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Headlines: May 16, 2025

· The Pulse
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  • NAIT announced it will pause 18 of its programs due to concerns about operational and financial sustainability, which will affect about 450 students and 100 staff. The paused programs are across the school, but eight are in the School of Media and Information Technology. The announcement was made May 15, but staff were only informed of the changes on May 14. The news was "absolutely shocking," said Shauna MacDonald with the NAIT Academic Staff Association.
  • The Africa Centre presented a revised business case for a long-delayed multicultural community centre to Edmonton city council's executive committee. The centre is planning a $54-million facility on the site of the former Wellington Junior High School in the Athlone neighbourhood, which would include event spaces, a gymnasium, and low-income housing. The committee recommended that council negotiate a $1 land deal with the centre, contingent on an updated funding model, letters of support from Black-led organizations, and plans for governance and capital funding.
  • The City of Edmonton is opening some spray parks on May 17, with the rest set to open June 6. The City has a total of 78 spray parks, including a new one in the Schonsee neighbourhood. Information about spray park hours can be found on the City's website.
  • The UCP and the Alberta NDP have each nominated candidates for a by-election in the provincial riding of Edmonton-Ellerslie, prompted when MLA Rod Loyola resigned to run in the federal election. The UCP nominated Naresh Bhardwaj, and the NDP nominated Gurtej Singh Brar. A date for the by-election has not been announced, but provincial rules require it to be called before Sept. 24.
  • Spruce Avenue School, a junior high school in the Spruce Avenue neighbourhood built in 1928, will be demolished to make way for a new school. The existing building, with a 450-student capacity, will be replaced with a building for 605 students with more flexible learning spaces, said Kim Holotawuk with Edmonton Public Schools. The project is expected to start next March and be completed by January 2028.
  • The football field at Commonwealth Stadium has officially been renamed as Play Alberta Field, after Alberta's online regulated gambling platform Play Alberta. In a release, the Edmonton Elks said the field's naming rights are part of a multi-year agreement with Play Alberta. City council approved the name sale agreement for the field in early February.
  • Const. Dylan Awid of the Edmonton Police Service was reprimanded this week for a 2019 incident where he shoved a handcuffed man's head into a brick wall. Awid admitted to unlawful exercise of authority when he tried to subdue the driver of a stolen vehicle. A retired RCMP chief superintendent who presided over the hearing accepted an agreement for a "restorative approach" rather than suspension without pay, calling it a "case of poor judgment and a spontaneous reaction."
  • The Edmonton Police Service said in a new report that 525 of the 712 criminal flight incidents in 2024 lasted one minute or less. These incidents are treated as high-risk situations, similar to hostage scenarios or armed suspect calls, said interim chief of police Warren Driechel. There were 71 "long-chase events" lasting more than 15 minutes, and 115 that involved an EPS helicopter, Postmedia reported.
  • Edmonton Global is inviting companies to participate in a trade mission to Houston from Oct. 7 to 9, which will include meetings with people in the energy sector, industry group engagement, and efforts to foster stronger ties between the cities.
  • APTN News spoke to Indigenous leaders, academics, and lawyers about the UCP government's encouragement of separatism. Treaties 6, 7, and 8 make Indigenous people partners rather than subjects of Alberta, and they represent the greatest obstacle to the legitimacy of separation, said University of Alberta professor Matthew Wildcat, noting Indigenous and non-Indigenous people often have different understandings of the Treaties. Multiple First Nations have adamantly opposed UCP legislation related to sovereignty, including Onion Lake Cree Nation, which is demanding the government respond to a 2022 lawsuit. The UCP said it would amend proposed legislation to ensure no separation referendum could threaten Treaty rights, which critics said "means nothing."