Rossdale Music - Call for volunteers!

Do you like live music? As many of you will know, we used to have the “Rossdale Concert Series” that was organized and coordinated by a dedicated team of volunteers. They retained local artists who would then perform at the Little Flower Community Hall -- tickets were sold, snacks and drinks were consumed as we listened to some of the great sounds from Edmonton’s superb and talented artist community.

Then, covid happened ....

After a hiatus of almost three years, we have the opportunity to revive that experience once again.

A Rossdale News Update for June 2, 2022

Edmonton Riverhawks Baseball Tickets
(2022 Season)

The Edmonton Riverhawks have offered Rossdale residents two complimentary tickets per game when valid ID is presented.

Also note that there will be free fireworks after each Friday p.m. game!

https://riverhawksbaseball.com

rossdale green shack is bACK! (New Details!)

The Summer Green Shack Playground Program returns for 2022!

  • Rossdale Green Shack will run M-F,
    10:30 am - 1:30 pm
    (July 4 - August 25).

surplus items for sale

The Rossdale Community league has:

  1. a four drawer metal filing cabinet that is surplus and available for sale - $25.00. Please note one of the drawer handles is broken and there are no keys available.

  2. A trolley for file boxes $20.00

If interested please contact Natalie Bunting at bunting@shaw.ca

A Rossdale News Update for May 22, 2022

rossdale welcomes THE 2022 JAYMAN BUILT MS WALK – to OUR NEIGHBORHOOD THIS COMING SUNDAY!

Date: Sunday May 29th, 2022.

Note that the MS Walk will take place on Sunday May 29th starting and ending at Donald Ross Park. The walk route goes through Rossdale park and Louise McKinney River Front Park.

Proceeds from this event are going to the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada to help individuals living with MS and fund research to find a cure to end MS.

Detailed Information for Residents:

• Event enters the area: 11:00 AM
• Event Leaves the area: 2:00 PM
• Event set up starts at: 7:00 AM
• DJ and music will be on site from 10:00 AM – 2:30 PM (And we have been assured that there will be no testing of music prior to 9:00 AM)
• Volunteers will be working to ensure safety of walkers at all street intersections

If you would like further information please call 587 – 772 – 3938 or check out the walk website at www.mswalks.ca and searching Edmonton.

THE SHACK IS BACK!

The Summer Green Shack Playground Program returns for 2022!

the weather is getting warmer now …

Ensuring that your car doors and garages are locked is the best deterrent to theft. 

Note that EPS has an online Crime Reporting function where it isn’t necessary to speak to an officer. 

Since policing levels are dictated by these call volumes, it is important that you do your part and report any activity.

epcor construction update - pump house

Beginning in June 2022, EPCOR Electricity will be completing work within the Rossdale Power Plant site on the Bellamy Pump House. The work entails:

1.       Upgrade security controls

2.       Install new entrance doors on southeast wall of the pump house

3.       Remove handles and install blanking plates on existing doors (west wall of the pump house)

The work is planned to begin June 6, lasting for approximately 6 weeks. There will be no impacts to public roads. There will be noise for about half a day while the new space for the entrance doors are cut.

Please contact EDTI Consultation at 780-412-4040 if there are any questions.

EPCOR COMMUNITY WORKSHOPS - THIS WEEK!

Just a reminder that EPCOR Is hosting two community engagement events this week:

• Online workshop: May 24 from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.

• In-person open house: May 26 from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

A Rossdale News Update for May 12, 2022

ROSSDALE GARDEN is hosting a BBQ AND GARDENING PRESENTATION - OPEN TO THE COMMUNITY!

Sunday May 15, starting at 3:00 pm, the Rossdale Garden is hosting a presentation at the community hall. It will cover topics such as pest control, weed management, soil enhancement, and maximizing your garden space.

A bbq will follow starting at 4:00 pm.

There will be a free seed give away, a door prize draw, and a tomato plant sale ($3 each for mature tomato plants).

BIG BIN - SAVE THE DATE!

A big bin event will be held at the hall on Saturday June 11th from 9am to 3pm.

EDMONTON BIKE SWAP THIS WEEKEND at the MACEWAN CAMPUS

What’s a bike swap you may ask? Well it is a safe place for anyone buying, selling and donating bikes. They tech check every bike and record every serial number.

WHERE:
MacEwan University - City Centre 107 Street Underground Parkade

WHEN:
May 14, 2022

CONSIGN:
May 14, 2022 0800 - 1400

BUY:
May 14, 2022 1430 - 1600

DONATE:
May 14, 2022

EDMONTON PADDLERS BOAT & GEAR SWAP

WHERE:
Kinsmen Sport Centre (north of Queen Elizabeth Pool, beyond main parking lot to grass overflow parking lot).

WHEN:
May 14, 2022 10:00 am to 1:00 pm

Items will include canoes, kayaks, and stand up paddle boards, as well as paddling and camping gear and gadgets. Proceeds support the Edmonton Paddling Centres Association programs and facilities.

Paddlers think the only way to see the river valley is by canoe, kayak, or SUP, as it involves so little environmental disturbance. And what better way to enhance sustainability than to assist the reuse of useful paddling and camping gear.

A Rossdale News Update for April 29, 2022

BIG BIN - SAVE THE DATE!

A big bin event will be held at the hall on Saturday June 11th from 9am to 3pm.


LET’S CLEAN UP THE RIVER VALLEY!

Residents interested in tidying the river valley can pick up free supplies. Each kit includes a safety guide, grabber, a pair of gloves, and 3 garbage bags. Kits can be picked up at 9634 100 street from the front porch. First come first served!

EPCOR - COMMUNITY WORKSHOPS

Epcor is planning community workshops on the flood protection project.   More information on the project can be found at: Current engagement activities: Protecting Edmonton's Water Treatment Plants from Flooding (epcor.com)

 

The workshops are:

a.       May 24 from 6 – 8 p.m.: online

Click here to sign up for the workshop (Zoom)

Click here for more information

b.       May 26 from 4 – 7 p.m.: in person open house at the Rossdale Hall – offering free snacks!

 

Links to related information:

Epcor Solar Farm Legal Challenge Fundraiser December 2020 Update

ERVCC-1.jpg
ERVCC-2.jpg

The Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition is now in the process of filing a legal claim against the City of Edmonton to oppose its recent rezoning of 99 acres of river valley parkland for an Epcor industrial solar plant. Our legal documents were submitted to the Court of Queen’s Bench on Monday, December 7th.

We have a river valley bylaw precisely to protect our river valley from commercial, industrial, and public utilities threats. Solar energy is, of course, good in the right location – like on rooftops, landfills, and brownfield sites. But this is rare aspen parkland habitat that is heavily used by wildlife, and a regionally significant wildlife corridor; it is not an essential, nor appropriate, location for an industrial solar power plant.

This land is already sequestering carbon, purifying the air, cooling the city, preventing flooding and drought, and providing habitat to plants and animals. The project would disturb the plants and soil with pilings for 45,000 solar panels, preventing the land’s full functioning as a carbon sink. It would also include the cutting of trees. The panels would be located behind a security fence, meaning that an area the size of 26 football fields would be lost as habitat, and a pinch-point “alley” approximately 1.5 km long would be created in the already narrow wildlife corridor. According to the province’s own solar guidelines, large solar projects do not belong in river valleys because they are a hazard to water birds, which tend to mistake the panels for water and die from collisions or stranding after impact, as they require water to take flight again.

The city has an obligation to respect the river valley bylaw. And that respect is now critical in this time of climate crisis and biodiversity crisis. According to a recent UN report, modernity has wiped out 60% of wildlife populations since 1970, and one million species are now at risk of extinction. The greatest cause for these losses is the destruction of natural habitat. By simply locating the solar panels elsewhere, we can work toward our city’s climate goals and preserve our river valley, which is so valuable ecologically and to the people of Edmonton. The ERVCC is standing up for protection of our river valley against this non-essential industrial use.

The ERVCC is crowd-sourcing funding for the legal challenge. The river valley matters to all of us, and so we are counting on Edmontonians to contribute to our campaign. We all need to stand up for what we love, or we are going to lose it.

Donations can be sent by e-transfer to info@ervcc.com.

Thank you and take care,

Kristine Kowalchuk
Chair, ERVCC

Public Information Notice - River Valley Legal Challenge

Public Information Notice - River Valley Legal Challenge
This information notice is not necessarily endorsed by the board.

From: kristine kowalchuk <kristinekowalchuk@gmail.com>
Subject: River Valley Legal Challenge
Date: December 23, 2020 at 11:30:33 AM MST
To: Kristine Kowalchuk <kristinekowalchuk@gmail.com>


Hello,

I am sending this email out to everyone I know who cares about Edmonton’s river valley. This is the only such email you will receive from me on this topic.

As you might have heard, the Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition, which I chair, has filed a legal challenge of city council’s 7-6 vote to rezone 99 acres of river valley parkland for Epcor's industrial solar farm. The ERVCC is concerned not only with the loss of important river valley habitat and parkland that this decision entails, and the opening of the river valley to industrial development that it represents, but also by the precedent established in allowing Epcor to bypass municipal regulations. This is alarming considering our water, waste water, drainage, and power are all controlled by Epcor—and it is a departure from the reassurances the city and Epcor gave to Edmontonians that transferring these utilities to their control required Epcor to remain subject to city regulations. 

This is thus about the river valley, and it is also about governance of things as important as our water. 

The Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition has taken a leap of faith that the people of Edmonton care so much about protecting our river valley—which he have inherited from all the protectors before us—that they will contribute to the legal challenge. We also know that Edmontonians do not appreciate the city breaking its commitments that protect the interests of Edmontonians. This legal challenge is an insistence that the city act in the best interest of the people.

We are counting on Edmontonians to support this important work. So far, we have raised $9500. But we need to raise at least $35,000. If we do not raise this money, since ERVCC is a non-profit, it will fall to me and a couple of other individuals to pay this bill. If that happens, we will not be able to continue this work of standing up for the river valley and for the public interest. 

If you are in a position to do so, please consider contributing to this legal fund. You can send a donation by e-transfer to info@ervcc.com or you can send a cheque to: 

ERVCC c/o
Jaynne Carre
37 Wolf Willow Crescent
Edmonton AB T5T 1T1

Please also share this message with anyone you know who loves the river valley.

If you would like to read more about this issue, here is a recent article I wrote for the Edmonton Journal on the topic: https://edmontonjournal.com/opinion/columnists/opinion-solar-energy-and-protecting-biodiversity-arent-at-odds?fbclid=IwAR0GdA4CuHH2yMp1PX_t8IPD_ee6y4cYAPfCgpz43x_WFYFoeUSaDmBKUgA The photo does not do the land justice; it is a beautiful meadow surrounded by forest. 

E.L. Smith river valley fall.jpeg

Lastly, just a reminder that if the city says no to this project, that does not mean saying no to solar—the city has directed Epcor to source 10% of its energy from renewables, so Epcor must do so—it will simply have to look outside of our river valley. And in fact, Epcor has already explored other options and admits they have alternatives.

Thank you very much, and wishing you a very happy holidays,

Kristine

Communications between the Rossdale Executive, City Hall and David Shepherd regarding the camp

ROSSDALE-WEB.jpg
Date Description Action
2020-08-06 1. Letter from Terry Pandza to Scott McKeen and Scott’s Reply.
2020-09-21 2. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-09-29 3. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-10-10 4. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-10-14 5. Letter from Terry Pandza to Mayor and Councillors
2020-10-16 6. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-10-20 7. Letter from Terry Pandza to Scott McKeen
2020-10-29 8. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-11-12 9. City Statement on Camp Closure
2020-11-12 10. City NET Update
2020-12-04 11. Email from Scott McKeen

Announcing the Rossdale Incident Reporter

Dear neighbour,

Neighbours are the eyes and ears of the community and community becomes stronger when we all share information.

Today we are launching the Rossdale Incident Reporter, a tool to capture and share incident information. This information will be used for:

• supporting the police with non urgent information such as suspicious persons,

• assisting neighbourhood watch,

• forming an incident record, complete with photos and videos from within our community

• and helping to get resources allocated to our community.

When you experience an incident or encounter suspicious activity, please access the Rossdale Incident Reporter form to make a report. It only takes one minute. Activities can be entered retro-actively to January 2020. Regardless of how minor you think an incident is, many small pieces of information form a big picture.

Access the site at: www.rossdaleconnect.ca.

This incident log does not replace reporting to police, fire, or 311 and we encourage you to continue reporting incidents there as well.

For more information regarding this initiative, please contact me at rossdalekaren@gmail.com.

Karen

Lock your doors - vehicles, houses and garage doors!

Lock your doors – VEHICLES, HOUSES AND GARAGE DOORS!

There has been an increase in entries to vehicles, garages and houses in the city. The majority of these entries and thefts were through unlocked doors. Please remember to always keep your doors locked and valuables (including keys) out of plain sight. It is also recommended that you bring in your garage door opener if you park outside.

The police need your assistance. By locking your doors you minimize the chances of becoming a victim. We ask that if you see any suspicious persons, vehicles or activity, report it! Let’s all watch out for one another!

Rossdale Connect is our tool to keep in contact with you. Sign up to receive newsletters and updates from us via SMS and / or Email.
We typically send out newsletters and updates once a month or so.

We respect your privacy.