Edmonton Notes for 3/24/2013

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

• It snowed all day Thursday, wreaking havoc on area highways and roads. More than 100 people were injured in accidents on the QE2 which impacted somewhere around 85-100 vehicles. Now there are fears about flooding – all that snow has to go somewhere!
• City Council approved The Way We Prosper this week. The plan outlines five major strategies to guide Edmonton’s economic and growth agenda. See also the latest Council Roundup.
• Did you turn off the lights for Earth Hour yesterday? EPCOR reports that power usage in Edmonton dropped about 3% as compared to the previous Saturday.
• According to MoneySense magazine, Edmonton is the third best large city in the country, after Calgary and Ottawa. St. Albert topped the list of best small cities, with Strathcona County just behind.
• Some good news from the federal government – funding for the Edmonton Homeless Commission has been renewed.
• Edmonton has been selected to host 11 matches in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015, including the opening ceremonies and first game!
• Local businessman Patrick Devaney has decided to sell his Edmonton Pubs group in order to take some time off.
• In case you missed it, here’s my recap of the Make Something Edmonton launch. Be sure to check out the website and add your projects! The Globe and Mail did a Q&A with Todd Babiak on the project.
• Here’s a look at new EPCOR CEO David Stevens and how he’s adjusting to the new job.
• The Edmonton Journal took a look at the rest of the submissions for the LRT line names, and found some pretty interesting results!
• Jack’s Grill has shutdown. Owner Mark Goodwin cited Corso 32 as a factor in his decision, but I think location is probably the biggest reason for the restaurant’s demise.
• The U of A’s Dr. Michael Houghton recently declined the Canada Gairdner International Award, worth $100,000, because his colleagues would not have been recognized alongside him.
• Edmonton’s Bernie Kollman and Rick LeLacheur have joined the Travel Alberta board of directors.
• Will he or won’t he? Mayor Mandel is widely expected to announce his retirement during the State of the City address on April 2, and that has some wondering what will happen to the downtown arena project.
• Sharon wrote a great post this week about the winter edition of the City Market Downtown and the challenges it faces.

Awesome before & after shot of Earth Hour in Edmonton by Darren!

Another great Earth Hour shot, this one by Hugh.

Here are some upcoming events:

• The City is hosting an information session on The Quarters Streetscape project on Wednesday evening.
• Also Wednesday is the University of Alberta’s Visiting Lectureship in Human Rights event featuring Lesléa Newman.
• Latitude 53’s latest Winter Salon is coming up on Thursday evening!
• Head down to Churchill Square on Thursday for lunch to celebrate spring!
• The Oilers host Columbus on Thursday, and Vancouver on Saturday.
• The Northern Lights Music Festival is taking place this weekend at the Shaw Conference Centre.
• If antiques are your thing, head over to the Edmonton Expo Centre on Friday and Saturday for the Wild Rose Antique Collector’s spring show.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Mark shows us that all that snow can be beautiful too.