The Pulse: Feb. 7, 2025

One of the organizers behind a project to plant a thousand trees in an inner-city neighbourhood says increasing shade and greenery isn't really the goal.

"The thing that will make this successful or not is how well we can connect with neighbours, which is kind of the point of the project anyway," said Dustin Bajer of Shrubscriber. "I mean, the trees, obviously, there's a lot of benefit that they do, but I think part of the project is stitching a bunch of community members together that may not know each other, that are all interested in gardening and plants and community building."

Shrubscriber, an urban tree subscription community, received a grant from the city to plant the trees in McCauley. Cultivate McCauley will help increase the neighbourhood's tree canopy from 13% to 15%, Bajer said. Edmonton hopes to increase the city's tree canopy cover to 20% by 2071.

"Truth be told, it's not hard to grow a thousand trees. That seems really ambitious, but it's doable," Bajer said. "The tricky part, actually, is going to be to find a thousand homes, or a thousand places for trees."

The first step will be to build micro tree nurseries. Volunteers will build propagation boxes out of old beehive components and install them on 16-square-foot wooden pallets. Each of the nurseries can grow about 144 trees. "I'm hopeful that the folks who have these little micro nurseries can kind of tap into their neighbours and friends in the community to tell them about the project and to offer trees to them," Bajer said. "The goal is to build a little bit of a network where Shrubscriber will work with the community to set it up, but we also want folks to take ownership over them and to propagate the trees and get excited about them and offer them as gifts to their friends and neighbours in the community."

McCauley is a good neighbourhood to try this project, Bajer said. It's culturally diverse, and while language barriers can present a challenge, people from different cultures bring unique gardening knowledge to the table, Bajer said. Italian, Ukrainian, and Chinese immigrants settled in McCauley in Edmonton's early days, and there have been more recent waves of people immigrating from Somalia and Vietnam. "So we have grapevines and pear trees and goji bushes, and I think it makes the neighbourhood kind of horticulturally interesting, if you're looking for it," Bajer said. "I think this is an opportunity to take a lot of that knowledge, to take a lot of that passion, and just bring those folks together on somewhat a regular basis, and get to know each other." McCauley residents who are interested in participating can sign up on the Cultivate McCauley website. Bajer is looking for people to host nurseries in their yards, but also to translate and volunteer for workshops, and will spread the word at a March event at Paper Birch Books.

Other than stitching community members together, Bajer said the thousand trees will have ecological and social benefits. Increasing tree canopy has been linked to reduced crime and increased property values. Trees add protection from wind and sun, which helps reduce heating and cooling costs in both summer and winter, and can help reduce flooding.

Most of the trees will eventually be planted on private property. Trees on public property are under stricter requirements, but for private property, you just need the permission of one landowner. Plus, the percentage of Edmonton's trees on private property is higher than those on public property — there are more trees on private property than there are in the entire river valley — meaning there is more space to make a real difference to Edmonton's tree canopy, Bajer said.

Bajer said he hopes the model could be used in other Edmonton neighbourhoods. "If I'm thinking big picture, I would love to see little mini tree nurseries throughout the city," he said. "A single person can grow a thousand trees in a very small piece of land. A hundred people each growing a thousand trees, or a hundred little nurseries — you're talking about tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of plants that could be propagated locally."

• The City of Edmonton's proposed public spaces bylaw is drawing concern from advocates who fear the rules will mostly affect unhoused people, Indigenous people, and vulnerable groups, while Edmonton Police Association president Sgt. Curtis Hoople said officers mainly want clarity on expectations and what they can and can't do. A group of advocacy organizations, including Climate Justice Edmonton, Tawâw Outreach Collective, and 4B Harm Reduction, put together resources to advocate against the bylaw. City council's community and public services committee is set to review the bylaw on Feb. 10.
• The City of Edmonton is lifting its Phase 1 parking ban for major roads on Feb. 7 at 7am. During the ban crews and contractors cleared arterial roads, collector roads, bus routes, and roads in business improvement areas. The City said it is not declaring a Phase 2 parking ban for residential and industrial roads at this time.
• A section of the shared-use path by Century Park Station will be closed starting around Feb. 10 so crews can remove a retaining wall, which is needed to accommodate the Capital Line South LRT expansion. The affected section is west of 111 Street, between 23 Avenue and the station. Pedestrians and cyclists will be detoured to the sidewalk until work is complete in summer 2026.
• The Edmonton Police Service arrested five people after responding to reports of an assault at the MacEwan LRT station on the evening of Feb. 5. One person was found dead at the scene, police said. On Feb. 6, service on the Metro Line between the Churchill and NAIT stations was delayed until about 11am as police investigated.
• The City of Edmonton relaunched its Reuse Directory, an online tool to help residents extend the life of items they may otherwise throw away. The updated directory has functions for residents to donate, borrow, rent, consign, repair, or refill items in a variety of categories. More than 50 local organizations have signed up for the directory, the City said.
• The Edmonton International Airport launched a new shipping platform in collaboration with Edmonton Global, Port Alberta, and Machool Technologies. The ShipAlberta platform helps Alberta businesses, especially small and medium enterprises, navigate shipping and logistics to expand beyond local markets, YEG said in a release.
• The Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations has rebranded as ECVO. The change reflects the organization's growing membership, which extends beyond Edmonton, ECVO says.
• Finance Minister Nate Horner accused CUPE leaders of interfering in negotiations between the Edmonton Public School Board and CUPE Local 3550, which represents 3,000 striking education support staff. According to Horner, the union hasn't brought the school board's "significant, meaningful" offer to members for a vote, which the union says is "misrepresenting what happened at the bargaining table." Support workers from the Sturgeon Public School Division and in Fort McMurray are also on strike, while unionized support workers in Calgary are set to hold a strike vote next week.
• The latest monthly market statistics update from the REALTORS Association of Edmonton says the real estate market remained active in January after high sales numbers in 2024. Last month, the average price of homes across all categories rose 0.8% to $438,278, nearly 1,600 residential units were sold, and 2,452 new units were listed. The market is "telling us is there's a lot of buyer confidence out there," said association board chair Darlene Reid.
• Single-family detached homes are increasingly rare in Edmonton, despite being the most sought-after option among home buyers, said Tom Shearer with Royal LePage Noralta Real Estate. In January, the average price of a single-family detached home was $558,000, but there were only a handful of listings at that price point, said Shearer.
• Avison Young's latest report on Edmonton's industrial real estate market found that demand consistently outpaced supply in the greater Edmonton region over the past year, with listings in the northwest driving momentum in the market. The City of Edmonton's efforts to streamline the development approval process make the region a "leader in industrial growth and innovation," the report says.
• The City of Leduc wants to annex nearly 2,500 hectares from Leduc County to prepare for population growth over the next 50 years. Provincial data shows the city's population increased 15.1% in the past five years, reaching about 38,000 residents, while the county is growing at a slower rate. Leduc County expressed opposition to the annexation and called for a collaborative approach with both municipalities as "equal partners." With the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board set to dissolve on March 31, the municipalities should complete an intermunicipal collaboration framework before negotiating an annexation, the county said.

On this day in 1931, Edmonton's premier hotel was offering a Sunday dinner for 50 cents.

The special menu at the King Edward Hotel had everything from boiled mutton leg to chicken chow mein, finished off with "deep blueberry pie."

For decades, the King Edward was the leading hotel in downtown Edmonton. Its Victorian style, with red brick, white columns, and large cupolas, offered an air of luxury and prestige. Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier stayed there when visiting the city, along with many other well-to-do travellers in the city's early history.

The hotel's luxurious reputation was far removed from its origins, as it was built on the site of a former livestock operation at the corner of what is now 101 Street and 101 Avenue. The land was owned by businessman and city alderman John Calhoun. In 1904, Calhoun started construction of the hotel, which he named after the current monarch, King Edward VII.

Calhoun's gamble paid off, and the hotel was an immediate success. So much so that it expanded twice over the next decade — once in 1908, and again in 1910. By that time, it was not only the largest hotel in the city, but a central part of the nightlife, with a popular cafe and tavern in the basement. Even when prohibition came to Alberta, from 1915 to 1923, the King Edward remained a popular gathering spot.

Calhoun sold the hotel in 1940. Shortly after the Second World War, the hotel underwent a massive renovation, which replaced the Victorian facade with a Modernist look. Two more expansions in 1951 and 1964, costing $300,000 and $250,000, respectively, added more rooms and amenities.

Like several other downtown hotels, the King Edward played an important role in the history of Edmonton's queer community. While not openly welcoming gay and lesbian patrons, the King Edward was considered a safe, tolerant place to meet and socialize, a reputation it gained soon after opening, and one that continued into the latter half of the century.

While many of the city's old hotels disappeared due to economics or changing tastes, the King Edward met a more tragic end. In 1978, a fatal arson fire destroyed the building, killing two people and sending 15 people to hospital. Although there were some attempts to rebuild the storied establishment, they never materialized. The ruins of the King Edward were demolished in 1980.

The Manulife building now sits on the site of the former King Edward. Like its predecessor did many times over its history, it will undergo a major facelift. Plans are underway for a $45-million renovation of the tower, which will bring changes to its lobby, common areas, and retail spaces.

This clipping was found on Vintage Edmonton, a daily look at Edmonton's history from armchair archivist @revRecluse of @VintageEdmonton.

Here are some events happening this weekend in the Edmonton area.

• Feb. 7: Lunar Night Market Series starting at 6pm at LAST Modern Event Venue
• Feb. 7: Hops on the Hill starting at 6pm at Sunridge Ski Area
• Feb. 7-9: Canadian Birkie at Beaver Hills Biosphere
• Feb. 7-9: Pandas Open at University of Alberta Butterdome
• Feb. 7-17: Silver Skate Festival at Sir Wilfrid Laurier Park
• Feb. 8: Winter Try It Festival starting at 11am at Wizard Lake
• Feb. 8: Roots in the Diaspora starting at 6pm at Pendennis Building
• Feb. 8: Black Impact Gospel Concert starting at 6:30pm at 12210 Mount Lawn Road NW
• Feb. 8: Firestorm and Frequencies | Top Notes Flute Quartet starting at 7:30pm at Convocation Hall
• Feb. 9: Period Positivity Workshop starting at 1pm at Forest Terrace Heights Community Hall
• Feb. 9: Radical Love: A Frontline Worker Cabaret starting at 1pm at Beercade
• Feb. 9: Live From Leduc starting at 7pm at Grindstone Theatre

And here are some upcoming events to keep in mind:

• Feb. 21: Edmonton Conversation Café - Discussions on Mental Health at Aum Cafe
• Feb. 22: Love Letters from the 20th Century: A Celebration of the Romantic Singers at MacEwan University
• Feb. 27: NurtureHer: Building Bridges to Inclusive Hiring Series at Grow Women Leaders

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