Good Friday to you, Edmonton.

Do you want government money to go into the downtown arena proposal?

If your answer is “no” then I guess you hate downtown Edmonton.

The new idea from City Hall is to tax the entire downtown area to help pay off loans and construction costs of the Oilers’ new home, as well as help put some money into a few other downtown projects. It would also take away nearly a quarter-of-a-billion dollars in provincial education money (giving it to downtown projects), and potentially raise taxes across the city because extra tax revenue in this giant CRL (community revitalization levy) area would be dedicated to downtown projects and couldn’t cover any other items in the City budget.

I like downtown Edmonton. I think it’s coming along nicely. Don’t make me a bad guy for not wanting to pay Daryl Katz for an arena, City of Edmonton.

Never before had $15 sparked such anger, such fury. When the provincial government announced it was going to charge municipalities for license plate information searches done on a vehicle pulled over for a moving infraction, or a parked car breaking the rules, municipalities, including Edmonton, and police forces, couldn’t believe it. They fought, they pouted, they got their way.

My hunch is that oil prices went up enough this year to allow the provincial government to drop this fee to future budget debates. But, then, I can be really cynical.

Also, if the Alberta government really needs the $15, they should just tack it on to provincial traffic fines.

We aren’t done yet!

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Edmonton Police are out with a second commmunity crime video. This week, it’s all about knives and edged-weapons:

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One of the most interesting parts of this story is way down at the end, where our Information and Privacy Commissioner is asking for a fine for dumping personal information. Why wait until something bad happens with stolen information if you can do something to prevent it?

The Royal Alexandra Hospital has made necessary changes to its psychiatric ward and security, after a patient killed another patient, and a fatality inquiry does not have any more recommendations.

Edmonton Police have laid 176 charges against a graffiti tagger. I’m ok with tagging being banned, but let’s keep some of that great street art.

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More of Alberta’s child services needs to be out in the open. That red tape and bureaucracy contributed to the death of a little girl is just terrible. (Of course, the killer is ultimately responsible.) The sad thing is this kind of stuff has happened for years across the country, so there are plenty of examples to learn from, but that requires admitting things need to be done better.

When I first saw the headlines I thought this story was going to be about safety improvements for construction workers. It sounds like ways to keep unions out of construction. Well, as long as the provincial government has its priorities.

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The road work on 99 Street has unearthed parts of Edmonton’s old streetcar line. A member of my community league is looking to put some of those items together in a display at the Strathcona commmunity garden.

An Edmontonian is a new host on the Discovery Channel’s Daily Planet.

Hey, Edmonton, tell this guy about all the cool stuff we’ve got.

Well, that might be going a bit too far.

Hello Monday! And hello Edmonton.

Just to check: the Edmonton Oilers still play in Edmonton.

And the Katz Group wants to help with your PR, you know, if you need it or anything.

Forget the murder hype, we’re all safe. While that headline may be an oversimplification, it’s great to see at least one newsroom trying to challenge the scary, headline-grabbing homicide count. Now, if the same sentiment could seep off the editorial page and onto the front page – where we usually see the homicide and violent crime stories themselves – we’d really be onto a more balanced view of Edmonton.

The columns have come after Everybody in this city is armed?! was launched. So, keep up the pressure on newsrooms to dump the “If it bleeds, it leads” approach and talk to you like you know your own city. Which, we’re about to see in the next couple of stories, is still very much needed.

Stuff like saying “…rash of violent crimes in the city.” without including any stats or information on whether that’s true is what unnecessarily hurts the city’s image and leads to an ill-informed view of what’s going on and what may lead us to some solutions.

Or blaming crime on families with working parents and immigrants. That’s probably not helping any discussion on crime. Or football. Or whatever this iNews880 blog is about.

Balance those crime statements!

We should hear more on crime from the police chief today. (Update: He’s working on things.)

It’s Monday and we’re just getting this week going. More Edmonton news after the jump. (Which makes less sense if you’re reading this as a result of a direct link.)

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Rice Howard Way should totally be a pedestrian-only zone.

Keeping up with the Living on the Edge series? It’s all about the ‘burbs. The latest is about the massive recreation centres being built in newer Edmonton neighbourhoods.

An interesting case from police recently, when they released the name and photo of an HIV-positive 17-year-old girl, alleged to have had unprotected sex with a couple of people. Not disclosing your HIV status can result in a charge of aggravated assault in Canada. It’s interesting because, as HIV Edmonton notes, it may not help reduce the stigma attached to being HIV-positive, but there’s also a public health risk involved if people are not disclosing their status to sexual partners.

It’s troubling to hear about what appears to be a suicidal fire at a senior’s residence which also took the life of another tenant. It’s troubling, also, to think that this, again, ties into a need for much larger, more detailed and thorough mental health services here, and across the country.

There may be a slightly better chance for you to get Folk Fest tickets next year. The number of tickets likely won’t be increased, but people won’t be allowed to buy as many at once, and there won’t be a phone system to crash.

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Is the Slave Lake wildfire a “one-off” event, or will the Alberta government be paying out more and more for extreme weather?

Speaking of weather…the Journal had a big feature on storm watchers and weather predictors…which seems all the more timely by the pending job cuts at Environment Canada.

The news don’t stop!

The English-language leaders debate went down last night. Leaders of the Conservatives, Liberals, NDP, and Bloc debated and grandstanded in the hopes of winning over voters with their party’s ideas and platforms. Green Party leader Elizabeth May was relegated to an online chat because the “media consortium” running the debates couldn’t be bothered to include a national party with a million supporters.

Jumping off that Green Party snub (and noting the consortium has no problem including a regional party like the Bloc) New Democrat leader Jack Layton talked about bringing in proportional representation, which, looking at the map of blue Alberta will likely turn in on election day, is overdue.

There was a candidate’s debate over at the U of A for the hottest riding in Alberta – Edmonton-Strathcona. For two hours candidates (except the Liberal) answered questions on all the topics of the federal election, a few more on education (they were at the university), and took question after question from the audience.

It’s sometimes tough to know who the winner and losers are in a debate, but let’s just say Conservative Ryan Hastman did get taken to task by the widow of an Edmonton mayor.

Watch the debate over and over thanks to the power of the Internet.

And don’t forget about the losers in the election. There will be plenty of people running, and a lot of them know they won’t win.

Outside of the election, and around Edmonton…

The new Walterdale Bridge, a silver arch on the river, is approved and construction will move ahead. An extra lane may be added (do we always have to add more and more lanes? Can we make it a bus lane?), and there may yet be something done with the old Walterdale, in all its green glory. There’s also a 50 Street bridge being pondered by the mayor and TonCat.

50 km/h or 40 km/h? Residential speed limits are a hot item at City Hall after a pilot project showed reduced collisions in five of six neighbourhoods with slower speed limits. This is one to watch.

An Edmonton woman is being remembered, after saving the life of her great-granddaughter in a pedestrian-traffic collision.

Edmonton BMXers (and the like) may get a training ground and bike park in the Alberta Avenue neighbourhood.

A long-running community talent show is done.

One of the city’s Gold’s Gym locations has been fined for being dirty.

If it bleeds...

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One of the most sensational murder trials in recent Edmonton history has concluded with the jury taking just five hours to find Mark Twitchell guilty of the first degree murder of Johnny Altinger. That means the jury found it was a planned killing. It also means life in prison for Twitchell, with no chance at parole for 25 years. It may also mean, appeals notwithstanding, some closure for the Altinger family and friends of the victim. (There was another victim who managed to escape what is alleged to have been an earlier murder attempt. May he also find some closure.)

...It leads.

It’s worth taking a look at a poll Mack had about the amount of coverage this trial got in the Edmonton news. It’s kind of telling that newsrooms went all out with daily coverage for a murder trial but most of our TV stations couldn’t put together a couple of hours of live coverage for our municipal election.

I don’t always agree with local criminologist Bill Pitt (or the amount of coverage he gets in Edmonton news) but he’s right to say the excessive media coverage of this murder trial only ends up feeding the killer’s ego and there are far more important crime stories to be using news resources on.

One other interesting item to come out of this trial is the use of Internet and Twitter in an Edmonton courtroom. The judge in this trial wouldn’t allow it, so a second room was set up with a live feed of the trial for live blogging and tweeting reporters.

But the federal leaders debate did also get some front page.

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The Alberta government may kick out some new rules for homebuilders, after a boom that saw many question the quality of home being built and fires that left others wondering if we needed new rules on building materials and distance between structures.

Who knew powerline hearings could be so dangerous?

Alberta and Quebec would like Canada to remain the only G20 country without a national securities regulator, and they’ll argue their points before the Supreme Court of Canada.

In southern Alberta, Medicine Hat is in a state of emergency as the spring melt brings floodwaters its way.

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The Oilers have again been rewarded for their terrible play and will choose first in the NHL’s 2011 draft. Please allow the hilarious minds of Mostly Water Theatre to take your excitement down a few notches.

Oh, and, so much for spring.

Good morning, Edmonton. Another fine spring morning, eh?

Parking tickets will cost you an extra $15. Moving violations (speeding, no signal on turning, etc…) may also go up $15. This is all because of new provincial fees charged to municipalities and police for looking up license information.

I wonder if the Journal’s Gary Lamphier will get his interview with the Katz Group on his long list of questions, after publishing a column where he points out he’s been waiting more than a month for an interview. I’m still waiting to hear from the developers who want to build in the proposed arena’s entertainment district too. Some of those guys step up and I might start to feel good about all the tax money to go to the Oilers.

An Edmonton man who went after a police officer with a knife won’t be going to jail. Partly because he was shot a couple of times during the “acute psychotic episode.”

Edmonton Police are dealing with a lot more industrial thefts. I’m not sure what you do with all those stolen Bobcats and copper wire.

Let’s see what else we’ve got going on. Ooh, looks like quite a bit.

Know where this is?

Cadence Weapon’s new album is about to drop (that’s what people say, right, “drop?”) and I say we should be damn proud the guy talks about Edmonton in his songs. Artists that embrace where they’re from are where it’s at. (“Where it’s at,” people say that too, don’t they?)

Abbotsfield is getting some recreation upgrades from the City.

I want to check out FC Edmonton’s first real season this summer. I think I could like soccer if I saw it live.

A new prostate cancer clinic in Edmonton is $1-million closer to being completed.

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The controversial Heartland Transmission Project’s hearings have begun, somewhat quietly.

There may end up being some public education in Morinville after all.

Highway 63 emergency response services are getting an injection of cash to help deal with crashes on the busy highway. Small emergency response forces, volunteer forces at that, have been burned out with all the work.

The NDP is telling the Conservative government not to toss provincial tax money into a downtown Edmonton arena. Those socialists always want to save tax money for the basics.

Calls for a public inquiry into doctor intimidation are now coming from doctors who want to speak about being intimidated.

Meet Conservative MLA Ken Allred: the only provincial Tory who seems to get what backbenching is NOT about.

The oilsands made the list of North American’s top polluting industries. Take that, Ontario manufacturers!

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Oh, “media consortium,” you have so little credibility. You won’t let Green Party leader Elizabeth May into the debates because, well, it’s not exactly clear why not, but you will alter the date of the French-language debate because of hockey. Hey, I’m a Canadiens fan, but I also like democracy.

Consortium shenanigans aside, do remember to watch, or pay attention to the outcome of, the leaders debate tonight. Moderator of the debate, again, is Steve Paikin. He ain’t no pushover.

That polluting industry mentioned above, well the Premier doesn’t take too kindly to federal leaders slamming the oilsands for being dirty. Except that they are dirty. Why can’t people just admit that and rake in the cash?

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The Oilers have the best shot at the top NHL draft pick again. Meanwhile…the old goalie not worth a long-term deal is gearing up for another playoff run.

Ahh! Snow mold!

That's not the kind of iced coffee I meant.

Good day, Edmonton. How’s this spring weather treating you?

Don’t forget to keep your sidewalks clear of ice and snow, which can vary depending on the time of day with our early spring weather. Even though it is still snowy, pothole repair is underway.

The U of A’s Campus Saint-Jean is getting nowhere with a new parking lot over in Bonnie Doon.

Speaking of parking…which makes me think of driving…we’ve got to get transit-oriented here in Edmonton. And then we have to stick with that.

Now that reminds me of my favourite comment on a transit story we were talking about yesterday. Somebody replied to this Journal column by saying drivers subsidized transit. Ha…ha…oh man, people believe that?!

Put up toll booths and then we’ll talk about which form of transportation is subsidized. I mean, come on…

And, get ready, because we might just be heading into a federal election. The mayor thinks that might mean more money for our LRT expansion.

Alright, I’m done talking about transit now. The City of Edmonton is supposed to be improving the way it communicates with, and gathers input from, the public. It’s a serious work in progress.

Edmonton Public School Board trustees are getting a few extra dollars, at least officially, for attending more meetings.

The man who’s sung the national anthem at Oilers home games as long as I’ve been alive is retiring at the end of this season.

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Alberta’s got a lower survival rate for lung cancer patients than the national average, and some other provinces. This news comes as we hear about doctors who left after being intimidated for standing up for better patient care. Among those doctors were two Edmonton lung surgeons.

The Health Quality Council of Alberta review of healthcare wait times (but not the intimidation) is adding big names to the advice team. Though, with a former Chief Justice of Alberta’s Court of Queen’s Bench, you have to wonder why the provincial government doesn’t just hand over the reigns for a full public inquiry.

The Alberta Conservative government won’t push for public schools in Morinville. And that’s how you run a public education system!

You remember when Alberta changed its slogan from the “Alberta Advantage” to the freedom to do whatever and spirit-thingy? Well, Saskatchewan’s got the advantage now.

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The Gateway’s series on mental health continues, looking at addiction.

Oh, and Shaw is laying off 500 people. This has nothing to do with spending $2-billion to buy the Global television stations.

On a completely unrelated note, my inability to pay rent this month has nothing to do with out-of-control cocaine bills.