Sideroads of Halton Hills named top special section in North America

Sideroads of Halton Hills (Spring 2005 edition) has been named the Best Special Section in its class in the Suburban Newspapers of America's annual editorial contest. Results of the competition were announced Friday from SNA's head office in Traverse City, Mich. "We are thrilled that the SNA judges recognized Sideroads as the best in North America, said Sideroads and Independent & Free Press publisher Ken Nugent. "Sideroads magazine gives our readers and advertisers throughout Halton Hills a glimpse of Halton Hills' unique rural lifestyle," added Nugent of the quarterly publication produced by The Independent & Free Press. "Right from the first issue we knew we had a winner as the response from readers and advertisers has been very, very positive." The SNA judge wrote: "This section is an evocative portrayal of rural life on the outskirts of a major metro area, focusing on nature, farms, animals, art and neighbourhoods. Feature stories describe an area where lifestyle, not big business, takes centre stage. Excellent nature photography is accented by clean, flowing headline type and restful white space. The entire section has a gentle, relaxing feel to it." Former Independent & Free Press sport writer Herb Garbutt was also awarded an honourable mention in sports writing for his column on former Georgetown Jr. A Raiders' head coach Dan Cameron. The SNA reports that the 2005 contest was the most competitive in the association's 35-year history with more than 3,100 entries-- a 40 per cent increase over last year's record total. Winners will be recognized at the SNA publishers' conference March 1-3 in Palm Springs, CA and at the editors' conference Mar. 29-30 in Hershey, PA. The spring 2006 edition of Sideroads of Halton Hills will be published in March.