sunday. There may have been some confusion, but it didn’t take residents long to figure out it was in honour of Penticton’s entry into the national Smart Cities Challenge, where the city is competing for a $10-million prize.
Keith MacIntyre, part of Penticton’s Smart Cities Challenge group said it took less than $50 to make the change to the iconic sign on Munson Mountain Sunday. The working group of volunteers, he said, has spent less than 30 per cent of the $10,000 budgeted for them by the city.
Related: Smart Cities process hitting the right notes
The return on that investment could be enourmous, when Penticton is shortlisted, and then moves on to win the prize, the goal of which is develop projects that improve the lives of community members through innovation, data and connected technology.
The theme of the entry, due April 24 is Helthier Penticton, built around the challenge statement:
“Let’s build a physically and mentally healthier, strongly-connected Penticton where each person has access and opportunity to maximize their health potential.”
Related: Healthy Penticton is the theme for Smart Cities Challenge
But it’s all about the conversation, which members of the working group, like Meghan Dimma, say have started already, with many positive conversations around this community.
“The challenge has already accomplished what it set out to do, which was to create a more engaged community,” said Dimma in a March interview.
April 22, 8:30 p.m.
Nope, that’s not Photoshop. The Penticton sign on Munson Mountain has mysteriously been changed to Penticten.
No official word yet on who might have done this, but it’s probably too early for graduating students.
The new spelling on the iconic sign is causing some confusion on social media, with some convinced it’s a doctored image to more realistic theories.
In other news, Smart Cities Penticton is getting ready to submit Penticton’s entry to the national challenge this week, due on April 24 and based on coming up with 10 projects for a healthier Penticton. #10forpenticton.
Steve Kidd Senior reporter, Penticton Western News Email me or message me on Facebook Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
