A five-year effort to revitalize the Town of Biggar is nearing its end, following a community fundraising campaign and major donations that brought in millions of dollars.
In 2020, former residents Ina Lou and Wayne Brownlee pledged up to $2.5 million to support the project. The Brownlees committed to matching every dollar raised locally, creating the potential for $5 million in funding.
By late 2023, the town announced it had reached its fundraising goal of $2.5 million. At the time, Mayor Jim Rickwood praised the fundraising team for its perseverance.
“Raised $2.5 million through pandemic and droughts, and in typical small-town Saskatchewan style we did it. We completed the mission,” Rickwood said.
The project has already seen the completion of work along Biggar’s Main Street, and attention has now turned to the final two pieces: Gateway Park at the north end and Brownlee Square at the south.
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Gateway Park is expected to serve as a rest area and will feature a digital community sign. Brownlee Square will function as a public commons, complete with a stage, a replica train station, the town’s historic caboose, a farmers market pavilion and additional parking.
Securing the land for Brownlee Square delayed the project, said Camille Box, the town’s chief administrative officer.
“It took us a while to get these two parks completed because we had to have the land for Brownlee Square transferred to us by CN and CN is, you know, a very large national corporation. We probably would have started the Brownlee Square project last year or the year before if we could have,” she said.
Box added that the new amenities will offer long-term benefits for residents.
“Amenities like this are really what improves our residents and ratepayers’ quality of life,” she said. “It’s these amenities that show such a beautiful town is something that we can be proud of, and we get so many compliments and hear so many comments on our Main Street and the project. It’s been incredible.”
The town is planning a free celebration concert in the summer of 2026 to showcase the new parks and gathering spaces. Details on the event have yet to be released.