   #copyright

Edmonton

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: North American Geography

   City of Edmonton

   Edmonton City Hall.

   ( Coat of Arms of Edmonton, Alberta)

   ( Flag of Edmonton)
   City of Edmonton

      Location of Edmonton within census division number 11 in Alberta,
                                   Canada

   Area 683.88 km²
   Metro area 9,418.62 km²
   Population 712,391 (2006)
   Pop'n rank 5th
   Metro pop'n 1,016,000 (2005 est.)
   Metro rank 6th
   Pop'n density 974.0
   Location 53°34′N 113°31′W
   Altitude 668  metres
   Incorporation 1904
   Province Alberta
   Census Division 11
   Members of Parliament Rona Ambrose, Ken Epp, Peter Goldring, Laurie
   Hawn, Rahim Jaffer, Michael Lake, James Rajotte, John G. Williams
   Members of the Legislative Assembly Bharat Agnihotri, Dan Backs, Bill
   Bonko, Laurie Blakeman, David Eggen, Mo Elsalhy, Dave Hancock, Thomas
   Lukaszuk, Hugh MacDonald, Ray Martin, Brian Mason, Weslyn Mather, Bruce
   Miller, Rick Miller, Raj Pannu, Kevin Taft, Maurice Tougas, Gene
   Zwozdesky
   Mayor Stephen Mandel

   ( Past mayors)
   City Manager Al Maurer
   Governing Body Edmonton City Council
   Time zone Mountain (UTC-7)
   Postal code T5A to T6Z
   Area Code 780
   Official website: City of Edmonton

   Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta, situated
   in the central region of the province, an area with some of the most
   fertile farmland on the prairies. It is the second largest city in
   Alberta with a population of 712,391 (2005 census), and is the hub of
   the country's sixth largest Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) with a
   population of 1,016,000 (2005 est.). A resident of Edmonton is known as
   an Edmontonian.

   At 684 km², the City of Edmonton proper covers a large area — larger in
   area than Chicago, Philadelphia, Toronto, and Montreal. But this is
   still smaller than Ottawa.

   Edmonton serves as the northern anchor of the " Calgary-Edmonton
   Corridor" (one of four such regions that, in total, comprise 50% of the
   Canadian population) and is a staging point for large-scale oilsands
   projects occurring in the north of the province as well as large-scale
   diamond mining operations in the Northwest Territories.

   Edmonton is Canada's second most populous provincial capital (after
   Toronto) and is known as a well-rounded cultural, government, and
   educational centre. It plays host to a year round slate of world-class
   festivals, earning it the title of Festival City. It is home to North
   America's largest mall, West Edmonton Mall, and Canada's largest
   historical park, Fort Edmonton Park. In 2004, Edmonton celebrated the
   centennial of its incorporation as a city.

History

Exploration and settlement

   The first inhabitants gathered in the area, which is now Edmonton,
   around 3000 BC and perhaps as early as 10,000 BC, when an ice-free
   corridor was opening up as the great ice sheets covering much of Canada
   melted. They took advantage of the timber, water and wildlife in the
   region and thus made their presence in the area for thousands of years.

   In 1754, Anthony Henday, an explorer working for the Hudson's Bay
   Company, was probably the first European to enter the Edmonton area.
   His expeditions across the Canadian Prairies were mainly to seek new
   contact with the local aboriginals for the purpose of establishing fur
   trade, as competition was fierce between the Hudson's Bay Company and
   its rivals.

   European traders from the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West
   Company set up trading posts in the area of present-day Fort
   Saskatchewan beginning in 1795. The trading posts later moved upstream
   to the present-day site of downtown Edmonton. The North West Company
   set up a trading post called Fort Augustus, but at the same time, the
   Hudson's Bay Company set up a fort of its own. The Hudson's Bay Company
   named its fort after the town of Edmonton in the UK (now a suburb in
   north London), the hometown of Sir James Winter Lake, then director of
   the Company.

   John Rowand, a fur trader for the North West Company, arrived in
   Edmonton in 1804 and was vital to the fort's importance, for he
   established it as the main distribution centre for the entire
   northwest. Rowand became respected and accepted as a leader by the
   Plains Indians, managing Edmonton's fur trade with the Cree and
   Blackfoot in Edmonton for about 30 years. Fort Edmonton and the
   surrounding area was known to the local Cree as Amiskwaciy waskahigan
   (the "c" in Amiskwaciy is pronounced similar to a "ch"), meaning
   "Beaver Hills House". As Rowand had intended, Fort Edmonton became a
   major economic centre for Rupert's Land, as the lands comprising the
   present-day Prairie Provinces, northern Ontario and northern Canada
   were known at the time. Fort Edmonton was the major stopping point
   before pioneers headed up north or farther west. The two companies
   merged in 1821, and the name of Fort Edmonton was retained. In 1830 the
   last fort was built on the present site of the Alberta Legislature.

   The Hudson's Bay Company relinquished its ownership and jurisdiction of
   Rupert's Land to the Dominion of Canada in 1871. Rupert's Land was then
   renamed the North West Territories by the federal government. People
   began settling in the vicinity of Fort Edmonton in the 1870s after the
   government offered the land to settlers at a good price.

The oil boom years

   Oil rig monument at the southern entrance of Gateway Park on Hwy 2
   (Queen Elizabeth II Highway).
   Enlarge
   Oil rig monument at the southern entrance of Gateway Park on Hwy 2
   (Queen Elizabeth II Highway).

   The first major oil discovery for Edmonton and the rest of the province
   was made on February 13, 1947 near the town of Leduc to the south.
   Although oil reserves were already known as early as 1914 to exist in
   the southern parts of Alberta, they produced very little oil compared
   to those around Edmonton. Additional oil reserves were also discovered
   during the late 1940s and the 1950s in the Edmonton area near the town
   of Redwater. Because most of Alberta's oil reserves were found to be
   concentrated in central and northern Alberta, the city became home to
   most of Alberta's oil production and refining.

   The subsequent oil boom gave Edmonton new status as the Oil Capital of
   Canada. During the 1950s, the city nearly doubled in population from
   149,000 to 269,000. After a relatively calm but still prosperous period
   in the 1960s, the city's growth took on a renewed vigour with high
   world oil prices, triggered by the 1973 oil crisis and the 1979 Iranian
   Revolution. The oil boom of the 1970s and 1980s ended abruptly with the
   introduction of the National Energy Program in 1981. The population had
   reached 521,000 that same year. Although the National Energy Program
   was later scrapped by the federal government in the mid-1980s, the
   collapse of world oil prices in 1986 and massive government cutbacks
   kept the city from making a full economic recovery until the late
   1990s. Unsurprisingly, the city suffered from high unemployment rates
   until then.

Recent history

   The 1987 tornado
   Enlarge
   The 1987 tornado

   In 1981, the largest shopping mall in North America, West Edmonton
   Mall, opened. The mall is one of Alberta's most popular tourist
   attractions, and contains an indoor amusement park, a large indoor
   waterpark, a skating rink, and a luxury hotel in addition to its over
   800 shops and services.

   On July 31, 1987, a devastating tornado, ranked as an F4 on the Fujita
   scale, hit the city and killed 27 people. The storm flooded the city's
   LRT tunnel, blew CN rail cars off a bridge crossing the North
   Saskatchewan River and hit the areas of Beaumont, Mill Woods,
   Bannerman, and the Evergreen Trailer Park. The day became known as
   "Black Friday". Then-Mayor Laurence Decore cited the community's
   response to the tornado as evidence that Edmonton was a "city of
   champions", which later became the city's slogan.

   The city entered its current period of economic recovery and prosperity
   by the late 1990s, helped by a strong recovery in oil prices and
   further economic diversification. While oil production and refining
   remains the basis of many jobs in Edmonton, the city's economy has
   managed to diversify economically, producing even more jobs. The
   downtown core and parts of the inner city, after years of extremely
   high office vacancy rates and neglect, have recovered to a great
   degree. It is still undergoing a renaissance of its own, with further
   new projects underway or about to become reality, and more and more
   people choosing to live in or near the downtown core.

Geography and location

   Edmonton is located near the geographical centre of the province at an
   elevation of 668 m (2192 ft).

   The North Saskatchewan River bisects this city and originates at the
   Columbia Icefield in Jasper National Park. It empties, via the
   Saskatchewan River, Lake Winnipeg, and the Nelson River, into Hudson
   Bay. It runs from the southwest to the northeast through the city and
   is fed by numerous creeks throughout the city, such as Mill Creek and
   Whitemud Creek. This creates numerous ravines, many of which have been
   incorporated into the urban parkland. Edmonton is situated at the
   boundary between prairie to the south and boreal forest to the north,
   in a transitional area known as aspen parkland.

   St. Albert
   Morinville       Sturgeon County           Fort Saskatchewan
   Parkland County
   Enoch Cree Nation
   Spruce Grove
   Stony Plain      North                     Strathcona County
                                              Elk Island National Park
                    West    Edmonton     East
                    South
   Devon            Leduc County
                    Leduc (city)              Beaumont
                                              Camrose

Parkland and environment

   Edmonton's river valley constitutes the longest stretch of connected
   urban parkland in North America, and Edmonton has the highest per
   capita area of parkland of any Canadian city. The public river valley
   parks provide a unique urban escape area with park styles ranging from
   fully serviced urban parks to campsite-like facilities with few
   amenities. This main 'Ribbon of Green' is supplemented by numerous
   neighbourhood parks located throughout the city, to give a total of 111
   km² (27,400 acres) of parkland. Within the 7,400 hectare, 25 km long
   river valley park system there are 11 lakes, 14 ravines, and 22 major
   parks. Most of the city has excellent bike and walking trail
   connections.

   Edmonton's streets and parklands are also home to one of the largest
   remaining concentrations of healthy American Elm trees in the world,
   unaffected by Dutch Elm disease, which has wiped out vast numbers of
   such trees in eastern North America. Jack Pine, Lodgepole Pine, White
   Spruce, White Birch, Aspen, Green Ash, Basswood, various poplars and
   willows, and Manitoba Maple are also abundant; Bur Oak is increasingly
   popular. Introduced tree species include Blue Spruce, Norway Maple, Red
   Oak, Sugar Maple, Common Horse-chestnut, McIntosh Apple and Evans
   Cherry.

   Several golf courses, both public and private, are also located in the
   river valley. The long summer daylight hours of this northern city
   provide for extended play well into the evening. Golf courses and the
   park system become a winter recreation area during this season.
   Cross-country skiing and skating are popular during the long winter.
   Four downhill ski slopes are located in the river valley as well, two
   within the city and two immediately outside.

   The City of Edmonton has named five parks in its River Valley Parks
   System in honour of each of " The Famous Five".

Neighbourhoods

   River valley west of downtown.
   Enlarge
   River valley west of downtown.

   Edmonton has numerous distinct neighbourhoods.

   The downtown core, which has seen increasing redevelopment since the
   1997 Capital City Downtown Plan was introduced, is home to the Central
   Business District (CBD) as well as over 4000 residents. Downtown proper
   consists of the Commercial Core, Arts District, Rice Howard Way
   Pedestrian Mall, MacKay Avenue, Jasper-West, Warehouse District and
   Government Precinct.

   Radiating from the core are numerous inner city neighbourhoods such as
   Oliver, Glenora, Westmount, Queen Mary Park, Central McDougall, Boyle
   Street and McCauley on the north side of the river, while Windsor Park,
   Garneau, Strathcona, Bonnie Doon, and Strathearn line the south side of
   the river. Several communities survived attempts by the municipal
   governments of the 1970s to rid the valley proper of all residents:
   these are Riverdale, Rossdale, Walterdale, and Cloverdale.

   As with any city of its size, the inner communities give way to a
   collection of suburbs, generally classified as being outside the inner
   ring road and in extreme cases, outside of Anthony Henday Drive. The
   most well known of these is Mill Woods, which is home to approximately
   100,000 residents. If Mill Woods were a separate municipality, it would
   be Alberta's third largest city after Calgary and Edmonton. Several new
   neighbourhoods are currently in formative stages in the South and
   Southwest, such as MacEwan, Terwillegar, and Rutherford.

   Several transit-oriented developments (TOD) have begun to appear along
   the LRT line at Clareview with future developments planned at Belvedere
   (part of the Old Town Fort Road Redevelopment Project). Another TOD
   called Century Park is already under construction at the site of what
   was once Heritage Mall (currently under demolition) at the southern end
   of the future South LRT line. Century Park will eventually house up to
   5,000 residents.

   An overview of neighbourhoods can be found online.

Climate

   Edmonton has a northern continental climate with extreme seasonal
   temperatures, although the city has milder winters than either Regina
   or Winnipeg, which are both located at a more southerly latitude. It
   has mild summers and cold winters, with the average daily maximum
   /minimum temperatures ranging from −8.0 °C (14.4 °F)/-19.1°C (-2.4°F)
   in January to 22.2 °C (72.0 °F)/9.5°C (49.1°F) in July. Annually,
   temperatures exceed 30 °C (86 °F) on an average of two days and fall
   below −20 °C (−4 °F) on an average of 41 days. The highest temperature
   recorded in Edmonton was 34.6°C (94.1°F+) on August 5, 1998, and the
   coldest temperature was -43.3°C (-45.9°F) recorded on December 28,
   1938. Summer typically lasts from late June until late August, and the
   humidity is rarely uncomfortable. Winter lasts from November through
   March and varies greatly in length and severity. Spring and autumn are
   both short and highly variable.

   Edmonton has a dry climate. On average, Edmonton receives 483mm (19 in)
   of precipitation and 121 cm (48.6 in) of snowfall per annum. The
   wettest month is July, the driest month is February. In July, the mean
   precipitation is 92 mm (3.6 in). Extremes do occur such as the 114 mm
   of rainfall that fell on July 31, 1953. Summer thunderstorms can be
   frequent and sometimes severe enough to produce large hail, damaging
   winds, funnel clouds and even tornadoes. However, tornadoes near
   Edmonton are far weaker and short-lived compared to their counterparts
   farther south. Tornadoes as powerful as the F4 tornado which struck
   Edmonton on July 31, 1987, killing 28, are very rare. Edmonton has also
   been known to have other forms of severe weather, including a massive
   storm with both rain and hail which occurred on July 11, 2004. Although
   these occur infrequently, this "1-in-200 year event" flooded major
   intersections and underpasses as well as damaging both residential and
   commercial properties.

   Edmonton is the most northerly major city in North America with a metro
   population of over 1 million. It is at the same latitude as Hamburg,
   Germany and Liverpool, England. At the summer solstice, Edmonton
   receives 17 hours and six minutes of daylight, with twilight extending
   well beyond that. Edmonton receives 2,289 hours of sunshine per year,
   and is one of Canada's sunniest cities.

Economy

   Edmonton is the major economic centre for northern Alberta and a major
   centre for the oil and gas industry. In its Spring 2006 Metropolitan
   Outlook, the Conference Board of Canada forecast that Edmonton's GDP
   will be $42.4 billion, a 3.6% increase over 2005. The Edmonton Economic
   Development Corporation estimated that as of January 2005 the total
   value of major projects under construction in northern Alberta was
   $81.5 billion with $18.2 billion occurring within Greater Edmonton.

   Edmonton traditionally has been a hub for Albertan petrochemical
   industries, earning it the nickname "Oil Capital of Canada" in the
   1940s. Supply and service industries drive the energy extraction engine
   while research develops new technologies and supports expanded
   value-added processing of Alberta's massive oil, gas and oil sands
   reserves(reported to be the second largest in the world after Saudi
   Arabia).

   Despite the focus on oil and gas, Edmonton's economy has worked towards
   becoming the second most diverse in Canada. Major industrial sectors
   include a strong technology sector anchored by major employers such as
   IBM, TELUS, Dell, Intuit, BioWare, Matrikon, and General Electric. The
   associated biotech sector, with companies such as CV Technologies, has
   recently seen employment growth of 37%.

   Much of the growth in technology sectors is due to Edmonton's
   reputation as one of Canada’s premier research and education centres.
   Research initiatives are anchored by educational institutions such as
   the University of Alberta as well as government initiatives underway at
   the Alberta Research Council and Edmonton Research Park. Recently the
   National Institute for Nanotechnology was constructed on the University
   of Alberta campus.

   During the 1980s Edmonton started to become a major financial centre
   with both regional offices of Canada's major banks and locally based
   institutions opening. However, the turmoil of the late 1980s economy
   radically changed the situation. Locally based operations such as
   Principal Trust and Canadian Commercial Bank would fail and regional
   offices were moved to Calgary. The 1990s saw a solidification of the
   economy and now Edmonton is home of Canadian Western Bank, the only
   publicly traded Schedule I chartered bank headquarters west of Toronto.
   Other major financial centres include ATB Financial and Servus Credit
   Union (formerly Capital City Savings).

   Edmonton has been the birth place of several companies which have grown
   to international stature such as PCL Construction , and Stantec . The
   local retail market has also seen the creation of many successful store
   concepts such as The Brick, Katz Group, AutoCanada, Liquor Stores,
   Liquor Barn, Planet Organic, Running Room, Booster Juice, Fountain
   Tire, and XS Cargo.

   The geographical location of Edmonton has made it an ideal spot for
   distribution and logistics. CN Rail's North American operational
   facility is located in the city as well as a major intermodal facility
   that handles all incoming freight from the port of Prince Rupert in
   British Columbia.

Demographics

   According to the mid-2001 census, the population estimates there were
   937,845 people residing within Edmonton's metropolitan area, located in
   the province of Alberta, of whom 49.6 per cent were male and 50.4 per
   cent were female. Children under five accounted for approximately 5.9
   per cent of the resident population of Edmonton. This compares with 6.2
   per cent in Alberta, and almost 5.6 per cent for Canada overall.

   In mid-2001, 10.5 per cent of the resident population in Edmonton were
   of retirement age (65 and over for males and females) compared with
   13.2 per cent in Canada, therefore, the average age is 35.4 years of
   age comparing to 37.6 years of age for all of Canada.

   In the five years between 1996 and 2001, the population of Edmonton
   grew by 8.7 per cent, compared with an increase of 10.3 per cent for
   Alberta as a whole. Population density of Edmonton averaged 99.6 people
   per square kilometre, compared with an average of 4.6, for Alberta
   altogether.

   At the time of the census in May 2001, the resident population of the
   Edmonton city authority had 666,104 people, but had 937,845 when
   encompassing the whole metropolitan area, compared with a resident
   population in the province of Alberta of 2,974,807 people.

   Religion
     * Protestant: 31.2%
     * Catholic: 29.4%
     * No religion: 24.4%
     * Other Christian: 3.9%
     * Muslim: 2.9%
     * Christian Orthodox: 2.6%
     * Buddhist: 2.1%
     * Sikh: 1.4%
     * Hindu: 1.1%
     * Other: 1.0%

          Source: Statistics Canada

   The City of Edmonton has conducted a civic census in early 2005. The
   2005 civic census has revealed that the City of Edmonton's population
   is currently 712,391. The Greater Edmonton Area population as of 2005
   was estimated at 1,016,000 ( Statistics Canada estimate).

Infrastructure

Transportation

Air

   Edmonton is served by two major and several smaller airports. The main
   airport, Edmonton International Airport is located south of the city
   limits, near the city of Leduc. It is the fifth busiest airport in
   Canada, with just over 4.5 million passengers using the facilities in
   2005. Edmonton has scheduled service to all major Canadian hubs, most
   major US hubs, London Heathrow. Charter Services for residents and
   tourist are plentiful with destinations in Cuba, Jamaica, Mexico,
   Hawaii, Arizona, Nevada,Japan,London, Frankfurt, and Dusseldorf,
   Germany (beginning May 2007)being offered.

   The smaller and older Edmonton City Centre Airport, — the oldest
   city-owned airport in Canada — is located just north of downtown
   Edmonton. Air passenger service from Edmonton City Centre Airport was
   consolidated to the International Airport in 1996. The older airport is
   currently used primarily for charter planes and flight training,
   although small non-chartered planes with fewer than 19 passengers are
   still allowed to land at the facility.

   Edmonton Airports controls Edmonton International, Edmonton City Centre
   and also Cooking Lake Airport and Villeneuve Airport, both of which
   primarily service general aviation and flight training services.

Inter-urban rail

   Edmonton is served by VIA Rail passenger trains. The station is located
   on the northern rail route near the City Centre Airport. Formerly the
   VIA trains arrived at the CN office tower downtown, but the downtown
   trackage has been abandoned to the LRT and new urban development. The
   High Level Rail Bridge, formerly CPR's route into the downtown, is used
   in the summer for historical streetcars.

City public transit

   The main public transportation networks are run by the Edmonton Transit
   System (ETS).

   In 1908, Edmonton began operating an electric street railway system. In
   1939, "trolley coaches" began to replace the trams, with the final full
   day of streetcar service on September 1, 1951 (the last car ran in the
   early morning of September 2, 1951). Edmonton is one of only two major
   Canadian cities still operating electric trolley buses, the other being
   Vancouver. Today, Edmonton Transit operates a system of 49 trolley
   buses on core Routes 3, 5, 7, 120, 133, and 135 in the central and
   western parts of the city.
   High Level Rail Bridge with Dudley B. Menzies Bridge below dedicated
   for LRT, cyclists, and pedestrians.
   Enlarge
   High Level Rail Bridge with Dudley B. Menzies Bridge below dedicated
   for LRT, cyclists, and pedestrians.

   In addition to the bus routes, Edmonton has a light rail transit (LRT)
   line running from Clareview in the northeast to the Health Sciences
   building on the south side. Upon the opening of its first segment in
   1978, it was the first such system built by a city with a population
   less than one million people in North America. The line is surface
   level on previous railroad right-of-way in the northeast and goes
   underground through the downtown core from Churchill station
   (underneath Churchill Square south of the City hall) to
   Grandin/Government Centre station (just west of the Provincial
   Legislature grounds). A dedicated bridge crossing the river valley
   leads it toward the university station, which is also underground.

   Further south, however, LRT expansion is being developed at surface
   level with a couple of underpasses, one at Belgravia Road and the other
   under 111 Street south of 61 Avenue. A short busway is also being
   constructed from the future South Campus station (to open in 2008)
   roughly parallel to Belgravia Road in conjunction with the South LRT
   expansion. The underground LRT line comes out onto the surface just
   north of the new Health Sciences Station at the University of Alberta,
   which was opened in January, 2006. From the Health Sciences Station
   station, the South LRT line will lead through the proposed South Campus
   and Southgate Mall, and to the former Heritage Mall site (now being
   developed as Century Park, a transit-oriented development) in the south
   end of the city. The south LRT extension is expected to be complete by
   2009.

   Future north and west High Speed Transit routes (either for LRT or BRT)
   are currently being considered by council. The West LRT is expected to
   have the LRT extending all the way to West Edmonton Mall and beyond to
   the extreme western outskirts of the city.

Highways

   Edmonton is connected to British Columbia and Saskatchewan via the
   Yellowhead Highway ( Highway 16, or Yellowhead Trail within city
   limits), and to Calgary and Red Deer via the Queen Elizabeth II Highway
   (known as Calgary Trail (southbound) or Gateway Boulevard (northbound)
   within city limits).

Arterial roads

   Anthony Henday Drive ( Highway 216) is a ring road transportation
   project which will eventually encircle the Edmonton Metropolitan area.
   The south west section from Highway 16 to Calgary Trail is open. The
   south east section connecting Calgary Trail to Highway 14 has recently
   been announced and is anticipated to open in 2007. The first stage of
   the northwest portion is already under construction between the
   Yellowhead Highway and the new St. Albert west bypass, to open in 2007.
   As of November 9, 2005 the Alberta Government has committed to
   finishing the north portion by 2011. Anthony Henday Drive will also
   incorporate an already-existing stretch of Highway 216 on the east side
   of the city between Highway 16 and approximately 23 Avenue where the
   southeast leg will eventually intersect.

Street layout

   Edmonton's streets were originally all named streets and arranged in
   such a way that avenues ran north-south and streets ran east-west. The
   first move to a grid-style system began as the city expanded west - the
   streets west of Queens Avenue were switched to be north-south oriented
   with 1st Street (now 101 Street) being west of Queens Avenue, and the
   street numbers increasing further west (IE 10th Street was one block
   west of 9th Street). West of Queens Avenue the Avenues also switched
   (running in an east-west direction), though unlike the streets, the
   avenues were never numbered. This lead to a confusing situation with
   avenues becomimg streets, despite no change in direction, for example
   MacKenzie Avenue (now 104 Ave) became Boyle Street west of Queens
   Avenue and Athabasca Avenue (now 102 Ave) became Elizabeth Street west
   of Queens Avenue.

   The city of Strathcona had adopted a grid and quandrant system before
   to it's amalgamation with Edmonton, with the city being centred on Main
   Street (now 105 Street) and Whyte Avenue (now officially 82 Avenue).
   This street system was similar to that of present-day Calgary's system,
   having NW, NE, SW and SE quandrants. Strathcona's grid/quandrant system
   was abandonned in 1914.

   In 1914, following amalgamation with Strathcona, Edmonton adopted a new
   numbered street and avenue system, which with a few small modifications
   is still in use. The centre of the city, Jasper Avenue and 101 Street,
   was set as the starting point. Jasper Avenue was one of the few streets
   that was not given a number, likely because east of Namayo Avenue (now
   97 Street) Jasper Avenue switches direction and runs diagonally and
   parallel to the North Saskatchewan River Valley, rather than east-west.
   The other avenues were numbered as if Jasper Avenue (between 124 Street
   and 97 Street) had been 101 Avenue. Several other streets have
   maintained their names in spite of having been reassigned as numbers -
   these include but are not limited to Whyte (82) Avenue, Norwood
   Boulevard (111 Ave), and Alberta (118) Avenue, while others were given
   new names over time, such as Rue Hull (99) Street - which is a segment
   of what used to be Queens Avenue.

   Avenues run east and west; streets run north and south. Avenue numbers
   increase to the north; street numbers increase to the west. When a
   street lies between two numbered streets, letters are used, for
   example, 107A Avenue lies between 107 Avenue and 108 Avenue.
   Occasionally the letter B will be used and rarely even C, to denote
   multiple streets between 2 different street numbers. For example, 17A,
   17B and 17C Avenues all lie between 17 Avenue and 18 Avenue.

   Houses with odd numbers are on the east side of a street or the south
   side of an avenue. Dropping the last two digits of a house number tells
   you what two streets or avenues the house lies between, for example
   8023 135A Avenue is between 80 Street and 81 Street, and 13602 100
   Street is between 136 Avenue and 137 Avenue.

   In the 1980s as the city grew, it began to run out of street numbers in
   the east and avenue numbers in the south. Therefore, in 1982 a quadrant
   system was adopted. Quadrant Avenue (1 Avenue; not yet built) and
   Meridian Street (1 Street) divide the city into four quadrants:
   northeast (NE), northwest (NW), southwest (SW) and, most recently,
   southeast (SE). The vast majority of the city falls within the
   northwest quadrant.

   All Edmonton streets now officially have their quadrant included at the
   end of their names, but it is usual — even on official signage — to
   omit the "NW" especially when there is no possibility of confusion with
   a street in another quadrant. However, the city's emergency services
   have begun to encourage residents to get into the habit of using
   quadrants in all addresses.

Waste disposal

   Utilizing the largest stainless steel building in North America,
   Edmonton's waste management services' modern composting facility is the
   largest of its type in the world having the capacity to recycle 65 per
   cent of its residential waste. The co-composter is 38,690 square metres
   in size, equivalent to 8 football fields. It is designed to process
   200,000 tonnes of residential solid waste per year and 22,500 dry
   tonnes of biosolids, turning them into 80,000 tonnes of compost
   annually.

   Together, the Waste Management Centre and Wastewater Treatment plant
   are known as the Edmonton Waste Management Centre of Excellence.
   Research partners include the University of Alberta, Alberta Research
   Council, Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, and Olds College.

Electric & water distribution systems

   Edmonton's first power company established itself in 1891 installing
   street lights along its main avenue, Jasper Avenue. The power company
   was bought by the Town of Edmonton in 1902 and remains under municipal
   ownership today as EPCOR. Also in charge of water treatment, in 2002,
   EPCOR installed the world's largest ultraviolet (UV) water treatment
   system at its E.L. Smith Water Treatment Plant.

Education

Post-secondary

   University of Alberta main campus on the south side of Edmonton's river
   valley, as seen from the north side of the river
   Enlarge
   University of Alberta main campus on the south side of Edmonton's river
   valley, as seen from the north side of the river

   Edmonton has become one of Canada's major educational centres with more
   than 60,000 full time post-secondary students spread over several
   institutions and campuses (total enrolment between the schools is as
   high as 170,000, which includes students enrolled in multiple
   institutions).

   The University of Alberta (also known colloquially as the U of A),
   whose main campus is situated on the south side of Edmonton's river
   valley, is a board-governed, public institution with annual revenue of
   one billion dollars. 35,000 students are served in more than 200
   undergraduate programs and 170 graduate programs. Main campus consists
   of more than 90 buildings on 890,000 square metres of land, with
   buildings dating back to the university's establishment in 1908. It is
   also home to Canada's second largest research library which ranks first
   in volumes per student with over 10 million (in 2005) and subscriptions
   to 13,000 full-text electronic journals and 500 electronic databases.
   The University of Alberta has been recognized on several fronts
   internationally.

   Other universities within the borders of Edmonton include Athabasca
   University, Concordia University College of Alberta , the King's
   University College, Taylor University College and Seminary, and the
   Edmonton campus of the University of Lethbridge.

   Other Edmonton post-secondary institutions include Grant MacEwan
   College, which enrolls 40,791 students in programs leading to careers
   or university transfer, the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
   (NAIT), with 48,500 students enrolled in 190 technical, vocational and
   apprenticeship programs and NorQuest College, with 11,300 students,
   specializing in short courses in skills and academic upgrading.

K-12

   Edmonton has three publicly funded school boards (districts), who
   provide kindergarten and grades one through twelve. The vast majority
   of students attend schools in the two large English language boards:
   the Edmonton Public Schools board and the separate Catholic School
   District. As well, since 1994, the francophone minority community has
   had their own school board, the North-Central Francophone School
   Authority, which, based in Edmonton, includes surrounding communities.
   Most recently the city has seen a small number of public charter
   schools open, independent of any board. All three school boards and
   public charter schools are funded through provincial grants and
   property taxes.

   Some private schools exist as well. Included are the Edmonton Society
   for Christian Education and Edmonton Academy.

   Both the Edmonton Public Schools and the Edmonton Catholic School
   District provide support and resources for those wishing to home school
   their children.

City life

Nightlife

   The skyline of Edmonton at night.
   Enlarge
   The skyline of Edmonton at night.

   There are several key concentrations of nightlife in the city of
   Edmonton. The most popular is the Whyte Avenue (82nd Avenue) strip,
   concentrated between 109 St. and 99 St. which today has the highest
   concentration of heritage buildings in Edmonton. Once the heart of the
   town of Strathcona (annexed by Edmonton on February 1, 1912), it fell
   into disrepair during the middle of the 20th century. A concentrated
   effort to revive the area beginning in the late 1970s through the
   establishment of a Business Revitalization Zone has produced an area
   rich with restored historical buildings and pleasant streetscapes. Its
   proximity to the University of Alberta has led to a high concentration
   of establishments ranging from restaurants and pubs to trendy clubs
   while hosting a wide variety of shops during the day. This area also
   contains two independent movie theatres: the Garneau and Princess
   theatres, as well as several live theatre, music and comedy venues.

   Downtown Edmonton has undergone a continual process of renewal and
   unprecedented growth since the mid 1990s. Many buildings were
   demolished during the oil boom starting in the 1960s and continuing
   into the 1980s to make way for office towers. As such, there have
   always been numerous pub-type establishments which cater primarily to
   the office crowd such as The Rose and Crown, Sherlock Holmes', and
   Elephant & Castle as well as many hotel lounges and restaurants. The
   past decade, however, has seen a strong resurgence in more mainstream
   venues. Various clubs such as the New City Suburbs, the Globe and Halo
   are also to be found along Edmonton's main street, Jasper Avenue. The
   Edmonton City Centre mall also houses an Empire Theatres movie theatre
   featuring 10 screens and the non-profit Metro Cinema shows a variety of
   underground or alternative films every week.

   West Edmonton Mall holds several after hour establishments in addition
   to its many stores and attractions. Bourbon Street has numerous eating
   establishments and clubs and casinos can also be found within the
   complex. Silver City, at the west end of the mall, features 13 screens
   and an IMAX theatre.

Culture

   The Francis Winspear Centre for Music
   Enlarge
   The Francis Winspear Centre for Music

   Edmonton has always been a city proud of its cultural accomplishments.
   As the city has grown, so has the cultural scene. Today, Edmonton is a
   proud home to many features which add to its cosmopolitan flair.

   Many events are anchored in the downtown Arts District, centred around
   the newly renovated Churchill Square (named in honour of Sir Winston
   Churchill).
     * The Francis Winspear Centre for Music was opened in 1997 after
       years of planning and fundraising. Called one of the most
       acoustically perfect concert halls in Canada, it is home to the
       Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and hosts a wide variety of shows every
       year. It seats 1916 patrons and houses the $3 million Davis Concert
       Organ, the largest concert organ in Canada. An interesting aspect
       of the hall's design is its separation into acoustically separate
       areas each of which are insulated from each other through
       acoustical barriers built into the structure. Patrons and artists
       can see these in the form of double-door 'sound locks.'
     * Across 102nd Street is the Citadel Theatre, so named after the
       Salvation Army Citadel in which Joe Shoctor first started the
       Citadel Theatre company in 1965. It is now one of the largest
       theatre complexes in Canada with five halls each specializing in
       different kinds of productions. For instance, the Maclab Theatre
       features a thrust stage surrounded by a U-shaped seating
       arrangement, while the Shoctor Theatre is a traditional stage
       setup.
     * On the University of Alberta grounds is the 2534-seat Northern
       Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, which recently reopened after being out
       of commission for a year during heavy renovations carried out as
       part of the province's centennial celebrations. Both it and its
       southern twin in Calgary were constructed in 1955 for the
       province's silver jubilee and have played host to many concerts,
       musicals, and ballets. The Edmonton Opera uses the Jubilee as its
       base of operations. On the front of the building is a quote from
       Suetonius' Life of Augustus: "He found a city built of brick - left
       it built of marble."
     * Old Strathcona is home to the Theatre District, which holds the
       Transalta Arts Barns (headquarters of the Edmonton International
       Fringe Festival), The Walterdale Playhouse, Catalyst Theatre, and
       the Varscona Theatre (base of operations for several theatre
       companies, including Teatro la Quindicina, Shadow Theatre, Rapid
       Fire Theatre, Die-Nasty, and Oh Susanna!).

Museums and Galleries

   There are also over 70 museums in Edmonton of ranging sizes. The
   largest is the Royal Alberta Museum (formerly the Provincial Museum of
   Alberta, it was renamed by Queen Elizabeth II during her 2005 visit)
   which houses over 10 million objects in its collection. The main
   building, located on the river valley west of downtown in Glenora, was
   opened in 1967 and is now in the early stages of large-scale
   redevelopment.

   The Art Gallery of Alberta is the city's largest single gallery. Housed
   in an inconspicuous production of 1970s architecture, the AGA
   collection has over 5000 pieces of art. Fundraising is currently
   underway for a new building designed by Randall Stout. Independent
   galleries can be found throughout the city, especially along the 124th
   Street corridor.

   The University of Alberta operates its own internal Museums and
   Collections service.

Festivals

   2001 Sourdough Raft Race, passing beneath the High Level Bridge's Great
   Divide waterfall during Klondike Days.
   Enlarge
   2001 Sourdough Raft Race, passing beneath the High Level Bridge's Great
   Divide waterfall during Klondike Days.

   Edmonton plays host to several large festivals each year, hence its
   local nickname as 'the Festival City.' The following highlights some of
   Edmonton's larger festivals.

   Downtown and Churchill Square host numerous festivals each summer. The
   Works Art & Design Festival, which takes place from late June to early
   July, showcases Canadian and international art & design from well-know,
   award-winning artists, as well as emerging and student artists. The
   Edmonton International Street Performer's Festival takes place in
   mid-July and showcases street performance artists from around the
   world.

   Edmonton's main summer festival is Capital EX (formerly Klondike Days.)
   Klondike Days (or K-Days) was originally an annual fair and exhibition
   which eventually adopted a gold rush theme. In early 2006 it was
   decided that the festival would be renamed 'The Capital City
   Exhibition' (or Capital Ex). Activities include chuckwagon races,
   carnival rides and fairways, music, trade shows and daily fireworks.
   Since 1960, the Sourdough Raft Races have also been a popular event.
   Later in November Edmonton plays host to the Canadian Finals Rodeo and
   Farmfair. This is a significant event in Canada's rodeo circuit and
   second only to the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas in prestige.

   The Edmonton International Fringe Festival, which takes place in
   mid-August, is the largest Fringe Theatre Festival in North America,
   and second only to the Edinburgh Fringe festival in the world. In
   August, Edmonton is also host to the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, one
   of the most successful and popular folk music festivals in North
   America. Another major summer festival is the Heritage Days Festival
   which is an ethnocultural festival that takes place in Hawrelak Park on
   the Heritage Day long weekend.

   Many other festivals occur such as the River City Shakespeare Festival,
   the Dragon Boat Festival and the Edmonton International Film Festival.

Attractions

     * Alberta Legislative Building
     * Alberta Railway Museum
     * Art Gallery of Alberta formerly known as Edmonton Art Gallery
     * Capital EX
     * Commonwealth Stadium
     * Edmonton City Hall
     * Edmonton Corn Maze
     * Fort Edmonton Historical Park
     * Muttart Conservatory
     * Northern Alberta Institute of Technology
     * Northlands Park
     * Rexall Place
     * Royal Alberta Museum
     * TELUS World of Science, Edmonton (formerly, the Odyssium, formerly,
       the Edmonton Space and Sciences Centre)
     * University of Alberta
     * Valley Zoo
     * West Edmonton Mall
     * West Edmonton Mall Grand Prix Presented by The Brick Champ Car
       series

Sports and recreation

   Edmonton has a proud heritage of very successful sports teams including
   the Edmonton Grads, Edmonton Eskimos, and Edmonton Oilers. The primary
   professional sports facilities are the Commonwealth Stadium and Rexall
   Place.

   Numerous minor-league teams in the City include the Edmonton
   Cracker-Cats.

   Edmonton hosted the 1978 Commonwealth Games, the 1983 World University
   Games ( Universiade), the 2001 World Championships in Athletics, and
   the 2005 World Master Games. In 2006, it played host to the Women's
   Rugby World Cup.

   Edmonton has a circuit on the Champ Car World Series known as the West
   Edmonton Mall Grand Prix Presented by The Brick Champ Car series. This
   event is the best attended event in the series.

Current professional franchises

   Club League Venue Established Championships
   Edmonton Oilers National Hockey League Rexall Place 1972 5
   Edmonton Eskimos Canadian Football League Commonwealth Stadium 1949 13
   Edmonton Rush National Lacrosse League Rexall Place 2005 0
   Edmonton Cracker Cats Northern League Telus Field 2005 0
   Edmonton Oil Kings Western Hockey League Rexall Place 2007 0

Metropolitan area

   Downtown Edmonton from the air
   Enlarge
   Downtown Edmonton from the air

   Edmonton is at the centre of a metropolitan area that includes 35
   independent municipalities either adjacent to Edmonton's city limits or
   within several kilometres of it. Larger communities include Sherwood
   Park (part of the Specialized Municipality of Strathcona County), St.
   Albert, Fort Saskatchewan, Leduc, Nisku (major industrial area in Leduc
   County), and the towns of Beaumont, Devon and Morinville. This large
   scale fragmentation has played a role in the development of the
   Edmonton region. Although several attempts have been made by the City
   of Edmonton to annex surrounding municipalities, no proposal has of yet
   been approved by the provincial government.

Military

   Edmonton is home to 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group (1 CMBG), the
   regular army brigade group of Land Forces Western Area of the Canadian
   Army. Units in 1 CMBG include Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal
   Canadians), 1 Combat Engineer Regiment, two of the three regular force
   battalions of Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, and various
   headquarters, medical, and service and support elements. Although not
   part of 1 CMBG, 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron is collocated with the
   brigade group.

   Historically, Edmonton's Regular Force military had been small until
   the 1990s. The Canadian Airborne Training Centre had been located in
   the city in the 1980s. The move of 1CMBG and component units from
   Calgary occurred in 1996 in what was described as a "cost saving"
   measure. The brigade had existed in Calgary since the 1950s, and Lord
   Strathcona's Horse had traditionally been a Calgary garrison unit
   dating back before the First World War.

   Edmonton also has a large army reserve element from 41 Canadian Brigade
   Group (41 CBG) including the The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (4th
   Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry) and B Squadron
   of The South Alberta Light Horse, one of Alberta's oldest army reserve
   units. Despite being far from Canada's coasts, Edmonton is also the
   home of HMCS Nonsuch, a Naval Reserve division.

   There are numerous cadet corps of the different elements (Sea, Army and
   Air Force) within Edmonton as well.

Sister cities

   Edmonton is an official sister city of the following several cities
   worldwide:
     * Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China
     * Wonju, Gangwon province, South Korea
     * Austin, Texas
     * Nashville, Tennessee
     * Hull, Quebec (now a part of Gatineau, Quebec)

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmonton"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
