Before the news broke of asylum seekers crossing the border into Emerson, it had been over ten years since the town’s reeve had done media interviews.
The slower country pace had taken a sharp turn for Greg Janzen, who has spoken to media from all over the world in the last two weeks. He’s also been in contact with government officials and RCMP nearly every day.
“I’m not one to be public speaking. I don’t like doing interviews but now this is something I had to get used to,” Greg Janzen, reeve of Emerson-Franklin said.
But for local businesses, they say the number of visitors has been a good thing.
“I had people coming in, renting rooms, and then the restaurant was picking up,” Wayne Piyel, manager of The Emerson Hotel said. His business had its first full booked weekend in over a year.
Little J’s Cafe and Lounge next door to the hotel opened just two weeks ago and Jacquelyn Reimer, the owner, said it was perfect timing.
“I say it would be almost the best time to open a business right now because of all the press that’s been coming through,” Reimer said.
All of the asylum seekers and media passing through have been the talk of the town, according to Reimer.
“There’s been a lot of buzz. Every morning we have the coffee shop talk. They all talk about what reporter they talked to the day before,” Reimer said.