Plenty popping up on the Edmonton City Centre Airport, the Heritage Festival and Big Valley Jamboree are in the news before this weekend, mosquitoes are arriving, plus Vue asks a question about whether we should change our poet laureate.

And St. Albert baseball diamonds are burning up.

Dig in.

from the Edmonton Journal:

MLAs, Enbridge join fight for Edmonton airport (This comes as the airports authority prepares to shut down one of the runways. Hey, how did everyone miss all the months of debate, days of public hearings, and city council vote on the City Centre Airport LAST YEAR? Also, maybe Enbridge wants to keep its name out of headlines, you know, what with its devastating oil spill in Michigan and all.)

Edmonton airport upgrade 25% under budget (This would be at the Edmonton International Airport.)

A question of dollars … gadzillions of dollars (Arena, Indy, and more questions from Dan Barnes.)

Historic Edmonton church saved from demolition

Money transfer scam targeting seniors

Giant robot dinosaurs stalk boreal forest

This bad news: Meat Loaf cancels Edmonton gig can be offset with this good news: Mickey Rooney coming to Sherwood Park

from the Edmonton Sun:

Heritage Festival goes 100% green, say organizers

City’s cat crisis (People are tossing cats like trash.)

‘Hope on the horizon’ for MS sufferers

BVJ to text storm alerts (Learning from last year.)

Holiday demand pumps up gas prices

from 630CHED/iNews880:

“Mini me” mosquitos invade metro

from CBC Edmonton:

MLA lured by money to delay joining Wildrose (Although, to be fair, if he’s using his Independent research budget up before jumping ship, it makes sense. If.)

School construction to last into fall (It’s not like schools have a calendar on when they are in session or not.)

St. Alberta baseball association faces $20K bill (They only set their baseball diamonds on fire.)

from Global Edmonton:

Industrial fire now out

from Vue Weekly:

Citizen powered (Campus and community radio stations, like our own CJSR, are going to get a few government-mandated bucks.)

Disappearing act (What did happen to that study on the oilsands and water resources?)

Safe haven

Changing of the guard (Should we dump the poet laureate for a songwriter laureate?)

from SEE Magazine:

Arena deal does not add up (And Fish Griwskowsky wants Katz and Co. to know, For the record, downtown is not dead yet.)

Carnie folk

One more day until the long weekend!

This is just to prove to Derjis that I took more than yoga butt pictures.

Good day, Edmonton.

If you read nothing else today (but I know you read everything I link to) you should check out the 140 questions city council is asking about the downtown arena proposal from Daryl Katz and Co.

There are good questions, tough ones, pointed queries, softballs, bad questions, informed, mis-informed, and others. But it’s fantastic to get a peek into the process.

It’s also nice to see a few of the councillors asking Katz and Co. to prove the Oilers are losing money.

from the Edmonton Journal:

Can Edmonton afford the NHL Oilers? Peter Adler’s take (A good question. Maybe not one Oilers fans want to ask, but a good question.)

Airport lobby group booted from festivals (I wondered why Capital Ex let Envision Edmonton into the shopping booths. I guess they were allowed to handout information, but not chase people around for petition signatures.)

And a follow up to those two stories from Scott McKeen: Airport, arena issues tap into raw emotions (Read this one through to the last line.)

Walking maps connect residents, communities (Walking maps of Edmonton neighbourhoods are a great idea.)

Liberals call for investigation into lobbyist firm

An escape from the ‘drama’ of women’s prison (More art behind bars with Elizabeth Withey. You’ve been reading this series this week, right? If you don’t, the culture section just fills with more Brangelina and Beiber.)

Wagner bog a naturalist’s paradise

A quick side note about the Journal. It’s been like a bonanza of pop-up and rollover ads the last week or so. Ugh.

from the Edmonton Sun:

Wife’s plea cracked case (Andrew Hanon on the Teskey case, a case that’s been Edmonton news for a decade.)

Stelmach says survey are valuable (I love how the federal government is changing the Census because 40 or 50 people don’t like filling it out every few years. If I get 40 people to write a letter about how we hate paying taxes, will they make that voluntary too?)

from Metro Edmonton:

Feds commit cash to help keep kids safe (Safe from injuries.)

from the Edmonton Examiner:

Former north-side school becomes assisted living facility (At least it didn’t sit empty until it was just bulldozed.)

Downtown business cheer on arena concept (And an opinion: Seize the day: build a downtown arena)

Heritage festival marks 35th year with some big figures (I plan on going, for the first time.)

from 630CHED/iNews880:

Mason quashes coalition talk, mulls joint strategy with AB Liberals (Mulls! Also, it’s like progressive parties, and politicians, never want to lead this province.)

Versus reports decrease in viewers for Indy (But that’s why we’re supposed to spend money on the race, so people see Edmonton…)

PIN skimmer found at busy bank

from CBC Edmonton:

Legislature sheriffs start bike patrol

from CTV Edmonton:

Envision Edmonton tries to get mayor’s attention (If Envision Edmonton didn’t get their 79,000 or so signatures after the Indy, I’m not so confident they’ll get them at all. That, to me, was their big, and best, shot.)

Province to spend more cash on advertisements promoting oilsands (Fine. But don’t complain when people SEE the ads and lash out at the oilsands.)

from Global Edmonton:

Fire on refinery row

We are in the dog days of summer, Edmonton.

Not that it’s the hottest period, yet. Or that we’re expecting fall soon. No, the newsrooms have been quieter the last few weeks (except when Katz and Co. were at City Hall, or Maddox Flynn was off to New York), and today’s a good example of that.

Yes, it’s a slow news day.

But at least that means you can get through all of the stories pretty quickly, and get right back to not doing work in other ways.

*Jeff opens up YouTube in new Firefox tab*

from the Edmonton Journal:

Derby Girls’ racy website gallops into questionable territory (Northlands is trying to sell horse racing with T&A. And horses. It’s the fact I don’t know how your betting system works that’s kept me away, Northlands, not your lack of bikini girls.)

Northlands not key arena focus (Basically, if Northlands wants to pitch a revamp of Rexall or a new arena, Katz doesn’t have to play nice with them.)

Choosing creativity over self-harm (More on prison art, from Elizabeth Withey.)

Breakfast club taking new members (Edmonton is getting more Cora’s. I think it’s time to pitch them on a new breakfast sandwich.)

from the Edmonton Sun:

Edmonton makes new roads from old stuff

from The Canadian Press:

Something fishy at Capital Ex (Catching and re-catching the same fish. At some point this week they’ll look up and say “Please just kill me.”)

from 630CHED/iNews880:

City councillors wants financing questions answered for downtown arena (If you think Don Iveson’s got questions, check the 140 that all of the councillors want answered.)

from CBC Edmonton:

Rexall Place has 24 health violations (ESPN also found it to be Canada’s worst pro-sports venue for food violations. Check that story for some really gross food misconduct.)

Dog owners irked by park’s storm pond

Big Valley Jamboree bolsters stage after death (Last year’s storm has left a legacy of improved stage set-up.)

from Global Edmonton:

New rules for veteran plates (Currently serving members of the military can get special license plates now.)

Zoom zoom.

Welcome back to the land of the working.

I trust you had a heck of a weekend, Edmonton. There was plenty to choose from.

—–

We interrupt this selection of Edmonton news for a rant of sorts.

Stepping in for Graham Hicks at the Edmonton Sun, Marty Forbes asks:

Where are the future leaders?

Forbes doesn’t know who the city’s next leaders are. Really? I know he’s just trying to solicit engagement from the newspaper’s audience, but the way this is framed makes it seem like he actually doesn’t know any of the city’s young, or up-and-coming, politicians, fundraisers, connectors, and business leaders.

How about Councillor Don Iveson? I suspect a few younger folks might land in City Hall or on the Edmonton Public School Board, watch those races. Mack Male was the face of a City Centre Airport pro-closure movement, galvanized by Internet communication. Cary Williams and many of the Next Gen committee-ers brought us Pecha Kucha and try to connect with, and retain, people under 40.

Forbes mentions Graham Hicks and Gord Whitehead, so how about Chris Scheetz at CISN, or media couple Ryan Jespersen and Kari Skelton? MLA Rachel Notley. Biz guy Chris LaBossiere. Those behind TedxEdmonton, Empire Avenue, and Seek Your Own Proof.

Geez, Edmonton Sun, you sound like you haven’t heard of any of these people or people behind these groups.

Update: Mack quickly fired off a list of 75 (75!) of Edmonton’s future leaders. He, rightly, points out that a lot of them just might not be found hanging around the old boys clubs.

—–

And now back to our regularly scheduled programming…

from the Edmonton Journal:

Sale of crack pipes on Alberta Avenue definitely legal. Too bad! (The efforts to turn around 118 Avenue continue. Then I’m reminded a convenience store by my house sells axes too…)

Discover the other side of the tracks (That’s my side of Whyte!)

Premier issues red-ink warning for Alberta next year

Release Alberta child welfare report: critics

Art keeps prisoners on a healing path

Thousands greet giant Jade Buddha

From the Calgary Herald: Alberta eHealth tab will top $1.4B

from the Edmonton Sun:

Ex-NHL owner disputes arena economics (Come on, Sun, it’s Monday. Can’t you let Daryl Katz start the week on a good note, run this story Tuesday?)

Tax watchdog sounds off on rink (And from the Journal, Katz taking cues from old Pocklington script.)

Councillors eye arena loose ends (We probably won’t have any firm details from city administration until fall, probably after the election.)

Hectic summer for councillors

Chief begins winning over critics

Another health PR blitz, any minute now

Toddler survives three storey fall (This is one everyone’s got.)

from CBC Edmonton:

Hold power plant to its emissions vow: groups (After getting approval with one set of environmental plans, the plant’s looking to save money.)

Free life-jacket use offered at 2 Alberta parks

Canada’s Findlay wins London triathlon (That’s Edmonton’s Findlay.)

from CTV Edmonton:

Dixon wins Edmonton Indy after Castroneves was penalized (Is it weird to anyone else that you can’t pass an opponent in a race? It’s a race.)

Octane Racing confident it will steer Indy into the green (Well, they’ve got some of your municipal tax money to help with that.)

from Global Edmonton:

‘Vigil of hope’ for St. Albert couple missing for three weeks

We might get a lot of afternoon and evening thunderstorms in Edmonton, but darn if starting days with bright blue sky doesn't make it all worth it.

After days of arena stories we’re switching gears today and seeing more on the Indy. And that connects to stories on the City Centre Airport. Because I am the king of segues.

But don’t worry, there’s still an arena story or two for you. I know you need your fix.

This weekend is the Honda Edmonton Indy, and yes, the race is sticking around for another three years.

Now, with Northlands out as a the promoter the city was supposed to stop covering the red ink. But, just because Montreal’s Octane is in charge next year, doesn’t mean tax dollars won’t be pumping up the Indy.

Since we’re all still on the hook this summer, maybe you should buy a ticket and save me a few dollars on my taxes. They could use more people in the stands.

The race takes place at the Edmonton City Centre Airport and the National Post has seemingly uncovered a conspiracy to close the airport.

from the Edmonton Journal:

Rise of new arena should mean demise of Rexall: expert (Wait…is the “expert” just Daryl Katz?)

Northlands boss pleads for role in new arena (Please…please, please, please.)

Proposed rules for oilsands water-removal inadequate: FirstNations

Calcium plant face charges over misleading data

Edmonton airport ranking jumps (Totally efficient y’all.)

Sewer collapse on 118 Avenue reduces traffic lanes

from the Edmonton Sun:

Chief Boyd back in front of the cameras (No word on his illness. So I’ll just assume he was bitten by a radioactive spider and Edmonton has nothing to worry about in terms of crime from here on out.)

Heritage Festival going green

Government spokesman dies in crash

from the Edmonton Examiner:

Elementary education will return to Capilano

Hilton chain may move into downtown east

EFCL seeks funds to fix community halls (You know you’ve probably got a community hall nearby you can rent for events, right?)

Fast-track aboriginal expansion: Mandel (The mayor wants to see our city’s aboriginal history become a larger part of Fort Edmonton.)

from The Canadian Press:

Latest search in missing couple case wraps up (Still no sign of the McCanns.)

from 630CHED/iNews880:

Councillor confident arena-area developers will step forward (I’d really feel good about the Katz plan if he had developers asking city hall to approve the plan so they could build their hotel, casino, park, whatever…)

Downtown Edmonton Community League encouraged after arena meeting

Duckett plays down privatization talk

from CBC Edmonton:

Alberta oilsands tour woos U.S. legislators

Alberta researchers preserve live cartilage (Interesting medical news happening right here.)

Missing Edmonton woman urged to come home (There’s a new missing person case in the capital region.)

from Global Edmonton:

North Saskatchewan filter

from CTV Edmonton:

A late addition this morning: Teskey to be deemed dangerous offender (That means he’s got no set release date from prison.)

from SEE Magazine:

We forgot to talk about beer yesterday. SEE’s got Suds in the City, a look at our three microbreweries. It ends up being the perfect set-up to the weekend though.