Downtown business helping city residents to beat the heat

By Lethbridge Herald on August 2, 2024.

Herald photo by Alejandra Pulido-Guzman Lethbridge resident Ben Rowley receives a free bottle of water from owner Diana Walburger while escapting the heat Thursday at Cookie Crimes Ice Creamery in Festival Square.

Alejandra Pulido-Guzman

A local business located in the heart of downtown is providing residents with cold bottles of water with no purchase necessary while also providing other ways to cool for those trying to escape the heat. 

Diana Walburger, owner of Cookie Crimes Ice Creamery, said she is happy to provide more than one way to cool off for those escaping the heat, including their pets. 

“One of the things that we do offer for everyone is free bottles of water that we keep refrigerated and the word is starting to spread across the community about it,” said Walburger. 

She said even though they sell ice cream, which is another way people can cool off, there is no purchase necessary to be able to receive a free bottle of water. And if they have refillable water bottles they will fill them up for them as well. 

“We’ve also got pop cups for your dogs to enjoy and we put a little bucket of water out for the dogs as well when they are out enjoying the patios and then of course we’ve got our ice cream,” said Walburger.

She said a way to keep people coming back for more is by changing their ice cream flavours ever so often and they have activities for people to enjoy while in their shop. 

“We encourage people to come and just sit and hang out in the store, we have air conditioner and we got a colouring page available for anyone to colour and enjoy their treats while they cool off,” said Walburger. 

She said that since they are located in Festival Square, in close proximity to the water fountain in Galt Gardens, many residents have stopped by her business after cooling off at the park as well. 

While Cookie Crimes is offering multiple ways to cool off to Lethbridge residents, multiple other businesses across the city are also helping residents stay hydrated through the blueW initiative, a community-based program offering free refills of clean tap water at local businesses. 

The City of Lethbridge joined the initiative in 2017 and all participating businesses are displayed on the blueW website map. To sign up, businesses can fill out an online form or email H2Oinquiries@lethbridge.ca.

The community can also stay hydrated at the four public drinking stations located at Nicholas Sheran Park, Legacy Park, Henderson Lake Park and Galt Gardens.

And for those looking to escape the heat in a place where they can keep themselves or their kids entertained for a few hours, away from the sun the Movie Mill has multiple ways to help residents escape the heat. 

“In addition to increased Soda Mill traffic, cooling off with gourmet sodas, lemonades and our ever changing soft serve menu, we have had more movie goers as well,” said Chelsea Bretzke, owner of the Movie Mill. 

She said that because they have daily matinee showtimes, the Movie Mill is continuing to see a lot of seniors, seeking a place to escape the middle of the day heat.

“We have our $3 Throwbacks Monday and Thursday that are a popular inexpensive way to enjoy some old classic films. We are so grateful for our day time attendees,” said Bretzke. 

She said in addition, with kids home from school and little ones sensitive to the high UV index and smoke, it is wonderful to provide an alternate activity for kids and parents or grandparents.

“Along with our regular kid movies and our new Disney Collections series we also are continuing our yearly Summer Family Fun program. With the help of our generous sponsors Huckvale Law LLP and the Lethbridge Alberta Teachers Association we are able to offer free family-friendly movies to anyone every Tuesday and Wednesday morning all summer long,” said Bretzke.

She said another option to keep the family cool off is by playing a round or two of Puttz, which can be done any day from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. 

“It is so important to us to be a locally owned and affordable option for a variety of demographics in our community. So whether it’s a movie, a cold soda or round of mini golf we are happy to help southern Albertans escape the heat,” said Bretzke.

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