FALL 2019 FALL 2019 • FREE CLEARINGCLEARING THETHE AIRAIR CLIMATECLIMATE CHANGECHANGE Climate change can be mitigated – if we have the will PG. 20 Food evolving – Down to earth Sharing – from truck to table health options scooters and bikes Moving from food truck Find partners in health Can Edmonton cushion To downtown eatery in the city centre the pitfalls and real falls? PG. 15 PG. 23 PG. 28 THE YARDS | FALL 2019 1 Find us outdoors at our new home in The Edmonton Downtown Quarters every Sunday INSIDE Farmers Market from 11am to 3pm. FALL 2019 PUBLISHER Simon Yackulic MANAGING EDITOR FRONTYARDS Rob McLauchlin 4 Contributors ART DIRECTOR 5 Messages from the Oliver Community League and downtown Edmonton Community League Jeremy Pudlowski 6 OCL News High density families – rewards and some challenges CONTRIBUTORS 7 DECL News Edmonton high tech future is bright despite looming challenges Eric Bowling, Miranda Herchen, Jodine Chase, William Frost 8 Community events for OCL and DECL 12 Events around the core MARKETING & EVENTS 15 Hot takes Food evolving – from truck to table Shyra Craig Find us on the 4th St. 18 Core samples Playing the title role TREETOP CONFERENCE Promenade every Saturday SERVICES from 9am to 3pm. GOVERNANCE BOARD CHAIR Lisa Brown TREASURER Eric Hermanns SECRETARY Jennifer Rae SOCIAL MEDIA Courtney Gillis COMMUNITY LEAGUE REPRESENTATIVES Robyn Paches (OCL), Luwam Kiflemariam (OCL), Jade Arnaout (OCL), Chris Buyze (DECL), Michelle Ferguson (DECL), Anixa Patel (DECL) CONTACT US The Yards Magazine FEATURES 1011, 10301 104 St. NW Edmonton, AB T5J 1B9 20 Real change - building a sustainable city 23 Health care in the core ADVERTISING SALES [email protected] PUBLISHED BY THE CENTRAL EDMONTON N E W S S O C I E T Y 10523 IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BACKYARDS 28 Core questions Wheel sharing – scooters and bikes theyardsyeg.ca facebook.com/theyardsyeg @theyardsyeg THE YARDS | FALL 2019 3 Contributors People behind The Yards This issue of The Yards offers a re-think on several elements of the magazine, including how we present our amazing contributors. We figured rather than a small headshot and bio that we’d ask them to gather, meet one another and build a Chris Buyze bit of community. It’s what this magazine is all about, after all. Robyn Paches President, Downtown President, Oliver Edmonton Community Community League (OCL) League (DECL) Eric Bowling (Clearing the air, pg. 20) than those at the Edmonton International area where the city needs more green space. Miranda Herchen IN EDMONTON: 35 years OCL PRESIDENT COLUMN Airport, for example. Oliver Park will not be split up, as the land (Food evolving, pg. 15) FAVOURITE EDMONTON If all residential projects currently swap proposal was voted down. The City of Edmonton will be completing a recreation IN EDMONTON: 22 years PLACE: The river valley trails proposed or in process in Oliver are We need a greener city approved, over 8,000 new residents will and green space needs assessment of Oliver. FAVOURITE EDMONTON WHAT YOU LEARNED WRITING dmonton’s weather this summer was join our community. This means a lot The High Level Line is another example – a PLACE: Hotel Macdonald FOR THIS ISSUE: The the big ESTRANGE. Some days the city felt like more buildings and a lot more pavement proposal that wants to add bounds of new WHAT YOU LEARNED WRITING smokestacks you see on the Vancouver. It would be 30 degrees and to support these people: commercial green space along the treasured Edmonton FOR THIS ISSUE: Fusion cuisine edge of the city affect climate sunny one moment, and then we’d see a buildings, services, and infrastructure to tramline. is alive and well in downtown change but not necessarily local torrential downpour the next. Couple this name a few. Downtown Edmonton is seeing These first steps are great, but we need erratic rain with the hottest July, since Edmonton. air pollution. a similar level of build-up. If we do not plan to continue walking this path. We have an recording began, on planet Earth, and you accordingly and counteract the Urban Heat opportunity – a core that is seeing vast don’t have to go far to see the impacts that Island effect with enough green space and densification over the next few decades. We climate change is having on our city. smart construction, it will only get worse need to seize this opportunity to build more Climate change especially impacts a city’s in the core. It is especially important, with green space alongside more density. If we core. Urban centres are heavily vulnerable climate change, to ensure that we build new do so, we might just build a 21st century to increasing temperatures. What we see parks, support pre-existing parks, and plan city that can be an example to others and is the Urban Heat Island effect. Densely to incorporate other types of green space truly counteract the Urban Heat Island packed buildings and paved surfaces trap into all future projects. effect. and hold heat much more effectively than We’ve taken some excellent first steps. Follow Robyn on Twitter at @rpaches for natural ecosystems or rural areas. We see The new Downtown Edmonton Park will more thoughts, updates and Oliver–related this clearly in Edmonton, with temperatures take desolate surface-level parking lots and stuff. in the core often being a few degrees higher transform them into a beautiful park in an BY: Robyn Paches construction is done, or wait until someone to be an afterthought, and not the primary DECL PRESIDENT COLUMN else takes responsibility, to make sure focus for areas of our Downtown. When our streets, alleys and public spaces are tourists come to our city, they often stay well-cared for and inviting. Overall, DECL or visit our Downtown, yet there is little to Simple clean solution is working towards a Downtown that is no strategy for keeping “tourist” areas of ometimes living Downtown can be vibrant, safe, and cared for. Downtown clean. Sperplexing. One day you’re celebrating What’s lacking with the new public and Cleanliness is especially important on our the opening of the new 55-storey, JW private development is a discussion about sidewalks, even more important around Marriott Hotel in ICE District, other days operations. Many issues have been tackled construction sites. I commend efforts of you’re scratching your head about some of by our city council and city folks over Boyle Street Community Service to provide the simple issues, like garbage and debris the years and improved services – snow their “Downtown Proud” cleaning program, on our streets. removal, mosquito control, bike lanes, to but private money for this initiative has There’s a lot of construction right now, name a few. all but dried up. And it can’t replace a and this comes with its own challenges. But in my mind there is one glaring missing City’s ability to prioritize cleaning in our We all know it’ll be worth it in the end, piece – an overall focus on cleanliness. Downtown. Not Shown Not Shown and the capital investment in Downtown, Particularly in our core (Downtown), Businesses, residents and property both public and private, is sorely needed important main streets (Whyte Avenue, 124 owners must do their part to keep clean Jodine Chase Rob McLauchlin after decades of neglect. However, it can be Street, etc.) and important city entrances. sidewalks, alleys and other public spaces (Stay healthy – get well, pg. 23) (Sharing – scooters and bikes, pg. 28) tough for businesses, with street closures Operational levels for most of these areas where they are located. But it is time for IN EDMONTON: 40 years IN EDMONTON: 30 years and detours, or just hard to get around are the same as they used to be, even though a discussion around a new “operational” for pedestrians and commuters. Let’s not there has been significant investment and deal for our heavily trafficked pedestrian- FAVOURITE EDMONTON FAVOURITE EDMONTON lose sight that Downtown is an important new development. For instance, there is oriented public sidewalks and spaces to be PLACE: Folk Fest beer tent PLACE: Allard Hall, Grant MacE- place to do business, live, and visit today more pedestrian-oriented street activity, given new money or priority by our city. wan University for many people. yet only standard street sweeping is being WHAT YOU LEARNED WRITING BY: Chris Buyze FOR THIS ISSUE: I learned WHAT YOU LEARNED WRITING Downtown should be safe and clean completed, similar to any part of our City. there are many more health-care FOR THIS ISSUE: I knew escoot- every day. We should not wait until all the Ongoing, year-round cleaning seems often options downtown than I thought ers were fun; I had no idea they there were. were so dangerous. photos:4 WilliamTHE FrostYARDS | FALL 2019 THE YARDS | FALL 2019 5 FRONTYARDS | OCL NEWS FRONTYARDS | DECL NEWS Highrise families on the way up Tech Sector hanging on BY: STAFF BY: Eric Bowling ife is better for families in central skiing, swimming… three playgrounds within ith Edmonton’s sixth annual Startup or even live,” said Buyze. “We’re competing LEdmonton these days. The city’s bike a 15-minute walk. The legislature grounds WWeek less than a month away, the with jurisdictions across the world. How do we network has made cycling much safer. The are our front yard and the river Valley is our city’s tech industries are maintaining cautious ensure the talent coming out of our universi- Alberta government brought in a new law backyard.” optimism about keeping their momentum in ties stays here?” ending the practice of adult-only rental Heather’s biggest frustration? “Jasper spite of a tax credit being frozen recently by Noting Edmonton has a much more diverse buildings.