Aspen
A niche community within the City’s Southeast borders and situated at the SE edge of the city, this 5-star area has built a high-end reputation, with many families who can often be seen hosting impromptu neighbourhood get-togethers!
About Aspen
Recreation:
Riverside Park / Lions Playground:
An athletic park with lighted tennis courts, pickle ball courts, football field, soccer pitch, and 400 m running track, this picturesque park is located alongside the site of the Swift Current Creek with pathways that are part of the Chinook Parkway. It also features the Lions Playground which is a fenced in area with splashpark for tons of family fun. With picnic facilities, public washrooms, and large green spaces paired with shady trees and an ice cream shop nestled in the centre , it’s the perfect place to spend a summer’s day.
Chinook Golf Course: Thanks to a walking path that leads to the park area at the back of the former Oman School, residents of Aspen, can walk straight to the Chinook Golf Course and the parts of the Chinook Parkway that border it. A great opportunity for golfers in summer, walkers year-round, and cross-country skiers in winter.
Additional Recreation Facilities:
· Southside Rink: Open from December until mid-February (weather permitting) this outdoor rink features washrooms and an indoor heated rest area – 3 min drive.
· Fairview Arenas: A hub of community activity featuring two ice surfaces and spectator seating and concession – 3 min drive.
· Fairview Pool - Swift Current’s only outdoor pool, it is open from late June to late Augusts and features a lane swim and wading area, along with diving pool and two slides – 3 min drive.
· Docs Town and Kinetic Exhibition Park – a hub of activity in the summer, hosting the Annual Frontier Days at the end of June, stock car races in the grandstand, and summer programming in Docs Town, the stampede grounds are also the location of the Stockade Building where winter months will see it converted into an indoor soccer facility – 6 min drive.
· Swift Current Aquatic Centre – 10 min drive.
· Swift Current’s Innovation Credit Union iPlex, home to the Swift Current Broncos WHL Hockey team, and other recreation activities and events – 8 min drive.
· The Swift Current Dog Park and additional baseball diamonds – 10 min drive.
· Mitchell Field, home to the Swift Current 57’s Baseball team, as well as other diamonds for Little League Baseball – 8 min drive.
· The south side’s own Chinook Golf Course is a quick 2 min drive or walk away, while the Elmwood Golf Club is a 9 minute drive. Both offer 18 holes, a restaurant and lounge, pro-shop, putting and driving ranges as well as golf cart and club rentals.
Schools:
The Fairview School is part of the Chinook School Division (Public) and services the southside of Swift Current offering grades K-8 programming. Here, and elsewhere in the city, both the Chinook School Division (Public) and Holy Trinity School Division (Separate) offer bus services to service all grades.
Elementary/Middle Schools:
Fairview School – (K-8) – located south of the railway tracks – 4 min drive.
Central Elementary School (Grades: Pre K – 8) – a 7 min drive. Swift Current’s oldest operational school, the school was built in 1914, the same year the City was incorporated.
O.M. Irwin School (Grades Pre-K-8) – 8 min drive.
Ecole Centennial (Pre-K – 8) / All Saints Catholic School (Grades: Pre K-8) (Note: This is a French Immersion/English public school and Catholic school built as a joint project with shared spaces) – 15 min drive.
High School:
Swift Current Comprehensive High School (Grades 9-12) – (Note: For those wishing for a Catholic education, courses can be taken at SCCHS to fit curriculum requirements) – 11 min drive.
Shopping:
Servicing the residents of the south side of the city, Pioneer Co-op conveniently offers a fully stocked grocery store, with fresh produce, bakery items and meats, along with a gas mart and car wash. Avid gardeners will also enjoy the fresh offerings at the southside’s own greenhouse.
Other major shopping opportunities within the city, are a short drive away.
· Swift Current’s Historic Downtown: a 7 min drive, Swift Current’s historic downtown region offers a host of independently owned businesses, including health food stores, flower store, toy store, wedding store, fashion store, furniture stores, banks, restaurants, specialty coffee, and a Pharmasave outlet that is western Canada’s largest. The downtown is also host to the Lyric Theatre, a historic music and theatre venue, as well as Market Square a farmer’s market that happens every Saturday in the summer-season.
· Swift Current Mall: a 12 min drive crossing the Trans Canada Highway from Memorial Drive, this mall and the developments surrounding it offer access to a Safeway and Wholesale Club for groceries. The Living Sky Casino and Sky Centre events venue, Staples, Wal-Mart, Canadian Tire, as well as a number of gas stations, restaurants and fast-food outlets including a Starbucks.
· Wheatland Mall: A 10 min drive through downtown, the Wheatland Mall is home to a Pioneer Co-op grocery, home store, liquor store, and gas mart, as well as a Sasktel outlet, Giant Tiger, Peavey Mart, and Coles Bookstore.
Health Services:
Dental and orthodontic services are located on the south side, while the area is located close enough to Swift Current’s downtown area, that residents of south side neighbourhoods looking for health services will find the city’s two optometrists, as well as specialist offices from dental, podiatry and obstetrics to chiropractic care, all located in the downtown core.
The southeast is also only a 12 min drive from the newly developed centralized health care area near the Swift Current Mall which includes:
· Cypress Regional Hospital – opened in 2008, this modern facility offers 91 acute care beds and in addition to Emergency services is the hub of medical services for SW Saskatchewan with services that include: general surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, pediatrics, internal medicine, psychiatry, on-site radiology, pathology services and an intensive care unit.
· The Meadows – opened in 2016, this award-winning facility hosts 225 long-term care patients with more than 225,000 square feet of space. The facility also hosts its own separate Adult Day program and a large Community Centre for resident activities, family gatherings, and other important events. Its proximity and connection to the hospital, allows for efficient transfers if required.
· Physician and Dental Clinics: Located across from the hospital this area hosts a number of physician and dental clinics, including the Cypress Medical and Surgical Specialists Clinic, the Southwest Medi-Centre, Swift Hearing Centre, North Side Medical Clinic, Careica Health (formerly Provincial Sleep Group) and Sask Valley Dental.
Walk Score: 49
While most errands other than groceries will require a car, the neighbourhoods recreational facilities including Riverside Park and the Chinook Golf Course are all within nearby walking distance, and the paths of the Chinook Parkway located here make for excellent walking and biking opportunities.
History:
In 1934, a group of energetic young people in Swift Current were concerned with the toll that the Great Depression and dry years of the 1930’s were taking on the community, and in response they formed Swift Current’s first of many service clubs, known as the Kinetic Club (named for the word “Kinetic” which meant “energy in motion”). While their original goals was to raise money for a community swimming pool, through fundraising events such as running the ice cream booth at the City’s annual Dominion Day festival held on July 1st, seeing a potential for improving the festival, the club requested permission to take full responsibility for the event, and in 1937 the city hosted the biggest event in the city’s history.
Aiming for even greater numbers in 1938, the club decided to host a rodeo and to adopt a “wild west” theme, and the Annual Frontier Days was born. Over 20,000 people came to the first rodeo, which led to hotels running out of rooms, restaurants running out of food, and even the Swift Current Bottling Works running out of soft drinks. In 1954 the City of Swift Current took over the event, which recently celebrated its 75th year.