Headlines: Aug. 25, 2026
- Work on Edmonton's 20-year, $1.6-billion Stormwater Integrated Resource Plan could be accelerated after city council's utility committee voted unanimously to have administration report back in the first quarter of 2027 on the cost and logistics of doing so. It also requested a memo from EPCOR on adding drainage information to the city's open data portal and a follow-up on infrastructure research from the University of Alberta.
- The eastbound Rainbow Valley Bridge over Whitemud Creek partially reopened to traffic, completing the major bridge work for Stage 2 of the Terwillegar Drive Expansion. Once the remaining barrier installation, paving, and other finishing work ends this fall, the bridges will carry four lanes in each direction. Landscaping and site restoration will continue through 2027.
- Kingsway Mall has been acquired by Montreal-based Westcliff Management Ltd. Financial terms were not disclosed. The mall had been owned and managed by Oxford Properties since 2000.
- The University of Alberta opened its $16.8-million First Peoples' House for more than 2,000 Indigenous students. The 40,000-square-foot building includes study and mentoring areas, a gym, a sacred healing space, and a garden of tipis for quiet reflection. Assistant dean Shana Dion called the opening an example of "meaningful, grounded reconciliation."
- The City of Edmonton confirmed a new case of Dutch elm disease in a city-owned tree in the Downtown neighbourhood, bringing the total to 17 since 2024. Crews removed the symptomatic tree on Aug. 14 because it stood within 20 metres of a previously confirmed infection. The disease threatens about 90,000 elms, which make up 22% of the city's inventory of trees in open spaces and boulevards.
- CPKC donated $4.4 million to the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation for pediatric cardiac care and $550,000 to the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation for the CK Hui Heart Centre. It called the combined $4.95 million a record donation. The CPKC Canadian Women's Open has helped raise more than $31 million for children's cardiac research, care, and equipment since 2014.
- Edmonton Oilers star Leon Draisaitl said he is ready for the accountability that new head coach Mike Babcock will bring. "We're looking to be coached," he said. "We're looking to get better."
- Alberta Premier Danielle Smith called U.S. negotiators' demands "untenable" and "too painful" after Canada-U.S. trade talks collapsed, triggering 50% U.S. tariffs on a wide range of Canadian exports. Ottawa plans dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs starting Sept. 8. Smith also called cutting off Alberta's energy exports "not viable" and pointed to plans to accelerate pipelines to Ontario and the West Coast.
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