Headlines: June 7, 2023

June 7, 2023 · The Pulse
By Kevin Holowack and Mariam Ibrahim

The city announced that attendance at recreation centres has nearly returned to pre-pandemic levels, with 96% attendance reported from January to March of this year compared to 2019. Registrations for city-run summer day camps have also nearly returned to pre-pandemic levels, while the number of active memberships, Leisure Access Program enrolment, and program attendance have exceeded 2019 levels. There are 20 city recreation centres and pools across Edmonton.
Civic Service Union 52, which represents more than 6,000 Edmonton civic service employees, launched an awareness campaign to inform residents of the roles played by its members. The campaign's timing aligns with the city's ongoing work related to a budget amendment called OP12, which aims to assess the priority of city services and find $60 million in cost savings over the 2023-2026 budget cycle.
Council's community and public services committee received the second annual state of immigration and settlement report last week and passed a motion asking for the city's immigration policy to be revised. The report, titled Dignity in Employment and Education: Creating Opportunities So Newcomers Can Thrive, found newcomers to Edmonton face barriers to employment and education and suggested the city must build authentic relationships, recognize newcomers' skills, and improve its image as an employer of diverse people.
Harm reduction teams with Boyle Street Community Services have been responding to more overdoses than usual so far in June. Health services director Marliss Taylor said the teams have responded to 10 overdoses this month and know of 10 others, compared to a total of 25 overdoses for the entire month of May. She said the overdoses are mainly happening to people who inhale substances rather than eat or inject them. Ginetta Salvalaggio, an associate professor in the University of Alberta Department of Family Medicine, said some parts of the city are seeing very potent or polluted opioids, which lead to more complicated overdoses that require higher doses of naloxone or hospitalization to reverse. Alberta Health Services said there were 177 calls to 911 related to overdoses in Edmonton from May 15-28 of this year.
Global News spoke to Shalayn Martel from Legal Aid Alberta to discuss the importance of the Edmonton Indigenous Court, which opened in 2022 to provide a culturally relevant and restorative approach to justice for Indigenous individuals. The court was created as part of the Provincial Court of Alberta's Indigenous Justice Strategy and designed in consultation with Indigenous legal experts and First Nations and Métis groups. Reconcili-ACTION YEG, a student-run blog from the University of Alberta Faculty of Law, visited the Edmonton Indigenous Court in February and reflected on how such courts contribute to the overall goals of Indigenous legal autonomy.
For the past five years, Edmonton Public Schools has been installing solar panels on school roofs, which provide energy as well as learning opportunities for students. So far, 24 schools have installed solar panels, the most recent being a 797-panel installation at J. Percy Page high school. Coreen Moccia, the director for infrastructure supports and operations at Edmonton Public Schools, said the solar panels provide 7.5% of the division's energy requirements and save an estimated $650,000 each year to redirect back into classrooms.
The Kiwanis slide at the Edmonton Expo Centre, which is better known as the "big yellow slide," is scheduled to be demolished on June 7. The slide opened in 1974 but hasn't been used since 2019 because of structural problems. "Most Edmontonians know the landmark and have braved the slide once or twice," said Quinn Phillips with Explore Edmonton. "But not to be forgotten, it was also a community builder, raising thousands for local and international groups."
EPCOR announced it is bringing back its "Glass of the Sask" program this summer, which will be expanded to include additional touchless hydration stations at major festivals and community events. According to a release, stations will be installed at the Heritage Festival and the Fringe Theatre Festival for the first time, along with five additional locations at K-Days.
An elective course offered by St. Albert Public Schools exploring 2SLGBTQ issues is believed to be the first of its kind in Alberta. Students who take the course will study the history of the 2SLGBTQ community, its celebrations, and how to access mental health support. Kristopher Wells, an associate professor at MacEwan University and Canada Research Chair for the public understanding of sexual and gender minority youth, said similar courses exist in other places across the country and that school districts are developing these courses locally because they aren't included in provincial curriculum. In a statement, St. Albert Public Schools said that students in the 2SLGBTQ community can feel "isolated and disconnected" and that the course "helps them see themselves in the curriculum."