Edmonton Notes for 11/3/2013

I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later! We received our first big dump of snow this weekend. I’ve made an appointment to get my winter tires put on this week, and I suspect many of you have as well. The City is also preparing for winter on our roads with an impressive lineup of equipment and abrasive material (sand, salt, etc.). You can also check out the WinterCity Strategy here (and follow them on Twitter). I hope you got outside and enjoyed the snow!

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

• I hope by now you have changed all of your clocks back an hour. Take a moment and check your smoke detector batteries too!
• The proposed 2014 Operating Budget was released on Friday. It recommends a 4% increase for all civic operations, plus an additional 1.5% to continue the Neighbourhood Renewal Program. Administration will present the budget to our new City Council on Wednesday with a public hearing slated to take place on November 25.
• One of the more interesting stories to surface this week was about a proposed 71-storey building dubbed The Edmontonian. If built as envisioned at 10525 101 Street, it would be the tallest building in the west, and second in Canada only to the CN Tower. Here’s a quick thought I had about the building and how it relates to the Downtown CRL.
• In case you missed it, I wrote about the Swearing In of our new mayor and City Council.
• Congratulations to everyone recognized as part of Avenue Edmonton’s Top 40 Under 40 for 2013.
• I’ve been as disappointed with the Oilers so far this season as anyone else, but I was still saddened to hear about the abuse that head coach Dallas Eakins has to put up with while walking his daughter to school.
• A number of Edmonton Eskimos players were recognized for the 2013 Gibson’s Finest CFL Player Awards. We heard quickly on the news that some Esks had won an award, and Sharon remarked, “they gave them awards?!” Yeah, it was that kind of season.
• Speaking of the disappointing Oilers and Eskimos, here’s a great feature by the Journal’s Chris O’Leary. The two teams went a combined 3-15 in October.
• Looking for a fun read about what Edmonton could look like in the future? Check out Edmonton 2.0.
• Edmonton will be hosting Basketball Canada’s 2014 U15 and U17 Boys & Girls National Championships at the Saville Community Sports Centre.
• Tickets for the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup 2014 will go on sale November 28. Edmonton is hosting seven matches during the competition.
• Due to construction on the lake at Hawrelak Park, the City is planning to create an 8000 square meter temporary skating surface so that Edmontonians can continue “Edmonton’s winter tradition of skating in Hawrelak Park.”
• I’m not even sure most Edmontonians are comfortable with 587, but now we have another new area code to look forward to! Alberta is adding 825 province-wide in 2016.
• Here’s an interesting look at land use in the downtown from Matthew Dance.
• Do you know a police officer who goes above and beyond their duties by serving as a volunteer? Consider nominating them for the 2013 Kiwanis TOP COP Award!
• St. Albert-Edmonton MP Brent Rathgeber will run as an independent in the 2015 election.
• Who said gaming was just for fun?! Congrats to everyone who participated in this weekend’s Extra Life Edmonton – the event raised $40,000 for the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation!
• Gotta love this: “When it comes to taking out the trash, Edmonton really is the City of Champions.”
• He promised us a weird story, and he delivered. Omar has the scoop behind the sudden closing of Plow & Harvest.
• Here are the latest Edmonton urbanism headlines.
• The November issue of Business in Edmonton magazine has a nice feature on Stephen Mandel.

Did you miss the River City Round Up kickoff party on Saturday at Churchill Square? Here are some of the sights and sounds of the festivities:

Here are some upcoming events:

• The 40th edition of Farmfair International continues this week at the Edmonton Expo Centre.
• Canadian Finals Rodeo kicks off on Wednesday at Rexall Place!
• Interested to learn more about what local developers are creating? Check out DemoCamp Edmonton 23 on Wednesday evening!
• Also Wednesday is the latest edition of Green Drinks Edmonton. The theme this time is #notinyeg. Here are five reasons you should attend.
• Cool event coming up on Friday at the Jubilee called The Enchanted Fall.
• The Mercer Collective Makers Market is back on Saturday!
• Saturday evening is the Edmonton Timeraiser, “a volunteer matching fair, silent art auction, and night out on the town.”
• Also Saturday evening is Latitude 53’s Fine Art of Schmoozy.
• Monday is of course Remembrance Day.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Calgary has white hats, we have yellow bandanas!