Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

• Council narrowed the downtown arena funding gap this week. Well, kind of. What they really did was use the money they found between the couch cushions and placed a bet on the fact that they’ll find a similar amount there again in future years. Joking aside, I’m not happy about the use of MSI funding for this project. As Paula said, diverting MSI funding is “a disingenuous violation of the spirit of the framework agreement.” Dave called it a strange comedy of errors. In an interesting regional twist, St. Albert Mayor Nolan Crouse, who is currently the chair of the Capital Region Board, said Edmonton shouldn’t be the only ones paying for the new arena.
• Speaking of regional issues, Doug Griffiths, Minister of Municipal Affairs for the province, said CRB members have until September to sort out their differences or the province will look at changing the boundaries. Make no mistake, if it comes to that Edmonton will come out on top.
• There’s no escaping the potholes this season, which is why they’re still in the news. Council assigned another $9 million to the problem, taking the total additional funding for 2013 to $21 million. Combined with the $4.5 million that was already budgeted, Edmonton is spending about seven times the average annual budget for potholes this year. Many are trying to spin that as a win, but the simply fact remains: we need some long-term funding solutions to our infrastructure problem. Our latest episode of Mack & Cheese discusses potholes too.
• The Edmonton Arts Council has appointed Paul Moulton as its next executive director. You can read the PDF release here.
• Our LRT launched officially on Monday and published a poll showing that nearly two-thirds of Edmontonians don’t want a private company to run the Southeast LRT.
• Looks like work on the new Renaissance Hotel at the Edmonton International Airport is progressing nicely! Crews installed the first of two pedway sections this week.
• Could the funicular be a gondola? Looks that way. As interesting as that sounds, I completely agree with Rossdale Community League president Lynn Parish, who asked: “Why are we not looking at this as one big package?” With the Rossdale Power Plant, the Walterdale Bridge, and other projects in the area, we’d be doing ourselves a disservice if we don’t try to connect them in some way.
• Want to start a restaurant chain? There’s no better place than Edmonton to begin, it seems. Boston Pizza, Earls, Pizza 73, Booster Juice, Wok Box, Famoso, Twisted Yogurt, and Oodle Noodle all got their start here.
• Edmonton-Centre Liberal MLA Laurie Blakeman is now the longest-serving member opposition MLA in Alberta’s history. Check the post for other Alberta Legislature milestones.
• Apparently New City Legion closed recently. Cue stories lamenting the Sidetrack Café!
• Nominations are open for the 2013 Top 40 Under 40. You’ve got until May 13 at midnight to make your suggestions!
• David Staples thinks the next mayor, assuming Mandel steps aside, will be a City Hall insider.
• It was pretty cool to see Edmonton show up on one of my favorite blogs, The Atlantic Cities, with a feature on Edmonton’s Streetcar Bookmobile. Here’s a video from 1942 highlighting the initiative:

Here are some upcoming events:

• Mobile Monday is back with an event focused on Open Data!
• They’re not mathematically eliminated yet, but it’s highly unlikely the Oilers will have a post-season. They host the Wild on Tuesday at Rexall Place.
• Graphic Content and Edmonton Girl Geek Dinners have joined forces to present The Fifth Element at Metro Cinema on Tuesday!
• The 11th annual TEC VenturePrize Business Plan Competition awards celebration takes place Wednesday evening at the Westin!
• The Edmonton Motor Show takes place at the Edmonton Expo Centre from Thursday to Sunday.
• Edmonton Opera’s Eugene Onegin starts on Friday, with additional performances on Sunday, and Tuesday and Thursday the following week.
• Saturday is going to be a busy day! There’s Eat Alberta at NAIT, the Edmonton Volunteer Fair at West Edmonton Mall, the Mercer Collective Makers Market at the Mercer Warehouse, the Edmonton Rush host the Calgary Roughnecks, and much more!
• The Edmonton Poetry Festival kicks off on Sunday and runs until the 28th. You can see all the events here.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

The sidewalks on the north side of Jasper Avenue are open again, as you can see in this shot of the Cambridge Building by Darren.

Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

• Water smelling a little off this week? Don’t worry, it’s still fine to drink – the smell is apparently simply due to the spring runoff (though it does beg the question, what makes this year worse than previous years?). Here’s the EPCOR release about the odor.
• When will it end?! Another dump of snow was probably not the way that most Edmontonians wanted to start April.
• Looks like there is a campaign underway to challenge the privatization of the LRT called Our LRT. They launched back in October according to a news release on the site. I wrote about the decision to use a P3 here.
• The Master Agreement for the downtown arena will be discussed by Council on Wednesday. This week we learned that MacEwan University is prepared to spend $2 million on the community rink.
• People are still talking about Mayor Mandel’s memorable State of the City Address. You might want to check out Councillor Iveson’s post on the speech.
• A total of 1,938 property assessment complaints were filed by Edmontonians this year, which is a 17% decrease from 2012.
• After 25 years of making its way through Old Strathcona, the Silly Summer Parade has been cancelled.
• Canada didn’t have a very good March in the job creation department. Here in Edmonton, we lost 400 jobs from February, but the unemployment rate actually fell slightly to 4.2% because the labour force dropped by 1700.
• There’s a new exhibit on now at the Enterprise Square Galleries, a three-year pilot project between the University of Alberta and the City of Edmonton for exhibition space.
• The DONATE A RIDE program is now in its 17th year, and charitable agencies are receiving 91,710 tickets for their clients.
• The lineup for this summer’s Interstellar Rodeo sounds pretty awesome!
• Seems to me that the trade deadline gets more boring each year, but the Oilers did make a few deals.
• I meant to link to local clothing company Flavor’s spring release. Love the Edmonton scenes they chose for modeling.
• Sounds like Homeless Connect today was another gratifying and successful day for both guests and volunteers.
• Michael Walters announced on Saturday that he’ll be running for Council in Ward 10:

Here are some upcoming events:

• Head over to Startup Edmonton on Monday night for the YegDroid Meetup!
• Tuesday night is DemoCamp Edmonton 21. See you at the Telus Centre!
• Edmonton Opera’s Eugene Onegin starts on Friday, April 19, but the accompanying Opera 101 event takes place on Wednesday.
• The 2013 edition of the Bonfire Festival gets underway on Tuesday. It runs through April 14 at the Citadel.
• Head over to the Haven Social Club on Thursday for Nerd Nite Edmonton #5.
• Make It Edmonton runs all weekend long, though it’s actually more like Make It St. Albert, since this edition is at The Enjoy Centre.
• The Oilers host the Coyotes on Wednesday and the Flames on Saturday.
• Saturday is the 31st annual Edmonton Law Day.
• The Rush take on Rochester at Rexall Place on Sunday.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Saturday was International Pillow Fight Day! Photo by Nelson Webb.

Happy Easter! Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

• Former Alberta premier Ralph Klein died Friday at the age of 70. Here’s the Edmonton Journal’s obituary, and here’s the Globe and Mail’s. You may also want to read Premier Redford’s statement. I really enjoyed Chris’ take on Klein. Dave has aggregated more coverage here.
• Leduc County is not happy about the City of Edmonton’s proposed annexation of 15,600 hectares to the south of our current boundary. Hopefully this public skirmish leads to improvements in our regional planning, because it won’t change the fact that Edmonton is getting that land.
• The City of Edmonton introduced its first ever blogger-in-residence on Wednesday. Scott McKeen will write on the Transforming Edmonton blog for six months.
• Edmonton’s NextGen presents Ideas for Edmonton, a crowdfunding model with a twist! Idea submissions and round 1 votes are being accepted until April 21. Check it out here.
• The cost of the new bridge over Groat Road on 102 Avenue will jump by $11.5 million partially to pay for drainage improvements, because the existing bridge is a steel grate that allows water to fall through and the one will be concrete. Makes sense right?
• Our city’s air quality rating is back down to “moderate” after rising late last week. You can learn more about the Air Quality Health Index here.
• Edmonton’s LRT stations will soon feature 55-inch screens showing weather, train arrival times, and ads. The displays are part of a deal with Pattison Outdoor Advertising.
• Former Edmonton teacher Mark Ramsankar has been elected president of the Alberta Teachers’ Association.
• Here’s an update from the City on pre-construction activities for the new Walterdale Bridge.
• Should we turn the Rossdale Power Plant into an urban ruin? Creative though the idea may be, it like many other proposals fails to take into consideration the projects happening all around the site.
• Taylor Hall broke Gretzky’s Oiler record for the fastest hat trick on Saturday night as the Oilers beat the Canucks 4-0. The Oilers also broke a franchise record for fastest three goals from the start of the game. Speaking of Gretzky, he was in town on Wednesday hosting a partners breakfast.
• The developer of Northport Business Park, located at 170 Street and 129 Avenue, was the first to access the City’s Revolving Industrial Servicing fund, designed to attract new industrial development to our city.
• File this one under the heard-that-before and believe-it-when-I-see-it categories: the Kelly Ramsay block and two adjacent structures on Rice Howard Way will be turned into a $250 million office and hotel project.
• GreenTRIP funding is helping to expand C-Line bus service between Leduc, Nisku, Edmonton and EIA.
• It sounds as though the fire that broke out at Bubba’s BBQ on Thursday was the result of “an untended heating element.” Damage was estimated a $125,000 and sadly it sounds like everything was destroyed.
• Hey would you look at that, a project to map the pedway system that doesn’t cost $2 million!
• Have you seen Ontario’s very funny “social farter” PSA? Turns out the actress featured is Edmonton-native Kathleen Black.

Here are some upcoming events:

• The Oilers host the newly Iginla-less Flames tomorrow night.
• Green Drinks returns on Wednesday with an Activism & Advocacy theme.
• Design changes for the Northwest LRT will be discussed at a public meeting on Wednesday.
• The City of Edmonton’s Planning Academy gets underway for another season beginning on Thursday. It’s a great opportunity to learn more about urban planning.
• I’ll see you Thursday at the Spacing Edmonton Launch Party!
• The Rush are finally back in town on Saturday when they host the Colorado Mammoth.
• GlitterBall is a sexy evening of music, dance, and more taking place on Saturday at the Artery.
• University of Alberta students will be looking to set a world record on Saturday at the Crush Exam Stress and Just Dance event.
• Edmonton’s tenth Homeless Connect event takes place on Sunday at the Shaw Conference Centre.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.

Great shot of the Muttart Conservatory by Cezary Kucharski.

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.

Happy St. Patrick’s day!

In case you haven’t heard – the seasonal parking ban that went into effect on Friday was lifted at 7pm this evening. Here are my weekly Edmonton notes:

• The Edmonton Public Library celebrated its 100th birthday on Wednesday! And they announced an awesome surprise to mark the occasion – library cards are free until March 13, 2014! Mayor Mandel proclaimed March 13 as “Edmonton Public Library Day”.
• The Government of Canada announced $250 million in LRT funding for Edmonton this week, through the P3 Canada Fund. I wrote about the use of a P3 to build our LRT here.
• The City of Edmonton celebrated 2 million visits to Eco Stations on Friday! A total of 16,093,483 litres of household hazardous waste has been kept from landfills as a result. I’ve really got to make it to an Eco Station – old computer equipment is piling up!
• Terence Harding in Metro: Edmonton, we need to start saying no.
• Thursday was the final day for Government of Alberta Air Services at the Edmonton City Centre Airport – they moved to EIA on Friday.
• Plans have been released for the redevelopment of the Molson Brewery site in Oliver, but residents are concerned that the plans are too car-centric.
• Council has put the brakes on part of this year’s bike route construction following anger from homeowners and businesses along the proposed routes.
• Here are some behind-the-scenes photos of the North LRT tunnel construction. Can’t wait to see this wrap up next spring!
• The Edmonton Historical Board is seeking nominations for the Historical Plaque and Recognition Awards. You’ve got until April 2 to submit your nominations.
• Thanks to a $500,000 injection of funding from the City on Tuesday, the Art Gallery of Alberta will live to see another day. It has been running a deficit since 2010 apparently.
• It’s not looking so good for late night bus service. Council was not impressed with plans for a pilot, but will decide in April when a list of transit priorities is produced.
• We’re into year 5 of the 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness, and to kick it off four new members have joined the Edmonton Homeless Commission.
• Take a few minutes and make sure your waste collector can do his or her job safely!
• Here’s a letter from Leduc County Council to residents in response to the City of Edmonton’s proposed annexation plans.

Here are some upcoming events:

• I’m sure anyone selling green beer was happy the Oilers won tonight! They’re in action at Rexall Place again on Wednesday against the Sharks, and Saturday against the Blues.
• The new Edmonton Remand Centre is holding an open house for the next couple days. Stop in on Monday or Tuesday to tour the new facility.
• Head over to the Edmonton Journal on Wednesday for lunch – this week’s event is on hiring and retaining good employees.
• Thursday is the launch party for Make Something Edmonton. See you at the Avenue Theatre! (And just in time, here’s the Make Something Edmonton Launch Party in a Box!)
• Western Canada Fashion Week kicks off Thursday and runs through March 28.
• The Edmonton Home & Garden Show takes place Thursday through Sunday at the Edmonton Expo Centre.
• Earth Hour is coming up on Saturday from 8:30pm to 9:30pm. In 2012, power consumption in Edmonton decreased by 3.4% during the hour.
• Have you got your tux ready? The ACE Awards take place Saturday evening at the Shaw Conference Centre.
• For more upcoming events, check out ShareEdmonton.ca.

Photo of the #CAPSE March on Friday, in protest of post-secondary education funding cuts. Check out Dan McKechnie’s photoset here.