Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• Rogers Place officially opened this week with a ceremony on Thursday evening and a public open house on Saturday. You can see the full video of the ribbon cutting here and here’s a collection of photos from the official opening. Here’s a statement from PCL Construction and here is the City of Edmonton’s news release.
• Critics mostly seem impressed by the new arena and the surrounding development still to come, but a lot remains to be seen about the impact the arena will have. There’s uncertainty about what the new Edmonton will mean for 104 Street and the rest of downtown.
• Also unveiled Thursday was Alex Janvier’s Tsą tsą ke k’e – “Iron Foot Place” – a 45-foot diameter circular mosaic set in the floor of Ford Hall (formerly known as the winter garden). It looks spectacular! Here’s the news release.
• Here’s a look at the new food and beverage options that will be available at Rogers Place. At the open house, chocolate bars and bottles of water were priced at $5 each.
• The new $32 million Grand Villa Edmonton Casino also opened this week in ICE District.
• The City of Edmonton is one of only two cities in Canada to become a champion city for the UN Women Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces Global Program. “By joining the UN Women Safe Cities Initiative, Edmonton is part of the global movement to change harmful social norms and attitudes that discriminate and tolerate violence against women,” said Mayor Don Iveson.
• Employment in the Edmonton region fell by 8,500 jobs in August 2016 which means the Edmonton CMA’s unemployment rate increased from 7.7% in July to 8.0% in August (Calgary is at 9.0%).
• Paula Simons on Edmonton’s proposed Suicide Prevention Strategy: “The strategy is a remarkably idealistic and aspirational document…but while it’s long on soaring rhetoric, it’s short on concrete, specific proposals that might actually save lives.”
• The University of Alberta is getting $132 million in upgrades over the next two years thanks to newly announced federal and provincial funding. “The federal government is providing $56.3 million from its post-secondary institutions strategic investment fund while the provincial government is contributing $26.5 million. The private sector and the U of A are together adding $48 million.” Here’s more on the funding at ExpressNews.
• The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta has endorsed the concept of safe-injection sites in Edmonton. Vancouver is currently the only Canadian city where safe-injection sites are operating.
• There’s an opening on the Edmonton Police Commission, with tenure starting in January 2017. The deadline to apply is September 25.
• The Capital Region Board’s updated Growth Plan will go to vote on October 13.
• The official portrait of former Premier Alison Redford was hung at the legislature on Thursday without any ceremony.
• From Vintage Edmonton: William Hawrelak for Mayor Handbill (1974).
• Here is the second part of ECAMP’s feature on Edmonton’s Italian community. It covers the period of 1921 to 1945.
• The deadline to nominate someone for the 2016 Stars of Alberta Volunteer Awards is September 20.
• A memorial service was held today at the Firefighters Memorial Plaza in Old Strathcona to mark the 15th anniversary of 9/11.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Ford Hall, photo by Kurt Bauschardt

Upcoming Events

• The Edmonton premiere of Catching the Sun!, a film about solar energy, takes place on Tuesday at the Garneau Theatre.
• Dark Matters returns on Thursday to the TELUS World of Science with a focus on the science of science fiction.
• Head over to Hall D at the Shaw Conference Centre on Thursday for the Balcony Harvest Party in support of the High School Culinary Challenge.
• Western Canada Fashion Week gets underway on Thursday and runs through September 24 at the ATB Financial Arts Barns in Old Strathcona.
• Edmonton is hosting the FISE World Series this weekend at Hawrelak Park. The event features 400+ riders and is free to attend. They have quite the lineup of food trucks too!
• Vignettes takes place on Friday at the former Sobey’s location on 104 Street. The event “is an interdisciplinary competition that invites teams of local designers, woodworkers, visual artists and contractors to bring their best in collaboration, creation, and competition in a challenging and innovative way.”
• MacEwan is hosting tours of its urban beekeeping project for the next few weeks – the first is on Friday during lunch.
• A meeting for the Edmonton Soccer Project takes place Friday night at the Mill Woods library.
• Keith Urban will play the first concert at Rogers Place on Friday evening. Dolly Parton will play the second concert, on Saturday evening.
• The City is hosting another Big Bin Event this weekend at Commonwealth Stadium. Bring your household items that can’t be set out for regular waste collection.
• Rogers Place is hosting a viewing party for Team North America vs. Team Finland on Sunday. Tickets are $5 and go on sale Wednesday at 10am.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Happy long weekend! Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• You’ve no doubt seen the horrible video of a group of men in a car yelling racial slurs at Jesse Lipscombe in downtown Edmonton. Jesse later met with the mayor and now they have teamed up on the #MakeItAwkward campaign to call out discriminatory and ignorant behavior.
• The latest municipal census puts our city’s population at 899,447. I wrote about it here and Dave says the results “could give some indication into how provincial electoral boundaries in the city will be redrawn for the next election.”
• Former Lt.-Gov. Norman Kwong died on Saturday at the age of 86. Here’s a statement from Premier Notley. Online condolences can be shared here.
• The City of Edmonton and the Edmonton Police Association have “settled a retroactive collective agreement for 2014, 2015 and 2016 through binding arbitration.” Wage increases of 2.4% in 2014, 2.5% in 2015, and 2.75% in 2016 were awarded.
• For the 5th consecutive year, Edmonton has been awarded a score of AA+, the second-highest possible, from credit agency Standard & Poor’s.
• Jonathan Brownlee of Great Britain finished first in the Elite Men’s race at the ITU World Triathlon Edmonton today.
• The federal government has agreed to put $143.9 million toward more than four dozen Edmonton transit project, CBC Edmonton reports. “Today’s agreement means projects that are not only shovel ready, but also shovel worthy, can proceed without delay,” Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi said at the Alberta legislature.
• Councillor Tony Caterina’s son Rocco is planning to run in Ward 4 next year if current councillor Ed Gibbons chooses not to run again.
• Do you love Edmonton? Then you might want to support Emil Tiedemann’s campaign to print a book called 101 Reasons Why I Heart Edmonton. He’s looking to raise $6,000.
• NorQuest College is facing a “massive privacy breach” as well as fraud that cost the college nearly $2 million in damages.
• Paula Simons on Rogers Place and ICE District: “The pace and scale of development is dazzling — more like something you might see in Shanghai or Dubai than Edmonton.”
• Changes to park & ride at the Belvedere, Century Park, Clareview, and Stadium LRT stations took effect on September 1. “Across the system, ETS now offers approximately 1,700 free stalls and 2,300 reserved paid stalls at the above-mentioned LRT lots.”
• “When Fort Mac needed you, you were there.” Check out the #WeAllResponse microsite.
• Gretzky’s Wine & Whisky is Wayne Gretzky’s new restaurant which opened on Friday at the Edmonton International Airport.
• Police are urging motorists to slow down on the High Level Bridge after catching multiple drivers travelling more than double the posted speed limit.
• Three new schools opened in Edmonton this month, part of the 32 school projects that were completed this month across the province.
• Stand Up To Cancer takes place on Friday, September 9 across Canada and the U.S. and a number of buildings are being lit up in support including Edmonton’s High Level Bridge. It will be lit red, orange, and yellow from September 7-9.
• Here’s the first of a three-part chronicle of Edmonton’s Italian community. In it, “Adriana A. Davies highlights the people, places, and motions that were at the heart of Italian immigrants finding a foothold in Alberta and Edmonton.”
• Major ETS bus service changes went into effect today. “This year, the changes are bigger than ever with 50,000 service hours being reallocated to improve on-time performance and to serve higher demand routes.”
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Upcoming Events

• Monday is the final day for the Tour of Alberta!
• There’s a public meeting and Belgravia Traffic Street Lab event taking place on Tuesday evening at St. Paul’s United Church.
• The next Green Drinks takes place on Wednesday at Yellowhead Brewery with a theme of Sustainability on Campus.
• I’m participating in the YEG Downtown Speak-off on Thursday evening at the Centennial Pavilion in Churchill Square. Hope to see you there!
• Kaleido is back! The family arts festival takes place Friday through Sunday on Alberta Avenue.
• You can get a tour of Blatchford on Friday afternoon! Meet at the old airport control tower.
• Head over to Strathearn Park on Saturday afternoon for the 2016 edition of the Strathearn Art Walk! Here’s a preview from Linda.
• Churchill Square will be busy on Saturday with the Mid-Autumn Lantern Festival! Don’t miss the 1000 lit wish boats around 8pm.
• Thousands of people will get their first look inside the new arena at the Rogers Place Open House on Saturday.
• The next #YEGparity Speaker Series event takes place on Saturday morning at ATB Place and features Kim Armstrong, Deputy Minister of the Status of Women.
• Help celebrate 40 years at the Muttart Conservatory on Saturday!
• The City is hosting another Big Bin Event this weekend at the Jasper Place Fitness & Leisure Centre.
• The Eskimos host the Stampeders at Commonwealth Stadium on Saturday.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Beautiful Morning to Build a Bridge, photo by Dave Sutherland

I hope you had a great weekend! It certainly feels like summer is winding down with a noticeable chill in the air. Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• Rapidly rising water levels due to steady rainfall led to warnings to avoid the North Saskatchewan River this week. A number of river valley trails remain closed, which you can see here.
• EPCOR on Friday reiterated its appeal to Edmontonians to reduce non-essential water use, as the increased debris in the water has caused the rate of potable water production to slow. “Customers should not be concerned about the quality of the drinking water,” however.
• The final countdown is on for Rogers Place. The Oilers expect to receive the keys from PCL Construction on Thursday.
• Skater’s Arch is a sculpture created by artist Douglas Bentham for the northeast corner of Rogers Place. Also, here’s a gallery of the new Rogers Place bowl.
• The John Janzen Nature Centre celebrated its 40th anniversary today! “The nature centre was a project of the late John Janzen, Superintendent of Edmonton’s then-named Parks and Recreation Department from 1966 to 1972.” The Bonnie Doon Leisure Centre also celebrated a milestone this weekend: 50 years!
• A new report from the Downtown Business Association suggests that as office vacancy climbs downtown, some towers could be turned into residential or hotel spaces.
• A total of 3,583 tickets were given out during the Operation 24 Hours that took place on Wednesday. Of those, 3,213 were for speeding. In related news, anti-photo radar activists have been warning drivers across the city about the location of radar trucks.
• Here’s a recap of our last What the Truck?! event which took place at the Edmonton Ballpark. Our final event of the season is on September 25 in Churchill Square!
• The Oilers open training camp on September 22 and it’s at that event the Oilers will confirm that Connor McDavid is the team’s next captain.
• Alberta Health has partnered with Park Place Seniors Living to develop new long-term care spaces in Edmonton.
• You can now view Edmonton Crime Analytics online. The release of crime data was the “number one request from data seekers”.
• Urban Sparq has launched an appeal for its two proposed megabars that the City rejected earlier this month. It will be heard in early fall by the Subdivision and Development Appeal Board.
• Postal workers in Alberta look set to strike on Tuesday, kicking off rotating job action across the country by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Upcoming Events

• This week is Race Week! Though as far as I can tell, nothing is really happening until Friday.
• Monday is the day to get tickets for the Rogers Place Open House which takes place on September 10.
• The next 100 People Who Care event takes place on Tuesday at the Terwillegar Community Recreation Centre.
• The Callingwood Farmers’ Market runs Wednesday and Sunday at The Marketplace at Callingwood!
• The ITU World Triathlon Edmonton starts on Friday at Hawrelak Park.
• There’s a Food Bike Tour taking place on Saturday. It takes place over 6-8 hours at 5-7 different places!
• SONiC BOOM 2016 takes place at Borden Park on Saturday and Sunday.
• The Tour of Alberta comes through Edmonton on Sunday and Monday for Stages 4 and 5. Be aware of temporary road closures!
• It’s the long weekend, enjoy!
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Canadian Derby, photo by IQRemix

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• Mayor Iveson and Treaty No. 6 Chiefs commemorated 140 years since the signing of Treaty No. 6 on Friday (it was actually signed on August 23). “Edmonton was founded in Treaty No. 6 territory. The Treaty No. 6 flag will fly outside of City Hall for the next week, however it is permanently displayed inside City Hall as an acknowledgement that Edmonton is on Treaty No. 6 territory.”
• Rogers Place will open to the public on September 10 which is before any concerts or games. Tickets for the open house will be released on August 29. And be advised that 104 Avenue from 101 Street to 105 Street will be closed starting Tuesday until August 29 for roadway work related to the arena.
• The City is extending EPark’s hours of operation from 6pm to 10pm on Rogers Place event nights as of September 1. “The hourly extension is intended to help balance the limited amount of on-street parking spaces with the high demand for parking by businesses, residents and visitors, as well as to encourage event-goers to use alternate means of transportation, such as transit.”
• Final numbers are yet to come but it appears that this year’s Fringe festival sold more than 121,400 tickets to 213 indoor shows, breaking last year’s record.
• Nearly 4,500 people took part in the 25th Edmonton Marathon this weekend, with Camrose’s Brendan Lunty crossing the line first (on his birthday) with a time of 2:35:21.
• The City has released detailed plans and new renderings for the first residential phase of Blatchford. Roughly 250 townhomes and low to mid-rise condos and apartments will be built during the first phase. Check out the new BlatchfordEdmonton.ca website for more information.
• Primary building construction on the new Royal Alberta Museum is now complete, though work continues inside. The museum is slated to open in late 2017.
• In his latest data-driven post, Michael Ross takes a look at bike safety in Edmonton. You shouldn’t be surprised by his conclusions!
• Mayor Iveson thinks a new promenade similar to Vancouver’s seawall could help with congestion on the trails along the river. “I actually think there’s a phenomenal opportunity to do a promenade, a seawall kind of experience,” he said.
• A new pilot project will match funding “for creative lighting installations on heritage buildings” up to $50,000. “A maximum of three large projects will be approved, requiring the full $50,000 support, with the remainder supporting smaller projects.”
• The Naming Committee has designated 101A Avenue between 99 Street and 100 Street as Judy Padua Way in honour of the Edmonton-born philanthropist who died in 2008.
• The Edmonton Police Commission is looking for a new Executive Director. The deadline to apply is September 9.
• Here’s a feature on Edmonton’s love-hate relationship with the pedway at the Edmonton City as Museum Project. “By 1968, a pedway plan was approved by the city. It is important to note, though, that this plan was never a unified one—clarity never seems to have been reached regarding exactly what our pedway would look like or encompass.” I wrote a series on the pedway back in 2013.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Five Towers and a Pyramid, photo by Jeff Wallace

Upcoming Events

• The Vally Zoo is hosting Pokemon Go Safari on Tuesday.
• Movies on the Square returns on Tuesday evening with a screening of Kung Fu Panda 3.
• There are always fun things to do on Thursday night, like the 124 Street Grand Market and the Latitude 53 Patio.
• The Eskimos host the Saskatchewan Roughriders at Commonwealth Stadium on Friday.
• Head over to the Union Bank Inn on Friday night for Style in the City.
• The Vixens of Vintage Summer Bazaar Market takes place Saturday and Sunday at the Prince of Wales Armouries.
• There’s another Big Bin Event taking place on the weekend at the Clareview Community Recreation Centre.
• Don’t miss the Secret Alley Gallery taking place on Saturday in the alley beside the Fox Towers.
• Next week is the ITU World Triathlon Edmonton and Tour of Alberta so to celebrate the folks at Yardstick have planned a Raceweek Street Party taking place on Saturday.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Rogers Place on August 20, photo by jasonwoodhead23

I am working in London, UK for the week. Nice to be here in the summer for a change! I’ll be back to Edmonton on Saturday, August 20 just in time for our next What the Truck?! event! It takes place from 4-8pm at the Edmonton Ballpark (TELUS Field) with a great lineup of trucks. Hope to see you there!

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• The two proposed applications from CK Design Associates for a bar on 104 Street and a nightclub on 109 Street have been rejected. “The development permit applications were reviewed independently and were refused on the grounds that both uses would ‘materially interfere with or affect the use, enjoyment or value of neighbouring properties’ (Edmonton Zoning Bylaw 12800).”
• The 2014 Economic Impact Assessment for the Late Night Entertainment Economy has been released (yes, more than halfway through 2016). It shows that “total economic output more than doubled from $686,511,073 in 2010 to $1,431,112,160 in 2014 (accounting for inflation).”
• As noted in my latest Council roundup, City Council’s new organization structure takes effect starting Monday. Elise Stolte has the details on the end of the Transportation Committee and other changes.
• Dave reports that there are now 13 candidates who have filed their intention to run in next year’s municipal election.
• The Oilers announced this week they have discontinued the Oilers Octane. “The organization is looking for a new direction related to the fan experience, both in-game and in the community, as we head to Rogers Place for our inaugural season.”
• Council will be discussing whether or not to allow voting at ages 16 and 17 (the Province needs to make the change, but Council can support it). The Journal has a look at some of the research behind the debate.
• The City is now using free-standing photo-radar equipment to catch speeders “at locations where it has been impossible to deploy enforcement vehicles safely.”
• Next year is Canada’s 150th birthday and the City is now accepting applications from non-profit organizations that want to host a special event in honour of the occasion.
• Kasie Campbell has been named artist in residence at the City of Edmonton’s Kennedale Facility.
• Here is the Summer 2016 Update from Startup Edmonton. Save the date for the next DemoCamp – September 22.
• You have until October 15 to provide input on the Heritage Interpretive Plan for the West Rossdale area. There will be a public visioning workshop on September 7.
• If you want to speak at the next Pecha Kucha Night, the deadline to apply is August 24. The event takes place on September 29.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Signs of fall already?

Upcoming Events

• The Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival is underway all week long!
• There is a YEGArts Mixer taking place on Monday evening at the Jasper Place Wellness Centre.
• Capital Ideas is hosting The Art of Business on Tuesday evening at the ATB Entrepreneur Centre.
• Zootopia is the next Movies on the Square film, Tuesday evening at Churchill Square.
• Feast on the Field returns on Wednesday evening to Commonwealth Stadium in support of seniors in care.
• Latitude 53’s Summer Patio Series continues on Thursday evening.
• The fourth installment of Concerts at the Conservatory takes place on Thursday at the Muttart Conservatory.
• The Edmonton Dragon Boat Festival starts on Friday at Louise McKinney Riverfront Park.
• The Edmonton Blues Festival takes place at Hawrelak Park from Friday through Sunday.
• The 25th running of the Edmonton Marathon takes place Saturday and Sunday.
• Get rid of household items that can’t be left out for regular waste collection at the City’s next Big Bin Event taking place Saturday and Sunday at the Terwillegar Community Recreation Centre.
• Head down to La Cite Francophone on Sunday for the French Quarter Grand Market!
• Saturday and Sunday throughout the province is Alberta Open Farm Days. “Farms and ranches across the province are opening their gates. Where will your rural ramblings take you?”
• The Babas & Borshch Ukrainian Festival takes place on Saturday and Sunday in Andrew, Alberta which is northeast of Edmonton.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Edmonton Airshow, photo by Dale C

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• Lots more Northlands news this week. Chris LaBossiere resurfaced the suggestion that Northlands and EEDC merge. Then Northlands CEO Tim Reid threatened that this year’s K-Days could be the last, if Northlands doesn’t find a way to generate new revenue. Extortion doesn’t seem like a good strategy to get what you want from City Council, but the truth is Northlands has no leverage. Both Paula Simons and Graham Hicks wrote about the threat.
• Watching the 2016 Rio Olympics? Here are 10 northern Albertan athletes competing at the games and here’s a feature on three Edmonton competitors.
• The Edmonton Police Service has laid its first charge under Quanto’s Law. Also known as the Justice for Animals in Service Act, Quanto’s Law took effect last summer, named after the Edmonton police dog who was stabbed to death a few years ago.
• Mel Hurtig passed away this week at the age of 84. “He didn’t just prove that Canadian writing mattered,” Paula Simons wrote. “He proved you didn’t have to be from Toronto or Ottawa or Montreal to be a real Canadian, that Edmonton was as Canadian as anywhere else.”
• Five life-size human sculptures made of tape appeared on the new suicide barriers on the High Level Bridge. The City took them down immediately and considers it an act of vandalism.
• Folk Fest had a great weekend. Here’s a feature on festival founder Terry Wickham.
• Flying a drone? “Edmonton Police Service Air 1 pilots are asking users of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to be mindful of flight regulations and potential risk to the police helicopter, after a recent near-miss.”
• The Local Good has published a new feature on co-working for makers in Edmonton.
• From the Edmonton City as Museum Project: The Cowboys in the Sky: The Story of Edmonton’s Ironworkers.
• The Edmonton Oilers have hired Gretzky as the club’s new Assistant General Manager. No, not that Gretzky, his brother Keith.
• Speaking of Wayne Gretzky, his statue was removed from Rexall Place this week. It will now be refurbished before finding a new home at Rogers Place in the fall.
• New payday loan legislation took effect in Alberta on August 1. The lowest maximum borrowing rate was reduced from $23 for every $100 borrowed to $15 per $100, among other changes.
• Construction has begun on the new 66-storey Stantec tower in ICE District! “This is a massive gesture of confidence on the part of Edmontonians to have the audacity to build a building like this,” said Mayor Don Iveson.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Summer Sunset

Upcoming Events

• The Edmonton Community Foundation and Skills Society Action Lab are launching the Edmonton Shift Lab on Tuesday at McCauley School.
• Reconciliation in Solidarity Edmonton is holding its first AGM on Tuesday at the Stanley Milner Library.
• ATB Financial’s Chief Economist Todd Hirsch is speaking at the Mosaic Centre on Tuesday evening about the Future of Alberta.
• Movies on the Square is back on Tuesday evening with a screening of Angry Birds.
• The next event in the #YEGparity Speaker Series takes place on Wednesday evening.
• The Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival gets underway on Thursday! The festival runs through August 21 at venues throughout the city. For previews, check out After the House Lights.
• On Thursday evening the Latitude 53 Summer Patio Series continues!
• Also Thursday evening, the Eskimos host the Montreal Alouettes at Commonwealth Stadium.
• Workshop Eatery is hosting A Garden Party on Thursday evening to raise money for the Canadian Culinary Fund. We saw their garden a few nights ago and it certainly looks impressive.
• The Edmonton Rock Music Festival gets underway on Friday at Hawrelak Park.
• On Saturday morning you can help with the 3rd annual river valley food forest planting over at MacKinnon Ravine Park.
• This year’s Edmonton Latin Festival takes place Saturday and Sunday at Churchill Square.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Animethon 23, photo by ceasol

Happy Long Weekend! Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• So can we talk about the weather for moment? We’ve had some epic summer storms recently which have led to flooding and all kinds of craziness like a geyser shooting up from a parking lot. Then today, on the 29th anniversary of the Black Friday Tornado, Environment Canada issued a weather advisory for funnel clouds (fortunately nothing came of it). Oh yeah, we’ve also had our hottest year days of the year according to Edmonton Weather Nerdery and it’s all downhill from here. On the other hand, when it has been nice over the last week, it has been really nice.
• The City says that the drainage pipes beneath Whitemud Drive were built to handle a one-in-five-year storm, which is why we saw it flood this week for the third and fourth times since 2000. Improving the drainage could cost millions of dollars.
• A membership survey conducted by the Edmonton Police Association suggests 80% of EPS officers agreed they work in “a toxic culture of blame and fear.” They have called for an independent, third-party assessment of the force’s culture as well as Chief Rod Knect’s leadership.
• Employment in the Edmonton region decreased by 9,500 jobs in June 2016. Employment has grown by 2.4% in Edmonton year-to-date, four times the national average.
• Perhaps another sign of the trouble economy at the moment: Edmonton’s Food Bank has collected less tha half its donation goal at the Heritage Festival with just one day to go.
• Here’s a Transforming Edmonton feature on the new High Level Bridge suicide barriers. “The barriers mark the beginning of something much bigger – a city that has taken an epidemic very seriously and is dedicated to drastically reducing the number of suicide attempts and deaths in our community.”
• There’s still no timeline to fix the LRT arrival signs. They have been broken since April.
• Total attendance for K-Days this year was 803,087, the second highest ever after 2005.
• ETS is adding solar panels to 40 new bus shelters across the city. The new panels include high efficiency LED bulbs that turn on at night.
• NewLeaf Travel‘s first flight from EIA departed for Hamilton on Friday.
• Congratulations to the Golden Bears tennis team on capturing their second national title in three seasons.
• A new Bicycle Repair Station sponsored by Steam Whistle and the Old Strathcona Business Association was installed on Friday next to the bicycle corral at 8224 104 Street. It’s the third station in Edmonton.
• Did you know that Edmonton has an accessory truck? Find Accessory Insanity at an upcoming event to buy jewelry, purses, hats, wallets, and more.
• The Oilers did not have a single captain last season but that won’t be the case on opening night in October as head coach Todd McLellan confirmed “we will have a captain.”
• If you’d like to learn a little more about zoning, check out this new PDF from the City. It’s an accessible yet informative introduction to the topic.
• Pecha Kucha Night 26 is scheduled for September 29. If you’d like to speak, you have until August 24 to submit your presentation.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Edmonton River Valley

Upcoming Events

• There’s still one more day of the Heritage Festival to go!
• Movies on the Square returns to Churchill Square on Tuesday evening with a screening of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
• Rock’n August kicks off on Tuesday in St. Albert.
• This year’s edition of the Edmonton Folk Music Festival gets underway on Thursday.
• Animethon 23 starts on Friday at MacEwan!
• Also starting Friday is Cariwest. The parade takes place Saturday starting at noon.
• Head out to the Villeneuve Airport on Saturday and Sunday for the Edmonton Airshow.
• Save the date: Alberta’s Open Farm Days is taking place on August 20 and 21.
• Also, our next What the Truck?! event takes place on August 20 at the Edmonton Ballpark (TELUS Field). Here’s the lineup!
• July might be over, but Edmonton’s summer festival season is not! Check out my full listing here.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Edmonton K-Days Exhibition 2016, photo by IQRemix

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• Big piece on Edmonton’s lack of cycling infrastructure in the Globe and Mail this weekend. “While Vancouver is rolling out a bike-share program and Calgary finished a downtown network of bike paths last summer, the car is still king in Edmonton. The city’s first downtown bike path will not be finished before 2020, based on current plans.”
• And in Spacing Edmonton, a call for rethinking parking in Edmonton.
• Dave reports that ten candidates have already filed to run in next year’s municipal elections. Incumbents Bev Esslinger, Dave Loken, Scott McKeen, Michael Walters, and Mike Nickel have all filed their papers already.
• Are you playing Pokémon Go? Or avoiding those who are? The Edmonton Police Service is reminding everyone to abide by laws and stay safe. “The message is simple – have fun but stay safe,” says Const. Hunter Robinz. “Remember, you can’t catch ‘em all if we catch you breaking the law.”
• Speaking of Pokémon Go, here are the best places to take the kids to play from Raising Edmonton.
• When Rogers Place opens in a couple of months you might enter the building through Ford Hall, the new name for the Wintergarden. The Oilers announced the renaming as part of an expanded partnership with Ford of Canada.
• The Edmonton Public Library has started loaning Wi-Fi hotspots with unlimited data to adult library cardholders as part of a two-year pilot program. They have 40 such hotspots and hope the service will help the more than 116,000 Edmontonians who are without home Internet access.
• The Warehouse District downtown was the first in North America to be accredited with the Purple Flag designation. “The Purple Flag designation means that Edmonton has set the bar for North American safety standards in hospitality destinations.”
• Bus shelter vandalism is a bigger problem than you might think. “The rule of thumb is three days. That’s how long Edmonton Transit System can go before someone smashes a glass pane in one of their 2,300 bus shelters throughout the city.”
• Here’s a feature on three University of Alberta spin-off companies led by Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry researchers: MagnetTX Oncology Solutions, Tevosol, and Metabolomic Technologies Inc.
• It was announced this week that the next Council of the Federation summer meeting of Premiers will take place in Edmonton next summer, July 17-19, 2017.
• The City is reminding residents to help look after the North Saskatchewan River “by eliminating common household sources of chemical pollutants.”
• Vue Weekly’s annual Best of Edmonton poll is open and accepting votes until August 22.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Rainbow over downtown this evening

Upcoming Events

• K-Days and Taste of Edmonton continue all week!
• If you’re planning to head down to Northlands, be sure to consider taking ETS. The additional trains on the weekend were very much appreciated and made our trip to and from the grounds very quick.
• And make sure you head to K-Days prepared! Here’s a preview from Linda and here’s a quick recap from Emil.
• London Drugs is sponsoring a photowalk on Wednesday evening at the Legislature grounds. There will be plenty of Pokémon Go players to photograph, I’m sure!
• On Thursday evening the Eskimos host the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Commonwealth Stadium.
• Taking place on 104 Street (I think…call it a hunch) on Thursday evening is Diner en Blanc. The after party is set for Central Social Hall later that evening.
• There’s always lots to do on Thursday evenings! There’s also the Latitude 53 Patio and the 124 Street Grand Market.
• The 2016 Servus Heritage Festival takes place at Hawrelak Park from Saturday through Monday for the long weekend.
• It feels like summer is zooming by, but there’s still lots of great festivals and events to come. Check out my guide for 2016 for a full listing!
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Slide the City, photo by IQRemix

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• Have you been frustrated by the barriers on the High Level Bridge? Mayor Iveson has heard you, and blogged about it this weekend. “What I should have done was to ask for compassion for the emotionally difficult position Council has been in with respect to the barriers, and to ask for patience as we examine options to mitigate the conditions we’ve created.”
• The Edmonton Bicycle Commuters Society, frustrated with the poor implementation of the barriers, suggested exploring the use of the top deck for a new pathway to ease congestion.
• There was a lot of frustration at Council this week. “I think that’s what Edmontonians expect of their councillors is rigorous agreement or disagreement on the issues but not that any member of council be disagreeable with one another or city staff or the public,” the mayor said. Sounds like the summer break couldn’t have come at a better time.
• Council did unanimously approve a review “that will look at Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy requests, closed-door council debates, and contracts kept secret for the benefit of third parties.” Councillor Mike Nickel made the motion and I really like his suggestion of sunset clauses so that information can be released after it is no longer sensitive. The report should come back in October.
• On Friday, the Province of Alberta and Government of Canada announced funding to construction the southwest portion of the Calgary Ring Road. Mayor Don Iveson made a statement in response: “We are pleased that Calgary received the funding they needed for their ring road today and we’re hopeful Edmonton will soon see similar funding for top priority projects like upgrades to the Yellowhead Trail.”
• Also Friday, the 102 Avenue Bridge over Groat Road finally reopened! There’s still some work to be done that will result in lane reductions during off-peak hours and on the weekends, but it should be all finished by the end of September. “The City of Edmonton thanks the local businesses on 102 Avenue and 124 Street, residents, motorists and trail users for their patience during bridge construction.”
• The City has released a series of nine “Guiding Perspectives” reports as part of the new Transit Strategy development. They cover topics like “why people do or don’t take transit”, “how Edmonton’s transit system is performing”, and “how Bus Rapid Transit can be included in Edmonton’s transit system”.
• Paula Simons wrote about the Edmonton Public Library’s temporary relocation to Enterprise Square while the Stanley Milner renovations take place. They’re leasing about 17,200 square feet of space. The Stanley Milner is slated to close in late December for three years. Here’s more on the move from EPL.
• Startup Edmonton has released its Summer 2016 Update. They now have more than 120 members working in the space and more than 440 currently enrolled in programs.
• The Edmonton Oilers signed winger Jesse Puljujarvi to a three-year entry level contract this week.
• Dave Mulcair has some suggestions for improving the ePark app. “If you live in Edmonton and have used this app then you understand how painful it is to park a car with this app.”
• The City of Edmonton will host the Canadian Open Data Summit in May 2017. The event will bring ” approximately 500 national leaders representing the public sector, non-profit, and private sector” to our city to discuss best practices and learnings around open data.
• July’s big ticket event saw 3,449 violations handed out, including 3,030 for speeding.
• Here’s a look at some of Edmonton’s power history from the Edmonton Power Historical Foundation.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

The Rainbow, photo by Jeff Wallace

Upcoming Events

• Commedia Burlesco takes place on Tuesday evening at The Chvrch of John.
• Capital Ideas is hosting its next panel on Wednesday at the Edmonton Journal on building a socially responsible business.
• The next Family Nature Nights event takes place on Wednesday evening at Big Bear Park.
• Taste of Edmonton starts on Thursday at Churchill Square.
• Dark Matters returns on Thursday at the TELUS World of Science.
• The Made Local Society is hosting Marketing for Creatives 101 on Thursday evening at their new location in Oliver.
• K-Days starts on Friday at Northlands! The parade takes place downtown starting at 10am.
• Interstellar Rodeo kicks off on Friday evening at Hawrelak Park.
• As mentioned Council is on summer break, so that means City Hall tours are starting up! Check it out every Friday until August 26.
• The Eskimos host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium.
• Head over to La Cite Francophone on Sunday for the French Quarter Grand Market.
• For more summer festivals and events, check out my guide for 2016!
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Bridging, photo by Dave Sutherland

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

Headlines

• David Staples questions whether Edmonton is really a city of risk takers in light of the wall of encouragement on Melcor’s 100th Street Place building. Todd Babiak wrote a letter in response. Here’s even more on the debate from Robin Mazumder. And here’s a look at “why and how the new mural came together” from Make Something Edmonton.
• Councillor Michael Oshry is considering a bid for the Alberta PC leadership. “What Alberta needs is a party that’s down the middle,” he told the Journal.
• Sanjay Shahani is the new Executive Director of the Edmonton Arts Council. Here’s a feature on Sanjay, who started in the role this week.
• Thorsten Goldberg has been selected to create a new piece of public art called 53°30’N for the new North East Transit Garage.
• Construction begins tomorrow on portions of the storm and sanitary service connections at Blatchford. The underground utility work is expected to take about 5 months.
• Emil covers a wide range of new projects taking place around the city in The Evolution of Edmonton. “From theatres to skyscrapers, Edmonton is evolving into a world class metro right before our eyes!”
• The City has introduced new landscaping requirements to ensure new homes have a minimum number of trees and shrubs and also to provide “an incentive to encourage Edmontonians to keep mature trees.”
• Downtown residents received notice of two proposed mega-bars this week. One in the Fox Tower 2 would be nearly 600 seats while the other, in the former Mother’s Music building, could hold 1,400 people.
• Alberta Venture has released its list of Alberta’s 50 Most Influential People of 2016. Nineteen Edmontonians made the list, including Daryl Katz, Connor McDavid, Rachel Notley, and Amarjeet Sohi.
• The City’s free summer drop-in programs are now underway and run weekdays until August 25, 2016. Last year, all drop-in programs received 565,000 visits.
• The Edmonton Public Library’s Jasper Place branch has won a 2016 Green Building Award. The LEED-certified building, designed by Hughes Condon Marler Architects, opened in 2013.
• From Dustin Bajer: “After two years of planting, the Edmonton food forest contains thousands of edible, native trees and shrubs that saskatoons, highbush cranberries, currants, elderberries, pin-cherries, chokecherries, beaked hazelnuts, and raspberries.” Now you can help plan for the third year on August 13!
• Disclosure statements from the 2016 Ward 12 By-Election were made available recently. Troy Pavlek put together a spreadsheet which shows that Moe Banga raised the most money at $78,890.
• The City’s Eco Stations program has received the Gold Excellence Award in the Special Waste category from the Solid Waste Association of North America.
• Dozens of people protested the pending demolition of the Cloverdale Footbridge today. More than 2,000 people use the bridge every day but they’ll have to find another route starting Monday when it closes to the public.
• For more recent headlines, check out ShareEdmonton.

Upcoming Events

• The Edmonton International Street Performers Festival kicked off on Friday and continues all week at Churchill Square.
• Also continuing this week is the Freewill Shakespeare Festival at Hawrelak Park.
• The Edmonton Prospects have four home games this week – Tuesday and Friday they host the Yorkton Cardinals and Saturday & Sunday they host the Fort McMurray Giants.
• The City and the Oilers are hosting an Information Session for Residents and Businesses regarding Rogers Place on Wednesday.
• Families are encouraged to head out to Gold Bar Park on Wednesday evening for Family Nature Nights: Forest Fables.
• On Wednesday evening the next #YEGparity Speaker Series event takes place at ATB Place.
• Thursday evening is the opening ceremony for the Alberta Summer Games, taking place at the Leduc Recreation Centre.
• The 2016 TrackTown Classic takes place on Friday at Foote Field.
• Check out Centennial Plaza behind the Stanley Milner Library downtown on Saturday afternoon for some basketball with Full Court 21 Canada.
• Then head over to 104 Street in the evening for the 104th Street Auto Show.
• Don’t miss my roundup of summer festivals & events for 2016.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Edmonton International Street Performers Festival 2016, photo by IQRemix