River Valley News - Dec 19/24

Historic Ortona Armoury reopens following rehabilitation

The Ortona Armoury has been rehabilitated and reopened as an event venue and creative space for artists. It was built in 1914 and has been a prominent historical landmark in Rossdale for more than a century. The Ortona Armoury has been used as studio space for artists/arts groups for the last 30 years. In 2004, the building was designated a Municipal Historic Resource, which legally protects it from demolition or alterations to the structure.

Rehabilitation work began in spring 2022 and was completed in fall 2024. Work included replacement of all external windows with replicas of the historical windows, restoration of the hardwood floors, installation of a new elevator for improved accessibility, restoration of the wood columns and roof trusses, maintenance of the original brickwork, and the addition of a covered courtyard between the north and south portions of the building (now referred to as the solarium).

The $16.28 million-project received $2.05 million in funding from the Government of Canada through the Canada Cultural spaces Fund, which supports improved physical conditions for arts and heritage cultural spaces for creation, collaboration, presentation, preservation and exhibition. Arts Habitat Edmonton operates the building, leases the space to artists, organizes programming and looks after the bookable spaces. https://www.edmonton.ca/projects_plans/parks_recreation/ortona-armoury-building-rehabilitation-project

Add Ski Like a Girl to your podcast playlist

On December 13, a new podcast titled Ski Like a Girl entered the audio listener world. This podcast combines archival exploration with vivid storytelling about the lives and legacy of women in Canadian Nordic skiing history. With stories of cross-country skiers, ski trekkers, ski jumpers, and biathletes, this podcast shares stories about inspiring women who built community, pushed boundaries, and excelled in Nordic skiing.

The first episode is titled Tracing Ski Tracks: The UofA Varsity Ski Club in the 1930s. Based on her MA research, University of Alberta student historian Lyndsay Conrad traces the tracks of the Varsity Ski Club through the Great Depression. You can listen to this episode on Aviary and Spotify. The rest of the podcast will launch in January 2025.

Ski Like a Girl Podcast is a collaborative academic podcast that combines research from oral history interviews, archives, and other academic sources. The history research team behind the podcast is based at the University of Alberta in the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation. https://sites.google.com/ualberta.ca/ski-like-a-girl-podcast/home

Edmonton ranked 27th most liveable city in Canada

Edmonton is once again making the ranks as a fantastic place to live, with the city nabbing a spot in the top 50 as one of Canada’s most liveable cities. The Globe and Mail released its second annual list of Canada’s 100 Most Liveable Cities, which evaluated over 400 communities based on factors such as transportation, housing affordability, community vibrancy, and access to amenities.

Edmonton ranked 27th overall, third in Alberta, and placed highly in individual categories, including transportation at 10th and access to amenities at 15th place. Other rankings included 46th for broad demographics, 38th for education, 48th for healthcare, and 32nd for climate. St. Albert beat Edmonton slightly in the ranking at 25th place.

In early November, Edmonton was also named one of the World’s Best Cities for 2025 by Resonance Consulting and Ipsos Research. That report highlighted the city’s affordability, festival scene, downtown revitalization, new development in the ICE District, and the North Saskatchewan River Valley. https://dailyhive.com/edmonton/edmonton-canadas-most-liveable-cities

Sipikiskisiw (Remembers Far Back) by Michelle Sound, Telus Transit Shelter in downtown YEG. In October 2024, the work received a Public Art Sustainability Award from the Creative City Network of Canada. https://www.edmontonarts.ca/public-art/sipikiskisiw-remembers-far-back

Comment or Contributions

Please note articles may not reflect the position of NSRVCS. River Valley News is meant to be a clearinghouse for the variety of opinions and ideas about Edmonton’s River Valley.

Email river valley photos, event information, comments, or questions to nsrivervalley@gmail.com

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River Valley News - Dec 12/24

Edmonton Christmas Bird Count is Sunday, December 15/24

Gerald Romanchuk photo

Prior to the 20th century, hunters would take part in a holiday tradition known as the Christmas Side Hunt. They would choose sides, go out into fields with their guns and whoever brought back the biggest pile of dead birds won. 

At that time, conservation was in its beginning era and many observers and scientists were concerned about the decline in bird populations. For this reason, ornithologist Frank M. Chapman introduced a new holiday tradition on Christmas Day in 1900. He proposed that a Christmas Bird Census be held so that people’s attention would be focused on counting birds during the holiday rather than hunting them.

The Edmonton Christmas Bird Count is a citizen-science project that contributes data to an immense database managed and analyzed by Birds Canada and the National Audubon Society. Thousands of Christmas Bird Counts occur around the world every year and Edmonton has been continuously participating in this tradition since 1955. YEG also holds the world record for number of participants.

This year’s count will be on Sunday, December 15. There are two ways to take part in this special occasion. Bird lovers can be feed watchers and tally birds in their yard or join teams of counters, referred to as bush beaters, and scour different areas of the city. Hundreds of Edmontonians participate in this event every year. For more details on how to get in on the count, visit https://www.edmontonchristmasbirdcount.ca/ 

Fort Edmonton Park one of the stars of 2007 movie western

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is a critically acclaimed 2007 film. The western follows a character named Robert ‘Bob’ Ford who is enchanted by the legendary bandit Jesse James. As the movie progresses, Bob’s admiration for Jesse quickly turns into hate as he plots to kill the bandit.

Jesse is played by none other than Brad Pitt. And though Pitt is known to steal scenes with his good looks, it seems that movie watchers were more enamoured with the landscapes featured in this film, one of which was Fort Edmonton Park. The production team used the park to create a breathtaking visual backdrop that faithfully depicted the American west in the late 19th century.

A notable scene shot at the park is the audacious train heist that is orchestrated by the James gang. The following review left on IMDb is an example of the excellent cinematography that went into this film. “The blurry landscapes, the wheat fields that Pitt gracefully moves through, and the greatest train robbery scene ever on film. It perfectly portrays the landscapes of the old 1800’s and everything that took place there.”

Next time you watch the western, make sure to keep your eye out for the train heist scene and other exterior shots that were filmed in Fort Edmonton Park.  https://giggster.com/guide/movie-location/where-was-the-assassination-of-jesse-james-by-the-coward-robert-ford-filmed

Cenotaph ceremonial tomb for Edmontonians killed in battle since WW1

WW1, often called The Great War, produced a lost generation. Edmonton-based battalions committed 16,000 men to the war effort. When the war ended, 3,000 Edmontonians never came home.

Within three years of the war’s conclusion several major remembrance projects were undertaken around the capital. Neighbouring Beverly erected a cenotaph, the Edmonton Cemetery put up a Cross of Sacrifice, and the Great War Veterans’ Association constructed Memorial Hall downtown. But for one reason or another, the move to build a proper monument in Edmonton never caught on.

That didn’t sit right with A.E. Nightingale. A veteran himself, he almost single handedly re-jumpstarted conversations in February 1935. Given the country’s dire economic fortunes, Mayor Clarke suggested they turn to a new method of fundraising, public subscription. Through a “Quarter a Week” funding model, the public could give one dollar every month. Said Nightingale, it had “the value of having people regard the cenotaph as a genuinely public memorial.”

The Committee chose a triangular plot of land at the junction of 100th Avenue and 102nd Street. Construction on the monument began in May 1936, with unemployed ex-servicemen serving as labourers. Edmonton’s Cenotaph was formally unveiled on Thursday, August 13th, 1936. A throng of 5,500 Edmontonians gathered; “All near-by windows and roofs had their quota of spectators. All viable space in the area was occupied,” recounted one reporter.

Edmonton’s Cenotaph continued to stand tall at its original location overlooking Bellamy Hill for five decades. Larger crowds and concerns over traffic safety saw the one-hundred-ton memorial moved to City Hall in 1978. Thrice rededicated, the Cenotaph now serves as the ceremonial tomb for all Edmontonians killed, not just in the First World War, but the Second, Korea, and Afghanistan as well. https://www.forgottenedmonton.com/blog/the-edmonton-cenotaph

NSRVCS looking for new board members

In preparation for our Annual General Meeting in March 2025, the North Saskatchewan River Valley Conservation Society invites you to be involved with a dynamic organization seeking to preserve Edmonton’s ribbon of green for future generations. If you are interested in being nominated to the Board of Directors, please contact us at nsrivervalley@gmail.com

We  participate in discussions about the future of Big Island provincial park in Edmonton’s southwest river valley. The society is a participant in plans for a National Urban Park that would connect ecological systems and regional landscapes along the North Saskatchewan River in Edmonton and the Metro region.

On an ongoing basis we work to conserve and preserve Edmonton’s river valley by being vigilant about developments that impact Bylaw 7188, the North Saskatchewan River Valley Area Redevelopment Plan. Finally, we have a vibrant communications platform consisting of a weekly newsletter, Facebook posts, and a daily presence on Instagram and Twitter. Learn more at https://www.edmontonrivervalley.org/

Keep Moving tells the story of Pekiwewin

Lynn Parish, President of Rossdale Community League writes “Although all views are valid- wrong facts are not. In Episode 5 of this podcast a former resident of Rossdale states the community league hired a security service during the time of Camp Pekewewin. This was not something the community league did. A group of residents tried it for a bit but the league was not involved. I don’t think this newsletter should be promoting this untruth.

Also unhelpful to hear comments about how hateful the Rossdale community was - this was a very complicated situation. Many people in the Rossdale community helped out - others were scared by thefts, health issues, drug use, 24 hour fires burning and deaths at the camp. Targeting the local community is not helpful.”

Raquel emailed “Excellent edition. Thanks for https://keepmovingpodcast.wordpress.com/ Didn’t know it existed!”

like the hoarfrost, a poem by Nisha Patel

Marian wrote “Beautiful and inspiring. The words on paper reflect a warm and wondering soul at peace with her surroundings, knowing that the future may not hold the promise she desires.”

Day Map / Night Map by Jill Stanton, Heritage Valley Park & Ride, YEG

https://www.edmontonarts.ca/public-art/day-map-night-map

Comment or Contributions

Please note articles may not reflect the position of NSRVCS. River Valley News is meant to be a clearinghouse for the variety of opinions and ideas about Edmonton’s River Valley.

Email river valley photos, event information, comments, or questions to nsrivervalley@gmail.com

Forward this link to anyone you think may want to sign up for this newsletter https://www.edmontonrivervalley.org/newsletter-signup

River Valley News - Dec 5/24

Ice formation on the North Saskatchewan River

Ice is cold. But how does it form? On lakes and ponds, ice comes together in a sheet across the surface. But on a river like the North Saskatchewan, ice forming is far more chaotic. Frazil crystals, or tiny specs of ice, take shape as the temperatures drop. At first, they are small, only a fraction of a millimetre across.

As the crystals collide in the water, they freeze together and form large flocs that float to the surface to create frazil pans, which look like discs of ice. Floating along, the pans meet up and eventually jam the river downstream. As more frazil ice reaches the jam, the ice cover moves back upstream forming a solid cover as it goes.

How fast does it take for river ice to form? If the temperatures plunge quickly, it takes a few days. And because of the turbulent North Saskatchewan waters, the river super cools quickly to begin frazil ice formation. https://www.edmontoncommonwealthwalkway.com/winter/how-did-that-ice-get-there

Keep Moving tells the story of Pekiwewin

Keep Moving is a podcast series about houseless encampments in Amiskwaciwâskahikan (Nêhiyawak for Beaver Hills), also known as Edmonton. The podcast is a part of a PhD dissertation and can be listened to on CJSR 88.5FM, Spotify or Apple.

The podcast starts by telling the story of Pekiwewin, an Indigenous-led houseless encampment in the river valley that lasted for 112 days in 2020. Pekiwewin supported up to 400 houseless Edmontonians for over three months amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, housing and drug poisoning crises. The podcast wanted to showcase the success of an Indigenous-led volunteer grassroots community effort.

Edmonton’s houseless community, the majority of whom are Indigenous, are still experiencing the harm that results from punitive government measures and insufficient support. Keep Moving continues to share stories about life in the beautiful Beaver Hills, Pekiwewin, and much more. Give the podcast a listen at https://apirg.org/portfolio/keep-moving-podcast-series-pekiwewin/

like the hoarfrost, a poem by Nisha Patel

Nisha Patel was the City of Edmonton’s 8th Poet Laureate and is a Canadian Individual Poetry Slam Champion. This poem was originally presented for Winter City Edmonton, and replayed on CBC’s Sunday Magazine near the end of the segment https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-57/clip/15812738

I was once a girl left in the cold

by a careless boy on valentines day

five years later I become a woman who fell in love with herself

when I heard the birdsong above Victoria's park

went looking for the magpies

and found only the still pond-water

I saw myself in the uncompromise when I was met with Saskatchewan's

northern caress: no woman is alone when she is solitary,

and no woman is solitary when we have a panting sky above us

which is to say that I want to be held

like the hoarfrost holds the trees over Jasper Ave

that I long for the daylight's gift like I long for a lover

to bring me warmth on even the loneliest of sunday noons.

under the bright rustle of ravine-dwellers

I learn to love winter the way I learn to love myself:

slowly, achingly, laboriously, and at risk of a damp heart

Read the rest of Nisha’s poem at https://www.nishapatel.ca/post/like-the-hoarfrost

A View from A Train by Chris Doyle, Kingsway LRT Station, YEG

https://www.edmontonarts.ca/public-art/a-view-from-a-train

Comment or Contributions

Please note articles may not reflect the position of NSRVCS. River Valley News is meant to be a clearinghouse for the variety of opinions and ideas about Edmonton’s River Valley.

Email river valley photos, event information, comments, or questions to nsrivervalley@gmail.com

Forward this link to anyone you think may want to sign up for this newsletter https://www.edmontonrivervalley.org/newsletter-signup