The Pulse: July 24, 2024

The parcel + prose stationery boutique is closing at the end of July due to challenges its owner said stemmed primarily from a costly pandemic loan — though this may not be the end of the store.

"That took literally everything out of my bank account," owner Tracy Losey told Taproot about her January repayment of a $40,000 Canada Emergency Business Account loan. "I didn't have anything left over, so the landlord knew I was in a difficult situation. We struggled through February, and then finally in March I just said, 'I think you need to start looking for someone to take over the lease because I just can't afford to stay.'"

HomeLife Guaranteed Realty, Losey's landlord, agreed to let her out of the lease at the end of July despite the contract extending for two additional years. She paid $4,767 per month by the end of her tenancy.

Losey said the CEBA repayment was the main factor behind her decision to close the shop, which she opened in January 2017. But she pointed out other factors that played a role, too, including what she said is dissatisfaction with the 124 Street and Area Business Association. Losey said she "100%" feels the organization could provide more support in exchange for the member dues she paid through a tax levy.

"I know I'm not alone (among business owners) in asking for things that they could do to help us," Losey said. "They always say they're 'Working on things, and things are going to get better, and we're doing this, and we're doing that,' but we don't really see any of that, so I'm not sure how much of it actually happens."

The business association is one of 13 business improvement areas that are partly funded through the City of Edmonton. It organizes commerce-generating events such as the All is Bright festival, provides a business directory, promotes businesses on the @shop124street Instagram account, and offers a parking guide, among many other things. A summary of its 2023 work is in its annual report submitted to city council on June 19. The report details that the organization accessed $35,000 in savings in 2023 to avoid forcing a levy increase onto its members.

The association did not respond to three requests from Taproot for an interview. Taproot also spoke to additional sources to try to gain context about the association's perspective.

Losey said she's heard about the tough times from her regular conversations with other business owners, including the artisans whose wares she sold at the shop, distribution representatives in the industry, and her neighbours on 124 Street. The tough times on the street are evident: Powerage Wine & Spirits closed last year, followed shortly after by Northern Chicken, which closed each of its locations on 124 and 104 streets in the core. Credo Coffee has closed its 124 Street NW outpost, but owner Geoff Linden told Taproot that was simply because its 10-year lease ended on June 30.

Losey has lived in the area for years and doesn't want to see its small businesses struggle. She said the community feels the same way. "Another local business owner … she called me and said, 'I don't want to see your store leave.'"

Thankfully, Losey said she is in talks to reboot parcel + prose as a shop-within-a-shop partnership in the vicinity of 124 Street NW.

• The City of Edmonton is supporting the mandatory evacuation of Jasper and Jasper National Park, following a request from the Alberta Emergency Management Agency and the Municipality of Jasper. Starting July 23, evacuees were being accommodated at Kennedale Site, located at 12814 58 Street NW, with 24-hour support for essential services, including lodging, food, clothing, and pet care. The wildfire near Jasper has forced the evacuation of at least 10,000 residents and 15,000 park visitors. The blaze, which was burning 12 kilometres south of Jasper townsite as of the evening of July 23, has consumed at least 6,750 hectares. Another fire north of the town has burned at least 270 hectares, officials said. Parks Canada has cancelled all camping reservations until Aug. 6 and continues to combat the wildfires amid shifting winds and high temperatures. Evacuees faced hazardous conditions, fleeing west over mountain roads, with thousands later told to turn around to Grande Prairie or Calgary as B.C. reached capacity.
• Premier Danielle Smith is calling for changes to Alberta's emergency alert system after a false alarm about the Jasper wildfire evacuation caused confusion. The initial alert incorrectly stated that the fire would reach Jasper in five hours, but a follow-up clarified that residents and visitors in the area should evacuate within five hours. Smith highlighted the need for better verification processes to prevent panic during emergencies.
• Wildfires in northern Alberta have led to the evacuation of the Chipewyan Lake community and an alert for the hamlet of Janvier due to rapidly spreading fires nearby. Road closures and poor visibility from smoke have further complicated the situation, with two significant fires near Fort McMurray posing additional threats, Alberta Wildfire said.
• Edmonton's Walterdale Bridge could switch to two-way traffic beginning next year to help manage congestion as several bridges are scheduled close for repairs between 2025 and 2029. The City of Edmonton anticipates that these closures, along with LRT construction and Jasper Avenue upgrades, could significantly increase commutes from the suburbs to downtown. The plan includes reconfiguring intersections and routes around the Walterdale Bridge and Rossdale to improve traffic flow, according to a memo sent to city council. Final route adjustments would be implemented before the Wellington Bridge closes in 2025.
• CTV News profiled 10 athletes from the Edmonton area who are set to compete in the Paris Olympics, which kick off on July 24. Notable athletes include Marco Arop in the 800-metre race, Emma Finlin in open water swimming, and Kelsey Mitchell in track cycling. The group also includes Fancy Bermudez in rugby, Daniel Gu in fencing, Emma O'Croinin in swimming, Kindred Paul in water polo, Katherine and Michelle Plouffe in 3x3 basketball, and Lucas Van Berkel in indoor volleyball​.
• Sherwood Park's Amanda Rummery will debut at the Paralympic Games in Paris after setting a Canadian record of 57.99 seconds in the Para ambulatory women's 400-metre at the Montreal trials. The 26-year-old University of Alberta student, who lost her arm in an ATV accident in 2015, began competitive running three years later and quickly broke the Canadian 100-metre record. Now ranked second globally, she joins 13 other Canadians heading to Paris for the 2024 Summer Paralympic Games.
• Two Edmonton women are competing in this year's Miss Indigenous Canada pageant. Meghan Breen and Mya McDowell say they learned about the pageant from family and are looking forward to competing. The pageant, which is open to First Nations, Métis, and Inuit women between the ages of 18 and 30, focuses on character, community service, and cultural involvement, rather than traditional beauty standards. The event takes place from July 24 to 27 on Six Nations of the Grand River in Ontario.
• Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides announced that Alberta's school boards will receive an additional $215 million in provincial funding to help address significant enrolment increases. Of the funding, $125 million will help with operational costs, while $90 million will be used to add modular classrooms in Edmonton, Calgary, and Airdrie to address space shortages. The funding is in addition to the $2.1 billion over three years allocated in the 2024 provincial budget for new school construction.

On this day in 1979, the Cromdale Community League was offering people tours of historic buildings from the early days of the neighbourhood.

It wasn't just a simple tour but instead happened in the same year that the community league pushed the City of Edmonton to protect 10 historic buildings in the neighbourhood, including the homes of two former mayors.

Cromdale is one of the Edmonton's oldest central neighbourhoods, and it's also one of the most oddly shaped. It extends east to 84 Street NW, with Commonwealth Stadium along its northeastern edge. On the other side, Cromdale bends around Kinnaird Ravine and Rat Creek, creating a neighbourhood that looks a bit like a crooked letter 'C'.

At the turn of the 20th century, the area that became Cromdale was sparsely populated. It was home to the Edmonton Standard Coal Mine, which operated from the mouth of Rat Creek since at least 1907, as well as a few scattered residences. However, the area grew rapidly in the 1910s after Edmonton's streetcar network expanded east. As part of the expansion, the city architect's office designed a new main barn for the streetcars, which was built in Cromdale in 1913. Apparently, it wasn't a smooth process — construction problems seemingly led to the architect's office being shut down.

Once connected with the rest of the city, Cromdale's population swelled, with new brick homes rapidly constructed. That led to the demand for greater services — especially education. Neighbourhood residents began pushing for a new school in 1911. However, at the time, Edmonton's school board was stretched thin trying to supply schools to the rapidly growing city. They repurposed an old wooden schoolhouse as a temporary school in 1917. "Temporary" meant more than a decade, though. It wasn't until 1931 before the more permanent Cromdale School opened. During its construction, the school board emphasized the school would be constructed and furnished with local materials. It was a matter of civic pride that, conveniently, was also cheaper for the cash-light school board. The school served the community until 1980 when it was closed.

Also in the 1930s, Cromdale became the final resting place for another Edmonton landmark. In 1932, fire destroyed downtown's Corona Hotel. For whatever reason, it was decided that the best clean-up plan was to dump the debris into Rat Creek Ravine. The remains of the hotel are supposedly still there, under what's now 111 Avenue.

The early part of the 1900s marked Cromdale's first boom, but it wasn't the last. The 1950s saw the neighbourhood become an entertainment and nightlife hub, which included the now-notorious Cromdale Hotel. More recently, there have been several projects aimed at building higher-density housing in Cromdale and the surrounding area, including the Stadium Yards complex, which is undergoing its second phase of construction right on the western border of Cromdale.

This clipping was found on Vintage Edmonton, a daily look at Edmonton's history from armchair archivist @revRecluse of @VintageEdmonton. Note: The photo collage includes a clipping from 1979 and an undated colour photo of the Cromdale Hotel.

Here are some events happening today in the Edmonton area.

• Dysregulation, Dopamine and the Workplace starting at 7:30am at the Sawmill Prime Rib & Steakhouse
• Tours for Tots | Boreal Weaving starting at 10am at the Art Gallery of Alberta
• Opening night for Civil Blood: A Treaty Story at Fort Edmonton Park
• Music in the Park starting at 5pm at Butler Memorial Park
• Family Nature Nights starting at 6pm at Jackie Parker Park
• Wool Felted Snail Workshop starting at 6pm at the Carrot Community Arts Coffee House
• Women In Leadership Networking Dinner starting at 6pm at Brew + Bloom (South)
• Women United's Day of Caring staring at 6pm at InKind Exchange
• Summer Session Concert Series:The Red Cannons with Mike Trudell starting at 6:30pm at Heritage Park Pavilion
• Walk for Wellness starting at 7pm at Stony Plain Rotary Park
• Christ Church Garden Concerts: Sam and Jessica Heine starting at 7pm at the Anglican Parish of Christ Church

And here are some upcoming events to keep in mind:

• Aug. 2-4: Blueberry Music Festival at Heritage Park Pavilion
• Aug. 2-5: Lughnasadh Festival Weekend
• Aug. 3-5: Edmonton Heritage Festival at Borden Park

Visit the beta version of the Taproot Edmonton Calendar for many more events in the Edmonton region.