Edmonton Notes for July 21, 2019

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• After getting a better look at the ongoing renovations to the Stanley A. Milner library downtown, the less-than-appealing exterior was all Edmontonians could talk about this week. Elise Stolte thinks we could make it work by embracing BiblioTank.
• In Episode 47 of Speaking Municipally we discuss…what else? The downtown library renovation!
• Council made it official before going on summer break: e-scooters are coming to Edmonton.
• The pool outside City Hall won’t open this summer after all as construction delays have pushed the project back until October. “The city’s recent rainfall and a structural issue are to blame for the setback, according to Eugene Gyorfi, a program manager for infrastructure deliver with the city.”
• Edmonton is receiving $22 million from the federal government to form an urban climate centre in the city. “The announcement is part of the federal government’s Low Carbon Cities Canada project, which will create seven climate centres across the country.”
• Alberta Flavour is a working group consisting of NAIT, Northlands, the U of A, AHS, the Edmonton Convention Centre, and others, and it aims to purchase more local food products. “If you do want to scale up local food within the larger food system, institutional procurement is a really powerful and potent way to do that,” said University of Alberta researcher Mary Beckie.
• We knew this was coming, but “The End of the World” is no more as the City has officially opened the $1.5 million Keillor Point lookout.
• This weekend was the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, and many Edmontonians celebrated the milestone.
• Jonathan Brownlee won the Elite Men’s event at the ITU World Triathlon Series on Saturday here in Edmonton.
• I am very much looking forward to the report on how the City spent more than $600 million on consultants over five years. It’s due back in Q2 2020.
• The City has added six new murals representing the guiding values of City Plan to the construction hoarding around Churchill Square, and they’re encouraging you to take a selfie with them.
• Get the latest on Media, Tech, Food, Health Innovation, Music, Business, and Council with Taproot Edmonton’s latest roundups.

Edmonton is nothing if not beautiful, photo by Sarah

Upcoming Events

• K-Days continues at Northlands until July 28.
• Taste of Edmonton continues at the Federal Building plaza until July 28.
• The City of Edmonton is hosting an engagement session on strengthening relationships with urban Indigenous peoples on Wednesday evening at Bent Arrow.
• The Backstreet Boys will perform at Rogers Place on Thursday evening.
• The Edmonton Eskimos host the Toronto Argonauts on Thursday night at Commonwealth Stadium.
• There’s another Alberta Legislature Grounds Tour on Thursday evening. It’s free and starts at 6pm.
• Interstellar Rodeo runs Friday to Sunday at Hawrelak Park.
• Gold Hunt is a real-life, $100,000 treasure hunt that takes place throughout the city. The Edmonton edition takes place on Saturday, July 27!
• FC Edmonton hosts Forge FC on Saturday at Clarke Stadium.
• UFC 240 takes place on Saturday at Rogers Place.
• Check out Taproot Edmonton’s summer festival & event guide for 2019 for more upcoming events!