Happy New Year! I’ve had a nice blogging break over the holidays, but I’m ready to get back into it.

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• Alberta’s new carbon tax took effect today, adding roughly 4.5 cents per litre to the price of regular gasoline. The Journal has a good overview of how the tax works and how to figure out what you’ll end up paying. “Around 60 per cent of households will get a rebate,” they note. CBC has an interactive calculator too. You can learn more about Alberta’s Climate Leadership Plan here.
• Deputy Premier Sarah Hoffman says the tax is all about the long game. Mayor Don Iveson thinks the tax will ultimately create more jobs for Edmonton. Paula Simons wrote last week that “a tax on carbon is a more efficient, rational, transparent way of encouraging behavioural change than many other more baroque forms of social and economic engineering.”
• Edmonton’s New Years baby this year was Joy Lol Duop, born at 12:01am at the Lois Hole Hospital for Women.
• Here’s a 2 minute look back at 2016 in Edmonton from Urban YEG.
• Fish captured Edmonton’s arts scene in 2016, while Twyla wrote about the year in food.
• Our latest Taproot Edmonton story is a follow-up to last month’s feature on pedestrian deaths. What will it take to protect people from dying on Edmonton’s streets?
• Ken Cantor’s Primavera Development Group is buying the Brighton Block at 9666 Jasper Avenue. It’s a heritage building so it can’t be torn down without Council approval.
• The Dying Light Collective is raising money to open a community workshop. They “want to provide a space for the people of Edmonton to learn new skills and to pursue creative projects.”
• The City is reminding Edmontonians to “reduce, reuse and recycle this holiday season to help keep waste out of landfill.” They even created a hashtag to promote the #wastelessholidays.
• Four Edmontonians were appointed to the Order of Canada this week. In addition to being Canada’s 150th birthday, 2017 is the 50th anniversary of the Order of Canada.
• Mayor Don Iveson has floated the idea of naming Northlands Coliseum after Wayne Gretzky.
• The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) could be coming to Edmonton in 2017. OEG CEO Bob Nicholson is reportedly “negotiating with UFC owners WME-IMG to bring a pay-per-view (PPV) card to Edmonton.”
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Upcoming Events

• Ice Castles is now open at Hawrelak Park! It’s closed on Tuesdays, but otherwise should be open until mid-February.
• Fort Edmonton Park’s winter day camp takes place Tuesday through Friday this week for kids 6-10 years of age.
• The Oil Kings host the Vancouver Giants on Wednesday at Rogers Place. Then after one game away, they’re back at home on Sunday to host the Medicine Hat Tigers.
• The Best of YEG Fitness Awards are taking place on Wednesday evening at Central Social Hall.
• After a brief break, the City Market Downtown is back at City Hall on Saturday.
• Swing ‘n Skate Sundays is back starting this month! Check it out every Sunday at City Hall.
• Be sure to check out my Winter 2016/2017 Festival & Event Guide for even more holiday & winter related events!
• Save the date: EEDC’s annual Impact Luncheon is coming up on January 10.
• From Edmonton Tourism, here’s a look at what’s coming up in January!
• 2017 is Canada’s sesquicentennial so stay tuned for a variety of Canada 150 events throughout the year!
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.