Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:
- The 2009 edition of EEDC’s magazine, Images Edmonton, is now available. You can view the entire magazine online too.
- Edmonton is now the second city in Canada (after Winnipeg) to have a BOMA Best certified City Hall – an environmental certification that assesses energy use, water use, waste reduction, emissions, and other factors. Good thing too, as we’re hosting the 2009 ICLEI World Congress in June, an international conference on environmental sustainability.
- CBC announced a bunch of layoffs this week, but CBC Edmonton’s core programming won’t be affected.
- I came across a new local organization for techies – The Professional Association for SQL Server Edmonton Chapter, or EDMPASS for short.
- The City paid out $19,108 in compensation for 262 vehicle damage claims related to potholes last year. The most surprising thing to me is that in 2007, they paid out $89,455 for 1033 claims. On average, the City fixes about 400,000 potholes each year. Residents can call 311 to report potholes or other road problems.
- New interactive, touch-screen displays are now at City Hall. They include information, photos, and video from Edmonton’s past. The project cost $500,000.
- Ever wonder what Edmonton Next Gen does? Volunteer Cary Williams wrote a good answer to that question in the organization’s most recent newsletter.
- The Edmonton Taskforce on Community Safety is running an online survey until April 15th. Fill it out to have your say on improving community safety through crime prevention.
- Arson is suspected in the fire that caused $3.5 million of damage to the history Ramsey building on Rice Howard Way this week. I took some photos of the fire here.
- The Citadel unveiled it’s 45th season this week. It features 12 plays, including the hit A Christmas Carol. Bob Baker, the Citadel’s artistic director, is on the cover of the latest issue of Avenue Edmonton.
- If you want to participate in the public forum on the City Centre Airport, you must register by March 30th.