Edmonton Enviro / Green News

Cities Key to Welcoming Newcomers

02/16/2012

Edmonton leads discussion, action

Community leaders representing a range of non-profit and immigrant services agencies met with City Councillors and members of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) to share insights on how City services contribute to the successful transition of immigrants in Edmonton.

The meeting follows the publication of Starting on Solid Ground: The Municipal Role in Immigrant Settlement, an FCM report highlighting specific areas where municipal governments play key roles as front-line supporters to Canadian newcomers.

“Thriving cities rely on attracting and retaining new immigrants, so municipalities are now key players in defining a larger outlook on immigration and settlement in Canada,” said Councillor Karen Leibovici, the First Vice President of the FCM. “This meeting is an important opportunity to start a dialogue with communities here in Edmonton - to share and learn from each other and address the recommendations in this report as a collective voice.”

Key recommendations in the report include:

• Engaging other orders of government to support and recognize the services municipalities offer local immigrant communities

• Continued support for efficient and accessible public transportation

• Incentives towards available and affordable housing

• Clear targets for successful longer-term, expanded settlement services

“Edmonton was one of the first municipalities in Canada to establish an immigration and settlement policy, so we are in a unique position to meet with FCM about their report and recommendations,” said Councillor Amarjeet Sohi. “We know this topic is important to many Edmontonians and we’re glad to see FCM adopting the approach on this level.” 

City Councillors along with administration plan to continue the dialogue with FCM and the community and are currently considering ways to keep the conversation flowing.

“Edmonton is a welcoming and supportive community and our effort to make the city livable for everyone is ongoing,” said Councillor Ben Henderson. “The conversation doesn’t stop here. We are now in a position to take this feedback back to FCM to assist in their continued work on strengthening the immigrant experience in Edmonton and Canada as a whole.”

Suzuki to Feature Edmonton on the Nature of Things

02/14/2012

David Suzuki and his daughter discover City’s waste management system on cross-country eco-journey

Edmonton’s waste management system is known as one of the most innovative in the world and that reputation earned Edmonton a spot on a special episode of the Nature of Things called The Suzuki Diaries: Future City.

The Suzuki Diaries features David Suzuki and his daughter Sarika as they travel the country to find inspiring stories of people doing it right. In Future City, the Suzuki’s visit some of Canada’s biggest cities to see how they tackle environmental issues such as land use, food, housing, energy and waste.

In Edmonton, they toured the Edmonton Waste Management Centre and met with Councillor Don Iveson to learn about our sustainable waste management system. What they discovered is that our leadership in waste management is a result of the dedication of people at all levels, from City Council, to City staff, to the residents of Edmonton. 

The Suzuki Diaries: Future City will air on CBC Television on Thursday, February 16, 2012 at 8pm.

The CBC has a synopsis of the show at:

Suzuki Diaries: Future City.

Spend Family Day Unplugged

02/13/2012

City challenges families to disconnect to connect

The City of Edmonton has joined seventeen municipalities in the Capital Region to encourage residents to unplug from technology and reconnect with family and friends on Family Day, February 20, 2012.

To up the stakes, these municipalities are challenging each other to see which can spend the most time unplugged. Participants can log hours on February 21 by visiting fcssaa.ab.ca, and share their stories on Facebook.

Residents have until February 22, 2012 to submit the number of hours they unplugged on Family Day.

Why Unplug?

• 73% of kids would rather play with their parents than watch TV or use the Internet. (Ikea: Play Report, 2010)
• Teens that have more than three family dinners per week are more likely to get better grades. (Casa, 2009)
• Residents in connected neighbourhoods have greater quality of life. (Shields, 2008)

In 2011, the first year for the challenge, the Town of Beaumont won the Family Day challenge by unplugging from technology for a community total of 13,495 hours. The collective unplugged total for all ten communities participating last year was more than 15,000 hours.

Need inspiration? Explore the best Family Day events the City of Edmonton has to offer.

Family Day Unplugged is an initiative organized and promoted in cooperation with: Town of Beaumont, Brazeau County, Village of Breton, City of Edmonton, City of Fort Saskatchewan, Town of Devon, Town of Drayton Valley, Town of Gibbons, City of Leduc, Leduc County, Town of Morinville, Town of Redwater, City of Spruce Grove, City of St. Albert, Town of Stony Plain, Strathcona County and Sturgeon County.

Granted! Edmontonians Benefit from Public Facility Upgrades

02/10/2012

City invests over $700,000 in six non-profit public projects

Metro Cinema will go digital, the Edmonton Soccer Association will kick it on artificial turf and the Edmonton Ski Club will have well-groomed slopes thanks to grants awarded from the City of Edmonton’s Community Facility Partner Capital Grants Program.

Through this new grant program, the City provides additional support to public facilities that improve quality of life through arts, heritage, community development or sport and leisure experiences.

“All of these organizations are committed to enhancing the quality of life of Edmontonians through public access to arts and recreation” said Roger Jevne, Director of Recreation Facility Development for the City of Edmonton. “These grants will help them improve the level of service they provide, stay competitive and enhance the overall experience of their visitors.”

2011 grant recipients include:

• Metro Cinema - $88,214 for digital projection upgrades in the Garneau Theatre
• Millwoods Golf Course - $131,500 for practice space and bunker upgrades
• Edmonton Soccer Association- $294,834 for artificial turf and installation
• Argyll Velodrome - $39,742 for track and drainage repairs
• Edmonton Ski Club - $116,980 for new snow groomer and site and facility master planning
• Westmount Fitness Club - $37,250 for facility renovations

In 2011, City Council approved a total of $1 million to support projects that enhance public use facilities. Council has since renewed that commitment to the program for 2012, with any remaining funds from previous years to be carried over.

To support robust economic growth and sustainable communities, the City of Edmonton offers a broad range of grants and funding opportunities for citizens and organizations each year.

Applications are being accepted for the 2012 Community Facility Partner Capital Grants Program. The deadline to apply is April 30, 2012.

City and Airport Authority Reach Agreement on Taxis

02/02/2012

Edmonton taxis will no longer have to drive back from the International Airport empty, thanks to a memorandum of understanding signed between the Edmonton Regional Airports Authority and the City of Edmonton.

“This agreement helps improve taxi service availability, reduces deadheading and reduces impact to our environment,” says Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel. “We have an agreement that balances and meets the needs of the City of Edmonton, Edmonton International Airport, our taxi industry, and the citizens and visitors of our city.”

The agreement was negotiated late last year to reduce the amount of deadheading between the city and airport. Currently, unless they have a pre-arranged fare, only taxis from Airport Taxi Service can pick up at the airport and only Edmonton-based taxis can pick up in the city. This means Edmonton taxis that take passengers to the terminal must return empty, as must Airport Taxi Service taxis that take passengers to Edmonton.

Under the new agreement, the airport will only contract taxi companies and drivers that are licensed to operate in Edmonton. To make sure there are enough taxis to provide reliable service to the airport, City Council released 100 new taxi licences yesterday and the City will allow drivers that are currently providing service at the airport to apply for these licences.

“Providing excellent, efficient taxi service is key to an outstanding traveler experience,” says Reg Milley, President and CEO of Edmonton Airports. “Our customers and community partners told us that they prefer a seamless, regional approach to taxi service, with less deadheading.”

The new City licences will be distributed through a random selection process. Edmonton International Airport will be asking for bids, through an RFP process, to decide which Edmonton taxi brokers will be contracted to provide on-demand service at the terminal.