Viral video making waves in the wrong city

People of the Swan City are weighing in on the conversation. Other people talked about how funny the confusion was.

There is one key difference in telling the two cities apart—there is an ‘e’ at the end of the first word in the name of the Alberta city. Grande Prairie Mayor Bill Given said jokingly during an interview that the “size of the hats” may be another way to tell the two areas apart.

“In all seriousness, this is something that comes up from time to time. Occasionally, at City Hall, we get calls from residents that have concerns about things happening in their neighbourhood. When they start to speak about their neighbourhood, they talk about tumbleweeds and cacti – we realize, ‘wait a minute; they aren’t talking about this Grande Prairie’.”

Although the two places don’t share identical names or the same geographical location, GP and GP are sister-cities. Delegates from the Texas city have traveled to the Peace Country and vice-versa.

“It has been a number of years since that has happened. One lasting momento of from that relationship is the statue in front of the Centre for Creative Arts. It is a stylized ‘GP’ given to us from Grand Prairie, Texas,” explained Given.

In a comment on the video, Given mentions a city versus city competition.

One thing that was presented as a highlight of the establishment in the United States was the size.

“Grande Prairie, obviously, has a fantastic water park already at the Eastlink Centre. Looking at the Grand Prairie, Texas facility, I see that they are promoting the fact that it is an 80,000 square-foot facility. Eastlink Centre here in Grande Prairie, Alberta is a 100,000 square-foot facility so it isn’t always true that everything is bigger is Texas.”

The video is still circulating on the internet.

If you are still thinking about traveling to the water park, it is a short 35 hour drive, according to Google Maps.

by Justine Kelsie