The Value Added Provided by the City of (Cooler than you think!) June 1, 2021

Potential candidates having read the parish and position profiles may be saying to themselves, “ I am discerning this position may be a fit for me; however, I am unsure about moving to Edmonton, . It has long, cold winters!” Allow us to share with you the reality of what is Edmonton.

A generally recognized attribute of Edmonton is that most Edmontonians come from other parts of Canada or the world. Born and raised Edmontonians are the exception to the rule. New Edmonton residents can quickly assimilate into the city and will avoid the feeling of ‘being from away.’

Yes, Edmonton’s winters are long and can contain cold periods of up to minus 35 degrees C. However, Edmonton’s winters typically have lots of sunny days; in fact Edmonton is known for its beautiful blue skies year-round. As Edmonton is not in a ‘snow belt’ so the need to shovel is normally a maximum of 10 times each winter. And the really good news is Edmonton’s winters have been less severe during recent years. No comment whether this is due to ‘global warming’ other than to say the warmer Edmonton winters are here to stay.

Edmonton contains more natural parkland area than any other city in North America. Its River Valley parkland is world famous. There is an extensive, inter-connecting system of trains that allow for walking, jogging, biking in the spring, summer and fall, and cross-country skiing in the winter.

Edmonton Community Leagues are strongly supported by the city and its residents. They offer varied, affordable programs and activities for children, youth and families. Edmonton has a number of pseudonyms, one being “The Festival City.” There is really no need to leave Edmonton in the summer because of the continues and overlapping string of festivals happening from June through September. These festivals include the ‘Edmonton Jazz Festival’, ‘Street Performers’, ‘Taste of Edmonton’, Edmonton Folk Festival’, ‘K-Days’, ‘Edmonton Fringe Festival’, ‘Edmonton Heritage Festival’ and more. Recently, a number of winter festivals have also been successfully introduced.

Edmonton offers two school systems, Edmonton Public and Edmonton Separate. Edmonton Separate is Roman Catholic and offer a faith-based education. Many Christians enroll their children in these schools, despite not being Roman Catholic themselves. Edmonton Public is known world-wide as an innovative school system that meets the needs of a growing and diverse population. Edmonton Public and Separate charter school systems offer special programs for students such as soccer, hockey, dance and many more. Edmonton Public also allows for cost-effective Christina education through its Logos Program and in association with Edmonton Christian Schools.

1 Edmonton has access to some of the best post-secondary education in North America. The University of Alberta is an internationally top-ranked university. Students can also choose form other universities offering smaller classes and more varied programs such as MacEwan University, King’s University and Concordia University. The latter two are consider Christian- based. In addition, Edmonton has a world-ranked technical training, post-secondary institution: the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology.

You may be surprised that Edmonton is culturally robust and active. There many professional, semi-professional and amateur acting companies that use multiple theatre venues across the city. The theatre cornerstone in Edmonton is the Citadel Theatre which offers Broadway comparable plays and musical. The Alberta Museum was recently relocated to a new larger building in the east downtown core. Located close-by is the Alberta Art Gallery which has a “Guggenheim-like” appearance. One of the best kept secrets in Edmonton is its where life-styles of former years are authentically recreated. The FEP is currently completing a $60M upgrade to its infrastructure, midway and adding an Indigenous Peoples’ Presentation Centre.

We would also be remiss in mentioning the culinary arts in Edmonton. Over the past fifteen years, Edmonton has seen many independent bistro-style and fine dining restaurants open and thrive. This phenomenon is largely due to the world-class culinary program at the previously mentioned Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. Many of its graduates move on to European culinary schools, gain valuable experience there and return to Edmonton to open their dream restaurant. Edmontonians can now claim a ‘best in Canada’ culinary experience.

Alberta’s health care system and, in particular that of Edmonton, is rated as best in Canada. Three new hospitals and/or major additions have opened in recent years including the world- renowned Mazinkowski Heart Institute. The Stollery Children’s Hospital is an amazing success story. A network of health clinics have also opened assist in alleviating the workload of family practitioners and the hospital emergency departments.

Edmonton is strategically located on the North Saskatchewan River, originating as a trading post for the north. Edmonton is often called the “Gateway to the North” with many Edmonton companies serving the northern energy sector. A trip from Fort McMurray to Edmonton is six hours of driving. Calgary is only three hours away. The beautiful Rocky Mountains are a four hour drive with Jasper to the west and Banff to the southwest.

Despite the current unemployment rate being high at 8.7% due to the pandemic, there remains a shortage of qualified people in metropolitan Edmonton to fill vacant positions. Edmonton (not Calgary) is the seat of the provincial government, therefore the moniker “The Capital City”. 15% of Edmonton’s population work either for the provincial, municipal or federal government.

A document regarding Edmonton would not be complete without mentioning its professional sports teams. The Edmonton Oilers NHL team play in their new stadium, in the . The Edmonton CLF team, the Elks (formerly Eskimos) play in .

2 It is not essential to be a ‘fan’ of either team, however, it helps and it is a lot of fun! For those with varied spectator sports interests, Edmonton also has professional soccer team and lacrosse teams. It also has a professional baseball team that plays in an AA league.

In summary, ask residents how they feel about their city. The majority respond by saying, “It’s the place to be.”

3