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Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta, situated in the central region of the province, an area with some of the most fertile farm land on the prairies. It is the second largest city in Alberta (after Calgary) and is the hub of the country's sixth largest Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) with a population of 1,016,000 (2005 est.). A resident of Edmonton is known as an Edmontonian.

At 684 km2, Edmonton is also one of the largest cities by area in North America — larger in area than Chicago, Illinois, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Detroit, Michigan. It must be noted that the 684 km2 is measured from the border of the city limits and not the actual extent of the built up area of the city. Edmonton also has the one of the lowest population densities in North America — about 67 times less than New York.

Edmonton serves as the northern anchor of the "Calgary-Edmonton Corridor" (one of four such regions that, in total, comprise 50% of the Canadian population) and is a staging point for large-scale oilsands projects occurring in the north of the province as well as large-scale diamond mining operations in the Northwest Territories.

Edmonton is Canada's second most populous provincial capital (after Toronto) and is known as a well-rounded cultural, government, and educational centre. It plays host to a year round slate of world-class festivals, earning it the title of Festival CityEdmonton - Festival city. Among these is included Edmonton's Capital Ex (formerly the Klondike Days Exposition), The Fringe, North America's first and largest fringe event, Edmonton International Street Performer's Festival, Edmonton Folk Music Festival, Cariwest, Canadian Finals Rodeo and many more. It has also hosted many international events, including the 2001 IAAF World Track and Field Championships, the West Edmonton Mall Grand Prix, and the 2005 World Masters Games. It is home to North America's largest mall, West Edmonton Mall, Canada's largest historical park, Fort Edmonton Park, and North America's largest collection of authentic eighteenth century ships-of-the-line. In 2004, Edmonton celebrated the centennial of its incorporation as a city in 1904.

While traditionally focused on the oil industry, earning the name "Oil Capital of Canada" in the 1940s, Edmonton's economy has worked towards becoming the second most diverse in CanadaEdmonton economic outlook and now boasts a strong technology sector with major employers such as TELUS, Dell, Intuit, Matrikon, BioWare, and General Electric all contributing to a 6.2% GDP growth, the largest in CanadaEdmonton GDP growth. Edmonton is home of Canadian Western Bank, one of the few chartered bank headquarters west of Toronto.

Geography and location

Edmonton is located near the geographical centre of the province at an elevation of 668 m (2192 ft).

The city is bisected by the North Saskatchewan River, which originates at the Columbia Icefield in Banff National Park and empties, via the Saskatchewan River, Lake Winnipeg, and the Nelson River, into Hudson Bay. It runs from the southwest to the northeast through the city and is fed by numerous creeks throughout the city, such as Mill Creek and Whitemud Creek. This creates numerous ravines, many of which have been incorporated into the urban parkland. Edmonton is situated at the boundary between prairie to the south and boreal forest to the north, in a transitional area known as aspen parkland.

Parkland and Environment

Edmonton's river valley constitutes the longest stretch of connected urban parkland in North America, and Edmonton has the highest per capita area of parkland of any Canadian city. The public river valley parks provide a unique urban escape area with park styles ranging from fully serviced urban parks to campsite-like facilities with few amenities. This main 'Ribbon of Green' is supplemented by numerous neighbourhood parks located throughout the city, to give a total of 111 km2 of parkland. Most of the city has excellent bike and walking trail connections Edmonton Trail map.

Edmonton's streets and parklands are also home to one of the largest remaining concentrations of healthy American Elm trees in the world, unaffected by Dutch Elm disease, which has wiped out vast numbers of such trees in eastern North America. Jack Pine, Lodgepole Pine, White Spruce, Blue Spruce, White Birch, Aspen, Green Ash, Basswood, various Poplars and Willows, and Manitoba Maple are also abundant; Bur Oak is increasingly popular. Introduced tree species include Norway Maple, Red Oak, Sugar Maple, Common Horse-chestnut, McIntosh Apple and Evans Cherry.

Several golf courses, both public and private, are also located in the river valley. The long summer daylight hours of this northern city provide for extended play well into the evening. Golf courses and the park system become a winter recreation area during this season. Cross-country skiing and skating is popular during the long winter. Four downhill ski slopes are located in the river valley as well, two within the city and two immediately outside.

The City of Edmonton has named five parks in its River Valley Parks System in honour of each of "The Famous Five".

Neighbourhoods

See also List of neighbourhoods in Edmonton.

Edmonton has numerous distinct neighbourhoods.

The downtown core, which has seen increasing redevelopment since the 1997 Capital City Downtown Plan was introduced, is home to the Central Business District (CBD) as well as over 4000 residents. Downtown proper consists of the Commercial Core, Arts District, Rice Howard Way Pedestrian Mall, MacKay Avenue, Jasper-West, Jasper-East (Boyle Street), Warehouse District, and Government Precinct.

Radiating from the core are numerous inner city neighbourhoods such as Glenora, Westmount, Queen Mary Park, Central McDougall and McCauley on the north side of the river, while Windsor Park, Garneau, Strathcona, Bonnie Doon, and Strathearn line the south side of the river. Several communities survived attempts by the municipal governments of the 1970s to rid the valley proper of all residents: these are Riverdale, Rossdale, Walterdale, and Cloverdale.

As with any city of its size, the inner communities give way to a collection of suburbs, generally classified as being outside the inner ring road and in extreme cases, outside of Anthony Henday Drive. The most well known of these is Mill Woods, which is home to approximately 100,000 residents. If Mill Woods were a separate municipality, it would be Alberta's third largest city after Calgary and Edmonton. Several new neighbourhoods are currently in formative stages in the South and Southwest, such as MacEwan, Terwillegar, and Rutherford.

Several transit-oriented developments (TOD) have begun to appear along the LRT line at Clareview with future developments planned at Belvedere (part of the Old Town Fort Road Redevelopment ProjectOld Town Fort Road redevelopment project). Another TOD called Century Park Century Park is already under construction at the site of what was once Heritage Mall (currently under demolition) at the southern end of the future South LRT line. Century Park will eventually house up to 5,000 residents.

An overview of neighbourhoods can be found online City of Edmonton's map websiteEdmonton Federation of Community Leagues' website.

Climate

Edmonton has a northern continental climate with extreme seasonal temperatures, although the city has milder winters than either Regina or Winnipeg, which are both located at a more southerly latitude. It has mild summers and cold winters, with the average daily maximum /minimum temperatures ranging from −8.0 °C (14.4 °F)/-19.1°C (-2.4°F) in January to 22.2 °C (72.0 °F)/9.5°C (49.1°F) in July. Annually, temperatures exceed 30 °C (86 °F) on an average of two days and fall below −20 °C (−4 °F) on an average of 41 days. The highest temperature recorded in Edmonton was 35.3°C (95.5°F) on August 5, 1998, and the coldest temperature was -48.3°C (-54.9°F) recorded on January 26, 1972. Summer typically lasts from late June until late August, and the humidity is rarely uncomfortable. Winter lasts from November through March and varies greatly in length and severity. Spring and autumn are both short and highly variable.

Edmonton has a dry climate. On average, Edmonton's receives 483mm (19 in) of precipitation and 121 cm (48.6 in) of snowfall per annum. The wettest month is July, the driest month is February. Climate at WeatherOffice. In July, the mean precipitation is 92 mm (3.6 in) Precipitations in Edmonton. Extremes do occur such as the 114 mm of rainfall that fell on July 31, 1953. Summer thunderstorms can be frequent and sometimes severe enough to produce large hail, damaging winds, funnel clouds and even tornadoes. However, tornadoes near Edmonton are far weaker and short-lived compared to their counterparts farther south. Tornadoes as powerful as the F4 tornado which struck Edmonton on July 31, 1987 are very rare.

Edmonton is the most northerly major city in North America with a metro population of over 1 million. It is at the same latitude as Hamburg, Germany and Liverpool, England. At the summer solstice, Edmonton receives 17 hours and six minutes of daylight, with twilight extending well beyond that. Edmonton receives 2,289 hours of sunshine per year, and is one of Canada's sunniest cities.

Demographics

According to the mid-2001 census, the population estimates there were 937,845 people residing within Edmonton's metropolitan area, located in the province of Alberta, of whom 49.6 per cent were male and 50.4 per cent were female. Children under five accounted for approximately 5.9 per cent of the resident population of Edmonton. This compares with 6.2 per cent in Alberta, and almost 5.6 per cent for Canada overall.

In mid-2001, 10.5 per cent of the resident population in Edmonton were of retirement age (65 and over for males and females) compared with 13.2 per cent in Canada, therefore, the average age is 35.4 years of age comparing to 37.6 years of age for all of Canada.

In the five years between 1996 and 2001, the population of Edmonton grew by 8.7 per cent, compared with an increase of 10.3 per cent for Alberta as a whole. Population density of Edmonton averaged 99.6 people per square kilometre, compared with an average of 4.6, for Alberta altogether.

At the time of the census in May 2001, the resident population of the Edmonton city authority had 666,104 people, but had 937,845 when encompassing the whole metropolitan area, compared with a resident population in the province of Alberta of 2,974,807 people.

Racial Profile

  • White - 75.69%
  • Asian - 10.15%
  • Aboriginal - 4.62%
  • Indian - 4.24%
  • Black - 1.97%
  • Arab - 1.58%
  • Hispanic - 1.11%
  • Other - 0.64%
Source:Statistics CanadaStatCan - Edmonton Racial profile

Religion

Source:Statistics CanadaSatatistics Canada - Edmonton Religion

The City of Edmonton has conducted a civic census in early 2005. The 2005 civic census has revealed that the City of Edmonton's population is currently 712,391Edmonton Statistics - Population. The Greater Edmonton Area population as of 2005 was estimated at 1,016,000 (Statistics Canada estimate).

History

Exploration and settlement

The first inhabitants gathered in the area which is now Edmonton around 3000 BC and perhaps as early as 10,000 BC, when an ice-free corridor was opening up as the great ice sheets covering much of Canada melted. They took advantage of the timber, water and wildlife in the region and thus made their presence in the area for thousands of years.

In 1754, Anthony Henday, an explorer working for the Hudson's Bay Company, was probably the first European to enter the Edmonton area. His expeditions across the Canadian Prairies were mainly to seek new contact with the local aboriginals for the purpose of establishing fur trade, as competition was fierce between the Hudson's Bay Company and its rivals.

European traders from the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company set up trading posts in the area of present-day Fort Saskatchewan beginning in 1795. The trading posts later moved upstream to the present-day site of downtown Edmonton. The North West Company set up a trading post called Fort Augustus, but at the same time, the Hudson's Bay Company set up a fort of its own. The Hudson's Bay Company named its fort after the town of Edmonton in the UK (now a suburb in north London), the hometown of Sir James Winter Lake, then director of the Company.

John Rowand, a fur trader for the North West Company, arrived in Edmonton in 1804 and was vital to the fort's importance, for he established it as the main distribution centre for the entire northwest. Rowand became respected and accepted as a leader by the Plains Indians, managing Edmonton's fur trade with the Cree and Blackfoot in Edmonton for about 30 years. Fort Edmonton and the surrounding area was known to the local Cree as Amiskwaciy waskahigan (the "c" in Amiskwaciy is pronounced similar to a "ch"), meaning "Beaver Hills House". As Rowand had intended, Fort Edmonton became a major economic centre for Rupert's Land, as the lands comprising the present-day Prairie Provinces, northern Ontario and northern Canada were known at the time. Fort Edmonton was the major stopping point before pioneers headed up north or farther west. The two companies merged in 1821, and the name of Fort Edmonton was retained. In 1830 the last fort was built on the present site of the Alberta Legislature.

The Hudson's Bay Company relinquished its ownership and jurisdiction of Rupert's Land to the Dominion of Canada in 1871. Rupert's Land was then renamed the North West Territories by the federal government. People began settling in the vicinity of Fort Edmonton in the 1870s after the government offered the land to settlers at a good price.

The arrival of the railway and early growth

The Calgary and Edmonton Railway reached the area in 1891 with a terminal in Strathcona on the south side of the North Saskatchewan River. Edmonton officially became a town in 1892 with a population of 700. The city boomed during the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897 as thousands of eager prospectors heading north via the "All Canadian Route," stopping in Edmonton for supplies. The town of Strathcona grew faster than Edmonton until 1905 when the Canadian Northern Railway opened its transcontinental line through Edmonton.

By 1904, Edmonton had 9,000 residents and was incorporated as a city that same year. Alberta became a province in 1905, and the city was officially declared the provincial capital in 1906 after having won out over contenders including Calgary, Red Deer and even Banff due to having the highest number of government representatives. Initially the Alberta Legislature met in the Mackay Avenue School, while the Legislature Building was being erected on the north shore of the North Saskatchewan River. By 1907, the University of Alberta was established across the river in Strathcona, which also became a city that year. The city of Edmonton originally occupied only the north side of the North Saskatchewan River, as Strathcona encompassed the entire south side.

In 1912 Edmonton amalgamated with Strathcona, whose downtown core is now part of the trendy Old Strathcona historical district. As a result, Edmonton attained a population of 53,000. The amalgamation ended years of intense rivalry between these two communities. The High Level Rail Bridge (including a traffic deck) across the river was completed in 1913, linking the north and south sides of Edmonton. A real estate boom was already underway since the 1900s and spurred a massive population increase. The population quickly grew to around 75,000 but dropped back down to 50,000, as the real estate boom suddenly collapsed in 1913. The city was slow to recover economically during the 1920s, and like most cities in Canada, was hit by the Great Depression.

In the 1920s, Edmonton became an aviation shipping point for food and medical supplies using the new bush planes out of Blatchford Field (now Edmonton City Centre Airport). In 1942, the construction of the Alaska Highway made the city a major ground transportation and supply centre to the far north. Edmonton became the anchor of the Northwest Staging Route, carrying war materials and supplies to Alaska in order to head off a potential attack on Alaska by the Japanese. In 1943 Blatchford Field held the record as the busiest airfield in North America. As a result of these developments, Edmonton officially became known as the Gateway to the North.

The oil boom years

The first major oil discovery for Edmonton and the rest of the province was made on February 13, 1947 near the town of Leduc to the south. Although oil reserves were already known as early as 1914 to exist in the southern parts of Alberta, they produced very little oil compared to those around Edmonton. Additional oil reserves were also discovered during the late 1940s and the 1950s in the Edmonton area near the towns of Redwater and Pembina. Because most of Alberta's oil reserves were found to be concentrated in central and northern Alberta, the city became home to most of Alberta's oil production and refining.

The subsequent oil boom gave Edmonton new status as the Oil Capital of Canada. During the 1950s, the city's nearly doubled in population from 149,000 to 269,000. After a relatively calm but still prosperous period in the 1960s, the city's growth took on a renewed vigour with high world oil prices, triggered by the 1973 oil crisis and the 1979 Iranian Revolution. The oil boom of the 1970s and 1980s ended abruptly with the introduction of the National Energy Program in 1981. The population had reached 521,000 that same year. Although the National Energy Program was later scrapped by the federal government in the mid-1980s, the collapse of world oil prices in 1986 and massive government cutbacks kept the city from fully recovering economically until the late 1990s. Unsurprisingly, the city did suffer from high unemployment rates until then.

Recent history

In 1981, the largest shopping mall in North America, West Edmonton Mall, opened. The mall is one of Alberta's most popular tourist attractions, and contains an indoor amusement park, a large indoor waterpark, and a luxury hotel in addition to its over 800 shops and services.

On July 31, 1987, a devastating tornado, ranked as an F4 on the Fujita scale, hit the city and killed 27 people. The day became known as "Black Friday". Mayor Laurence Decore cited the community's response to the tornado as evidence that Edmonton was a "city of champions", which later became the city's slogan.

The city entered its current period of economic recovery and prosperity by the late 1990s, helped by a strong recovery in oil prices and further economic diversification. While oil production and refining remains the basis of many jobs in Edmonton, the city's economy has managed to diversify economically, producing even more jobs. Edmonton arguably has the second most diversified economy among major Canadian cities after Montreal. The downtown core and parts of the inner city, after years of extremely high office vacancy rates and neglect, have recovered to a great degree. It is still undergoing a renaissance of its own, with further new projects underway or about to become reality, and more and more people choosing to live in or near the downtown core.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Air
Edmonton is served by two airports. The main airport, Edmonton International Airport is located south of the city limits, near the city of Leduc. It is the fifth busiest airport in Canada, with just over 4.5 million passengers using the facilities in 2005Edmonton Airport statistics.

The smaller and older Edmonton City Centre Airport, — the oldest city-owned airport in Canada — is located just north of downtown Edmonton. Air passenger service from Edmonton City Centre Airport was consolidated to the International Airport in 1996. The older airport is currently used primarily for charter planes and flight training, although small non-chartered planes with fewer than 19 passengers are still allowed to land at the facility.

Edmonton Airports Edmonton Airports website controls Edmonton International, Edmonton City Centre and also Cooking Lake Airport and Villeneuve Airport, both of which primarily service general aviation and flight training services.

Inter-urban rail
Edmonton is also served by VIA Rail passenger trains. The station is located on the northern rail route near the City Centre Airport. Formerly the VIA trains arrived at the CN office tower downtown, but the downtown trackage has been abandoned to the LRT and new urban development. The High Level Rail Bridge, formerly CPR's route into the downtown, remains only for summer historical streetcar usage.

City public transit
The main public transportation networks are run by the Edmonton Transit System (ETS).

In 1908, Edmonton began operating an electric street railway system. In 1939, "trolley coaches" began to replace the trams, with the final full day of streetcar service on September 1, 1951 (the last car ran in the early morning of September 2, 1951). Edmonton is one of only two major Canadian cities still operating electric trolley buses, the other being Vancouver. Today, Edmonton Transit operates a system of 49 trolley buses on core Routes 3, 5, 7, 120, 133, and 135 in the central and western parts of the city.

In addition to the bus routes, Edmonton has a light rail transit (LRT) line running from Clareview in the northeast to the Health Sciences building on the south side. Upon the opening of its first segment in 1978, it was the first such system built by a city with a population less than one million people in North America. The line is surface level on previous railroad right-of-way in the northeast and goes underground through the downtown core from Churchill station (underneath Churchill Square south of the City hall) to Grandin/Government Centre station (just west of the Provincial Legislature grounds). A dedicated bridge crossing the river valley leads it toward the university station, which is also underground.

Further south, however, LRT expansion is being developed at surface level with a couple of underpasses, one at Belgravia Road and the other under 111 Street south of 61 Avenue. A short busway is also being constructed from the future South Campus station (to open in 2008) roughly parallel to Belgravia Road in conjunction with the South LRT expansion. The underground LRT line comes out onto the surface just north of the new Health Sciences Station at the University of Alberta, which was opened in January, 2006. From the Health Sciences station, the South LRT line will lead through the proposed South Campus and Southgate Mall, and to the former Heritage Mall site (now being developed as Century Park, a transit-oriented development) in the south end of the city. The south LRT extension is expected to be complete by 2009.

Future north and west High Speed Transit routes (either for LRT or BRT) are currently being considered by council. The West LRT is expected to have the LRT extending all the way to West Edmonton Mall and beyond to the extreme western outskirts of the city.

Highways
Edmonton is connected to British Columbia and Saskatchewan via the Yellowhead Highway (Highway 16, or Yellowhead Trail within city limits), and to Calgary and Red Deer via the Queen Elizabeth II Highway (known as Calgary Trail (southbound) or Gateway Boulevard (northbound) within city limits).

Arterial roads
Anthony Henday Drive (Highway 216) is a ring road transportation project which will eventually encircle the Edmonton Metropolitan area. The south west section from Highway 16 to Terwillegar Drive is open. The portion between Terwillegar Drive and Calgary Trail opens in 2006. The south east section connecting Calgary Trail to Highway 14 has recently been announced and is anticipated to open in 2007Ring road progress annonced. The first stage of the northwest portion is already under construction between the Yellowhead Highway and the new St. Albert west bypass, to open in 2007. As of November 9, 2005 the Alberta Government has committed to finishing the north portion by 2011. Anthony Henday Drive will also incorporate an already-existing stretch of Highway 216 on the east side of the city between Highway 16 and approximately 23 Avenue where the southeast leg will eventually intersect.

Street layout
In 1914 Edmonton adopted a new numbered street and avenue system, which with a few small modifications is still in use. The centre of the city, Jasper Avenue and 101 Street, was set as the starting point. Jasper Avenue was one of the few streets that was not given a number, but the other avenues were numbered as if Jasper Avenue had been 101 Avenue.

Avenues run east and west; streets run north and south. Avenue numbers increase to the north; street numbers increase to the west. When a street lies between two numbered streets, letters are used, for example, 107A Avenue lies between 107 Avenue and 108 Avenue. Occasionally the letter B will be used and rarely even C, to denote multiple streets between 2 different street numbers. For example, 17A, 17B and 17C Avenues all lie between 17 Avenue and 18 Avenue.

Houses with odd numbers are on the east side of a street or the south side of an avenue. Dropping the last two digits of a house number tells you what two streets or avenues the house lies between, for example 8023 135A Avenue is between 80 Street and 81 Street, and 13602 100 Street is between 136 Avenue and 137 Avenue.

In the 1980s as the city grew, it began to run out of street numbers in the east and avenue numbers in the south. Therefore, in 1982 a quadrant system was adopted. Quadrant Avenue (1 Avenue; not yet built) and Meridian Street (1 Street) divide the city into four quadrants: northeast (NE), northwest (NW), southwest (SW) and, most recently, southeast (SE). The vast majority of the city falls within the northwest quadrant.

All Edmonton streets now officially have their quadrant included at the end of their names, but it is usual — even on official signage — to omit the "NW" especially when there is no possibility of confusion with a street in another quadrant. However, the city's emergency services have begun to encourage residents to get into the habit of using quadrants in all addresses.

Waste disposal

Edmonton's waste management services utilize a modern composting facility, the largest of its type in the world, to recycle 65 per cent of its residential waste. The co-composter is 38,690 square metres in size, equivalent to 8 football fields. It is designed to process 200,000 tonnes of residential solid waste per year and 22,500 dry tonnes of biosolids, turning them into 80,000 tonnes of compost annually.

Electric & water distribution systems

Edmonton's first power company established itself in 1891 installing street lights along its main avenue, Jasper Avenue. The power company was bought by the Town of Edmonton in 1902 and remains under municipal ownership today as EPCOR. Also in charge of water treatment, in 2002, EPCOR installed the world's largest ultraviolet (UV) water treatment system at its E.L. Smith Water Treatment Plant.

Education

Post-secondary

Edmonton has become one of Canada's major educational centres with more than 60,000 full time post-secondary students spread over several institutions and campuses (total enrolment between the schools is as high as 170,000, which includes students enrolled in multiple institutionsScool statistics).

The University of Alberta (also known colloquially as the U of A), whose main campus is situated on the south side of Edmonton's river valley, is a board-governed, public institution with annual revenue of one billion dollars. 35,000 students are served in more than 200 undergraduate programs and 170 graduate programs. Main campus consists of more than 90 buildings on 890,000 square metres of land, with buildings dating back to the university's establishment in 1908. It is also home to Canada's second largest research library which ranks first in volumes per student with over 6 million and subscriptions to 13,000 full-text electronic journals and 500 electronic databases. The University of Alberta has been recognized on several fronts internationally University of Alberta.

Other universities within the borders of Edmonton include Athabasca University, Concordia University College, the King's University College, Taylor University College and SeminaryTaylor University College, and the Edmonton campus of the University of Lethbridge.

Other Edmonton post-secondary institutions include Grant MacEwan College, which enrols 57,200 students in programs leading to careers or university transferGrant MacEwan College university transfers, the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), with 48,500 students enrolled in 190 technical, vocational and apprenticeship programsNorth Alberta Institute of Technology and NorQuest CollegeNorQuest College, with 11,300 students, specializing in short courses in skills and academic upgrading.

K-12

Edmonton has three publicly funded school boards (districts), who provide kindergarten and grades one through twelve. The vast majority of students attend schools in the two large English language boards: the Edmonton Public Schools board and the separate Catholic School DistrictEdmonton Catholic School District. As well, since 1994, the francophone minority community has had their own school board, the North-Central Francophone School Authority, which, based in Edmonton, includes surrounding communities. Most recently the city has seen a small number of public charter schools open, independent of any board. All three school boards and public charter schools are funded through provincial grants and property taxes.

Some private schools exist as well. Included are the Edmonton Society for Christian EducationEdmonton Society for Christian Education and Edmonton AcademyEdmonton Academy.

Both the Edmonton Public Schools and the Edmonton Catholic School District provide support and resources for those wishing to home school their children.

City life

Nightlife

There are several key concentrations of nightlife in the city of Edmonton. The most popular is the Whyte Avenue (82nd Avenue) strip which today has the highest concentration of heritage buildings in Edmonton. Once the heart of the town of Strathcona (annexed by Edmonton on February 1, 1912), it fell into disrepair during the middle of the 20th century. A concentrated effort to revive the area beginning in the late 1970s through the establishment of a Business Revitalization Zone has produced an area rich with restored historical buildings and pleasant streetscapes. Its proximity to the University of Alberta has led to a high concentration of establishments ranging from restaurants and pubs to trendy clubs while hosting a wide variety of shops during the day. This area also contains two independent movie theatres: the Garneau and Princess theatres.

Downtown Edmonton has undergone a continual process of renewal and unprecedented growth since the mid 1990s. Many buildings were demolished during the oil boom starting in the 1960s and continuing into the 1980s to make way for office towers. As such, there have always been numerous pub-type establishments which cater primarily to the office crowd such as The Rose and Crown, Sherlock Holmes', and Elephant & Castle as well as many hotel lounges and restaurants. However, the past decade has seen a strong resurgence in more mainstream venues. Various clubs such as the New City Suburbs and Halo are also to be found along Edmonton's main street, Jasper Avenue. The Edmonton City Centre mall also houses an Empire Theatres movie theatre featuring 10 screens and the non-profit Metro CinemaMetro Cinema shows a variety of underground or alternative films every week.

West Edmonton Mall holds several after hour establishments in addition to its many stores and attractions. Bourbon Street has numerous eating establishments and clubs and casinos can also be found within the complex. Silver City, at the west end of the mall, features 13 screens and an IMAX theatre.

Culture

Edmonton has always been a city proud of its cultural accomplishments. As the city has grown, so has the cultural scene. While still retaining a strong element of 'blue-collar culture,' Edmonton is a proud home to many other features which add to its cosmopolitan flair.

Many events are anchored in the downtown Arts District, centred around the newly renovated Churchill Square (named in honour of Sir Winston Churchill).

  • The Francis Winspear Centre Francis Winspear Centre for Music was opened in 1997 after years of planning and fundraising Edmonton Symphony Orchestra fundraising. Called one of the most acoustically perfect concert halls in Canada, it is home to the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and hosts a wide variety of shows every year. It houses the $3 million Davis Concert Organ and seats 1916 patrons. An interesting aspect of its design is its separation into acoustically separate areas each of which are insulated from each other through acoustical barriers built into the structure. Patrons and artists can see these in the form of double-door 'sound locks.'
  • Across 102nd Street is the Citadel Theatre, so named after the Salvation Army Citadel in which Joe Shoctor first started the Citadel Theatre company in 1965. It is now one of the largest theatre complexes in Canada with five halls each specializing in different kinds of productions Citadel Theatre company history. For instance, the Maclab Theatre features a thrust stage surrounded by a U-shaped seating arrangement, while the Shoctor Theatre is a traditional stage setup.
  • One block north of the Citadel and Winspear is the Art Gallery of Alberta. Housed in an inconspicuous production of 1970s architecture, the AGA collection has over 5000 pieces of art. Fundraising is currently underway for a new building designed by Randall Stout.
  • On the University of Alberta grounds is the 2534-seat Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, which recently reopened after being out of commission for a year during heavy renovations carried out as part of the province's centennial celebrations. Both it and its southern twin in Calgary were constructed in 1955 for the province's silver jubilee and have played host to many concerts, musicals, and ballets. The Edmonton Opera uses the Jubilee as its base of operations. On the front of the building is a quote from Suetonius' Life of Augustus: "He found a city built of brick - left it built of marble."

There are also over 70 museums in Edmonton of ranging sizes. The largest is the Royal Alberta Museum (formerly the Provincial Museum of Alberta, it was renamed by Queen Elizabeth II during her 2005 visit) which houses over 10 million objects in its collection. The main galleries are the Syncrude Gallery of Aboriginal Culture, Wild Alberta, and the Natural History Gallery. The main building, located on the river valley west of downtown in Glenora, was opened in 1967 and is now in the early stages of large-scale redevelopment Redevelopment of Royal Alberta Museum. Located on the grounds is Government House, the former residence of the province's Lieutenant-Governor. The RAM is in the early stages of a large 180 million dollar expansion, dubbed "Project Renewal".

Festivals

Edmonton plays host to several large festivals each year, hence its local nickname as 'the Festival City.'

  • The last week of April to May 1st is the May Week Labour Arts FestivalMay Week Labour Arts Festival a celebration of workers rights and struggles culminating in the May Day March on May 1st.
  • The Works Art & Design Festival, which takes place from late June to early August, showcases Canadian and international art & design from well-know, award-winning artists, as well as emerging and student artists.
  • The River City Shakespeare Festival - Since 1989 the Free Will Players have staged the annual River City Shakespeare Festival, which takes place every summer from late June to mid-July. The festival includes full-scale professional productions of two plays by William Shakespeare, as well as Camp Shakespeare - a summer drama camp for youth ages 8–16. All festival activities take place in the 1,000 seat Heritage Amphitheatre in Edmonton's beautiful Hawrelak Park.
  • In early July, Canada's longest-running Japanese animation festival - Animethon - is held in downtown Edmonton in Grant MacEwan College. Animethon has been a staple of Edmonton's festival scene since 1993 and welcomes over 4000 attendees during the weekend.
  • The Edmonton International Street Performer's FestivalEdmonton International Street Performer's Festival, taking place in mid-July, showcases street performance artists from around the world.
  • For two weeks in July, Capital Ex (formerly called Klondike Days) provides rides, music and other entertainment. Originally, Klondike Days (or K-Days) was an annual fair and exhibition which eventually adopted a gold rush theme. In early 2006 it was decided that the Klondike theme would be abandoned and the festival would be renamed 'The Capital City Exhibition' (or Capital Ex). Activities include chuckwagon races, carnival rides and fairways, music, trade shows and daily fireworks. Since 1960, the Sourdough Raft Races have also been a popular event.
  • The Heritage Days Festival is an ethnocultural food festival that takes place in Hawrelak Park on the Heritage Day long weekend (which includes the first Monday in August).
  • The Edmonton International Fringe Festival, which takes place in mid-August, is the largest Fringe Theatre Festival in North America, and second only to the Edinburgh Fringe festival in the world.
  • In August, Edmonton is also host to the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, one of the most successful and popular folk music festivals in North America.
  • The Edmonton International Film Festival, which runs from late September to early October, is now in its 19th year and is one of Canada's primary film festivals.
  • In early November, Edmonton plays host to the Canadian Finals Rodeo and Farmfair. This is the crown jewel in Canada's rodeo circuit and second only to the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas in prestige. Calgary's world-famous Stampede is a stop on the qualifying circuit for this million dollar event.
  • Other festivals and events include the Jazz City International Music FestivalJazz City International Music Festival, and a Dragon Boat Festival.

Canada Day is celebrated with a pancake breakfast and other morning events at the Alberta Legislature grounds, the Silly Summer Parade in Old Strathcona, the Great Divide waterfall over the High Level Bridge, and evening fireworks.

Attractions

Sports and recreation

Edmonton was home to the Edmonton Grads, a women's basketball team with the best win/loss record of any North American team to date. The Grads defeated most American, European and Olympic challengers and compiled a record of 502 wins vs. 20 losses over 25 years, from 1915 until they disbanded in 1940 at the outbreak of the Second World War.

Commonwealth Stadium is home to the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. The Eskimos hold the North American pro sports record for most consecutive playoff appearances (34 consecutive seasons, as of 2005), and have won the Grey Cup (the CFL championship trophy) 13 times since 1921. They are one of only four teams to win the Grey Cup after finishing third in their division in the regular season (the others being the B.C. Lions, the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the Montreal Alouettes). In addition to the Eskimos, Edmonton is host to two Canadian Junior Football League teams: the Edmonton Huskies and the Edmonton Wildcats. Commonwealth Stadium will also play host to some of the games in the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

The Edmonton Oilers, originally one of the founding franchises of the World Hockey Association, joined the National Hockey League in 1979. They quickly became one of the best teams in the league, winning five Stanley Cup Championships in 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, and 1990. Wayne Gretzky, considered by many to be the greatest hockey player ever, played with the Edmonton Oilers from 1979 to 1988. Rexall Place (formerly known as and still often referred to locally as the Northlands Coliseum) is the home of the Edmonton Oilers. The Edmonton Oilers fell in the Stanley Cup Finals playing the Carolina Hurricanes in 7 games in the Stanley Cup Final in 2006. Despite losing, they were the first eighth seeded team to make it that far, and nearly came back to win from deficits of 2-0 and 3-1 in the series.

Edmonton's involvement in hockey is not limited to the Edmonton Oilers. Several big-time NHL names come from Edmonton and the surrounding area, such as Mike Comrie, Jerome Iginla, Ray Whitney, and Fernando Pisani. Edmonton has recently been announced as the location for a new WHL expansion team, to commence playing in the 2007-2008 season.

The city had a minor-league baseball team in the Class AAA Pacific Coast League, the Edmonton Trappers, playing at Telus Field, until the end of the 2004 season. The team moved to the Austin, Texas suburb of Round Rock, becoming the Round Rock Express. Beginning in 2005, the Edmonton Cracker-Cats have played in the independent Northern League.

Starting in the 2006 season, the Edmonton Rush franchise have played in the National Lacrosse League. Home games are at Rexall Place.

Edmonton hosted the 1978 Commonwealth Games, the 1983 World University Games (Universiade), the 2001 World Championships in Athletics, and the 2005 World Master Games2005 World Master Games.

Edmonton also has a circuit on the Champ Car World Series, and the city is also home to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Superstar and former World Heavyweight Champion, Chris Benoit.

Current professional franchises

Logo Club League Venue Established Championships

Edmonton Oilers National Hockey League Rexall Place 1972 5

Edmonton Eskimos Canadian Football League Commonwealth Stadium 1949 13

Edmonton Rush National Lacrosse League Rexall Place 2005 0

Edmonton Cracker Cats Northern League Telus Field 2005 0

Media

Television

Edmonton has six broadcast television stations:

The cable television provider in Edmonton is Shaw Cable. Network programming from the United States is received on cable via affiliates from Spokane, Washington, which is in the Pacific Time Zone despite the fact that Edmonton is in the Mountain Time Zone.

Radio

Print

Edmonton has 2 large-circulation daily newspapers:

The free daily Dose news magazine was formerly distributed in Edmonton, but no longer exists.

Edmonton also has two free weekly papers centring on the city's music scene, See MagazineSee Magazine and Vue WeeklyVue Weekly.

The weekly Edmonton ExaminerEdmonton Examiner is also delivered free to households in Edmonton.

The University of Alberta has three regular publications: official student newspaper The Gateway, staff newspaper Folio and alumni magazine New Trail.

On-line Citizen Forums

  • connect2edmonton (partnered with Edmonton Economic Development Corp. , Edmonton Airports, the City of Edmonton and the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce)

Metropolitan area

Edmonton is at the centre of a metropolitan area that includes 35 independent municipalities either adjacent to Edmonton's city limits or within several kilometres of it. Larger communities include Sherwood Park (part of the Specialized Municipality of Strathcona County), St. Albert, Fort Saskatchewan, Leduc, Nisku (major industrial area in Leduc County), and the towns of Beaumont, Devon and Morinville. This large scale fragmentation has played a role in the development of the Edmonton region. Although several attempts have been made by the City of Edmonton to annex surrounding municipalities, no proposal has of yet been approved by the provincial government.

Northwest: St. Albert
Morinville 		North: Sturgeon County Northeast: Fort Saskatchewan
West: Parkland County
Enoch Cree Nation
Spruce Grove
Stony Plain 		Edmonton East: Strathcona County
Elk Island National Park
Southwest: Devon South: Leduc County
Leduc (city) 		Southeast: Beaumont

Military

Edmonton is home to 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group (1 CMBG), the regular army brigade group of Land Forces Western Area of the Canadian Army. Units in 1 CMBG include Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians), 1 Combat Engineer Regiment, two of the three regular force battalions of Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, and various headquarters, medical, and service and support elements. Although not part of 1 CMBG, 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron is collocated with the brigade group.

Historically, Edmonton's Regular Force military had been small until the 1990s. The Canadian Airborne Training Centre had been located in the city in the 1980s. The move of 1CMBG and component units from Calgary occurred in 1996 in what was described as a "cost saving" measure.http://www.parl.gc.ca/38/1/parlbus/commbus/senate/Com-e/defe-e/16eva-e.htm?Language=E&Parl=38&Ses=1&comm_id=76][ The brigade had existed in Calgary since the 1950s, and Lord Strathcona's Horse had traditionally been a Calgary garrison unit dating back before the First World War.

Edmonton also has a large army reserve element from 41 Canadian Brigade Group (41 CBG) including the The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (4th Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry) and B Squadron of The South Alberta Light Horse, one of Alberta's oldest army reserve units. Despite being far from Canada's coasts, Edmonton is also the home of HMCS NonsuchHMCS Nonsuch, a Naval Reserve division.

There are numerous cadet corpsEdmonton cadet corps of the different elements (Sea, Army and Air Force) within Edmonton as well.

Sister cities

Edmonton is an official sister city of the following several cities worldwide:

See also

References

External links

Cities in Alberta | Edmonton, Alberta | Provincial and territorial capitals of Canada | Host cities of the Commonwealth Games

Edmonton | Edmonton | Edmonton | Edmonton | Edmontono | Edmonton | 에드먼턴 | Edmonton | Edmonton | אדמונטון | Edmontonas | Edmonton | エドモントン | Edmonton | Edmonton (Alberta) | Edmonton | Edmonton | Эдмонтон | Edmonton, Alberta | Edmonton | Edmonton | Edmonton | Edmonton, Alberta | 埃德蒙顿

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Edmonton, Alberta".

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