M.D. rebranding workshop turns hostile as residents question why

The M.D. of Bonnyville’s engagement sessions as part of its goal to rebrand turned into an airing of grievances at times in Riverhurst, where the consultants walked out after roughly an hour of back and forths with residents.   

The meeting in Riverhurst on Tuesday, July 18 was one of two sessions – the other at Eastbourne Hall the previous night – with consultants Unfussy looking to gain feedback to tell the story of the M.D. and work on a brand strategy. 

However, many in the crowd voiced they don’t see the need to change the logo or branding. Some weren’t sure what the goal of rebranding was. Others voiced their frustration with escalating crime and physician retainment in the area. 

Goal was for feedback

Rebranding is part of the municipality’s 2022-2027 Strategic Plan, under “Building a viable and diversified regional economy” and this portion was granted a budget of $150,000. 

“Everybody thinks it’s a pretty logo and that’s all we’re talking about the logo, or even the name. That’s actually missing the deeper conversation to be having all of this,” consultant Chris Fields.  

“This is about our future. It’s about our children, our grandchildren. It’s about leaving a positive legacy.” 

The consultants were looking to elicit feedback on what makes the M.D. special and unique in their eyes. 

A survey was previously done online that targeted four questions. 

Using single words, how would you describe the M.D. of Bonnyville to someone who has never visited? How is the M.D. of Bonnyville unique compared to other places? What image, object, or tagline, comes to mind when you envision the M.D.? What is your vision for the future of the M.D. of Bonnyville?

The loose and unstructured meeting allowed people to talk at will. 

The feedback highlighted the beautiful lakes, great fishing, natural space, recreational opportunities that exists, as well as the uniqueness of the Bonnyville Regional Fire Authority. It also exists in the cradle of the oil and gas industry. 

But a resounding theme was, why rebrand? 

“It’s trying to fix something that’s not broken,” said one resident. 

“How necessary is this? At the end of the day, it’s not. So our taxpayer dollars have been used, when we’re the ones paying the taxes…why wasn’t it sent into the mail as a survey?” asked another resident. 

Name change?

One of the specific responses as to why came from Reeve Barry Kalinski. He said the M.D. often gets confused with the Town of Bonnyville. 

“I’ve been to conferences where they give me my tags that says Town of Bonnyville, Barry Kalinski. I spoke on behalf of the Town of Bonnyville before I was the Reeve. We went to Toronto and they knew about the Town,” he said. 

“We’re not trying to make this in the worst place or trying to promote 20,000-30,000 people here…but there’s gonna be a lot of people coming in if this pipeline from the north comes through. We’re gonna get it anyway if we like it or not. 

“Another thing is we own the airport and everyone still calls it the Bonnyville airport, everyone, it doesn’t matter. And then our region got so much bigger now. We’re all the way from halfway into Lac La Biche all the way to the Saskatchewan border.” 

Coincidentally, the Town of Bonnyville is rebranding as well and looking to update its tagline. 

The meeting concluded abruptly. 

A resident questioned how Unfussy was chosen as the consulting firm, which was through a request for proposals process. 

Then questioned the use of the term “rebel” on Unfussy’s website, along with a Buddha in its imagery. She believed that by supporting this, she would be going against her spiritual beliefs, and proceeded to quote a passage from Deuteronomy. 

The consultants took offence to this and packed up to leave. 

“I’m extremely offended by that, and flabbergasted that this discussion has now turned into a discussion about our — maybe — religious beliefs based on the fact that we wrote rebellion on our website.

“There’s so many different ways to describe brand. One of the ways is all the thoughts and feelings that someone holds for you or your community. Your reputation is part of your brand. Now, if I was to base the M.D. of Bonnyville, based on just what you said alone, what kind of reputation do you think you have now set for the entire M.D.?”

One resident responded and said they found it embarrassing that they were insulting consultants hired by the municipality.