The Pulse
Sept. 11, 2026

Cory Johnn spent hours making miniatures of famous Edmonton landmarks. They are exquisite, but the number of people they can reach is, well, small.

Take a picture, he thought. It'll go farther.

And so he has, adapting miniatures of the Muttart Conservatory, the Walterdale Bridge with the Rossdale Power Plant, and the Talus Dome into postcards as a practical way to reach a wider audience.

"I think these are just some really famous landmarks that everybody sees day to day, and it's almost like some people see them subconsciously," Johnn told Taproot, adding that he'd like to remind people not to take them for granted.

"I know the Talus Dome is kind of a funny shape when you drive by it — it's almost like a meme in the city," he said. "People make fun of it at times, but it's also very beautiful."

Johnn, who is also a professional filmmaker and photographer, made the postcards as part of the inaugural season of the Good Neighbour Arts Network, which officially wrapped in May. The project brought together east-side artists to be "stewards" of Little Free Library-type structures stocked with art. Postcards of miniatures were popular, Johnn said.

"I printed 100 of each, and I've almost burned through all of them; I kept having to restock them," Johnn said of his Good Neighbour gallery at the Ottewell Community Hall.

Now Johnn is mailing postcards to anyone who drops him a line.

"No catch, I just think it'd be fun to see these little pieces of Edmonton end up in mailboxes around the world," he posted. "After all, Edmonton deserves to be celebrated, even if it's only a few inches tall."

• Three Edmonton community projects are among 16 organizations shortlisted for the Governor General's History Award for Excellence in Community Programming. They are AfroQuiz and AfroCademy, led by the Council of Canadians of African and Caribbean Heritage, the Philippine Arts Council Alberta project Echoes of Identity: Tracking Filipino Cultural Landscapes, and Where We Came From, led by Chúng Ta Cùng Nhau Vietnamese-Edmonton Cultural Society. The award recognizes initiatives that encourage public engagement in Canadian history and will honour two recipients — one from a francophone community and one from an anglophone community — each receiving $2,500 and a trip to receive their award.
• The University of Alberta signed a Joint Declaration of Intent with Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, described as Europe's premier applied research organization, following President Bill Flanagan's March visit to Munich. The transatlantic partnership will explore collaboration across agricultural technologies, health and pandemic preparedness, energy systems, and aerospace.
• The City of Edmonton is replacing the Fulton Creek culvert along 34 Street between Roper Road and 64 Avenue starting Sept. 14, requiring a full closure of 34 Street until late fall. The nearly 70-year-old culvert, located near Pylypow Wetlands, must be replaced to maintain proper drainage and help prevent flooding. The City said that the full closure allows crews to work safely and efficiently, reducing overall construction costs and minimizing long-term impacts on the community.
• The Edmonton Police Service and the City of Edmonton conducted an Operation 24 Hours traffic enforcement blitz on Sept. 3, issuing 555 traffic violations. Notably, one driver was recorded speeding at 101 km/h in a 50 km/h construction zone on Yellowhead Trail and must appear in court. Violations included 181 speeding tickets, 166 non-hazardous infractions, 108 hazardous moving violations, 87 red-light violations, and seven distracted driving incidents. The campaign aims to curb dangerous driving behaviours, especially with students back in school.
• The Edmonton Police Service announced charges against a 27-year-old man in the stabbing of two worshippers at a Sikh temple in northeast Edmonton on Aug. 21. Austin Sim-Pelletier faces two counts of assault causing bodily harm, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and mischief. The two victims, aged 51 and 75, were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police said there is no evidence to support hate crime charges at this time. They said Sim-Pelletier had been released from federal prison the day before the attack.
• Saddle Lake Cree Nation announced plans to establish a safe haven for gender-affirming medical care on its reserve land, defying Alberta's provincial restrictions. Chief Dale Steinhauer said access to health care is a treaty right and falls under the nation's inherent jurisdiction. The nation, located 170 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, is working to attract clinicians and has started fundraising to develop its health law and defend it against potential legal challenges.
• The Edmonton Oilers' signing of forward Alex Formenton to a one-year contract has sparked intense backlash among fans and community members. Formenton was acquitted in 2025 of sexual assault charges stemming from an incident following a Hockey Canada gala in London, Ontario, though an independent appeal board found he breached Hockey Canada's code of conduct. Formenton was later reinstated to the NHL by Hockey Canada. Oilers superfan Mary Loewen, known as Mama Stanley, announced she will no longer support the team and launched a petition calling for the Oilers to reverse the signing, saying the decision conflicts with the values expected from an organization with influence over children, families, and the wider community.

On this day in 1976, the rapidly expanding south Mill Woods area was about to finally get direct mail delivery.

Residents of the newly developed area qualified for home delivery, but Canada Post said it didn't have enough letter carriers to serve them until September of that year. The Edmonton-Mill Woods Committee Against Post Non-service kept up the pressure and eventually declared "an outstanding victory."

Although the residential area we know as Mill Woods began in the early 1970s, its story is much older.

In the late 1870s, members of the Papaschase band were living on the south side of the North Saskatchewan River and trading with the Hudson's Bay Company at Fort Edmonton. In 1877, Chief Papaschase and his brother signed an adhesion to Treaty 6, under which the Crown undertook to establish reserve land for the band, promising annual payments, farming implements and seeds, famine relief, and a medicine chest. Chief Papaschase chose land that overlaps with much of present-day Mill Woods. The federal government did not begin surveying until 1880. The proposed reserve was reduced from 48 square miles to 40 after officials used a lower membership count, partly by placing dozens of people associated with the band on a separate treaty pay list as the "Edmonton Stragglers."

While the reserve was being surveyed and in the years that followed, European settlers exerted pressure to free up the land for further settlement. Frank Oliver, publisher of Edmonton's first newspaper, used his platform to pressure Ottawa to obtain the reserve's surrender. Meanwhile, the Papaschase faced hunger and severe hardship amid the collapse of the bison economy and inadequate treaty support. Many members withdrew from the treaty in exchange for Métis scrip, much of which was quickly acquired by speculators at discounted prices. In 1888, three members of the band signed a surrender, an act whose validity remains disputed to this day.

The land was sold off and used primarily for agriculture. Many of the settlers were Moravians, German-speaking Protestants who had left Russian territories in search of religious freedom and farmland in the late 1800s.

The area remained mainly agricultural until the 1970s. In 1969, the provincial government began secretly buying up properties in the area to create a land bank, which it then sold to the city over time. The plan was to increase the supply of serviced residential land, control escalating housing costs, and guide Edmonton's outward growth.

In 1971, the city approved its plan for Mill Woods, which it described as a city within a city. The concept called for an experiment in a socially planned community, developing the 6,000-acre area over two decades, controlling costs, and providing amenities and social spaces. The first lots in the new Mill Woods development would go up for sale, with buyers chosen by lottery, at the end of that year.

The 1970s saw explosive growth in the new residential area. When new lots opened up in 1973, there were reports of more than 100 people waiting overnight at City Hall for a chance to purchase them. By 1978, 33% of Edmonton's population growth was happening in the Mill Woods neighbourhoods. The timing of that growth also led to the diversity of the Mill Woods population. In the 1960s, Canada reformed its immigration system. The following decades saw increased waves of immigrant and refugee arrivals that brought thousands of new residents from India, Uganda, Chile, Vietnam, and many other countries, shaping the area's character. A huge swath of the world's cultures can be found within the borders of Mill Woods.

That rapid growth slowed in the 1980s due to an economic downturn in the province. While no longer seeing the dizzying growth that it had when it was first developed, the area would still be among the largest cities in Alberta if it were an independent municipality. And residential development continues. On Aug. 25, the federal government announced a $51.2-million low-cost loan for Gilbertson Block, a 199-unit purpose-built rental project in Mill Woods. Meanwhile, much of Mill Woods lost home mail delivery in 2014, replaced by community mailboxes.

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

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

• Sept. 11: Bikes and Beverages: Ward O-Day'min starting at 5pm at Irrational Brewing Company
• Sept. 11-13: Strathearn Art Walk and Music Festival at Strathearn Park
• Sept. 11-13: Books2Buy Sale at Edmonton Public Library (Stanley A. Milner)
• Sept. 11-13: Purple City Musical Festival
• Sept. 12: Moosehide Teardrop Earrings with Diamond Witney starting at 10am at Downtown Farmers' Market
• Sept. 12: Queer People Selling Queer Stuff starting at 10am at Fringe Theatre Arts Barns
• Sept. 12: Where Care Meets Community starting at 11am at Stelmach Community Health Centre
• Sept. 12-13:Edmonton Filipino Festival at Louise McKinney Riverfront Park
• Sept. 13: Book Launch with Paola Santos starting at 2pm at Audreys Books
• Sept. 13: Viva Mexico starting at 3pm at El Mero Mero Taqueria
• Sept. 13: YEG Trivia Night starting at 6pm at Frank's Community Pub

And here are some upcoming events to keep in mind:

• Sept 18-20: Down by the River at Louise McKinney Riverfront Park
• Sept. 21-25: Life Sciences Week
• Sept. 25: Building Adaptation Skills for the Changing Climate at Edmonton Public Library (Stanley A. Milner)

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

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