Ciaran O'Neill

Edmonton

Festival City!   City of Champions!   River City!   Oil City!   Capital City!

These are just some of the names given to Edmonton, Alberta.

Edmonton was incorporated as a city in 1904. The city became the provisional capital of the new province of Alberta in 1905, and official capital in 1906. Strathcona was incorporated as a city in 1907 and became the site of the University of Alberta the same year. The rivalry between the cities ended in 1912 when Strathcona and Edmonton amalgamated.

Today Edmonton is home to over 750,000 (in 2008, the last official census) and the Edmonton region population exceeded one million in the same year. This makes Edmonton the 5^th largest city in Canada.

From the beautiful river valley, that stretches – virtually unspoilt – diagonally through the city to the many trails, bike paths, ravines and waterways, this is city that is best seen up close and personal!

Canada's fifth-largest metropolitan area is a vibrant, expansive city buoyed by Alberta's booming economy. Driving is a good way to see many of Edmonton's sites, such as gargantuan West Edmonton Mall and the majestic North Saskatchewan River valley. Amid the mix of old and newly built in-fill homes in Old Strathcona, hip strip Whyte Avenue leads to the University of Alberta and attracts an energetic, youthful crowd to its bars and offbeat boutiques. The downtown area, centred around Churchill Square and Jasper Ave is really gaining momentum and with the expected announcement of the Arena district, it will really take-off.

Fort Edmonton Park and Royal Alberta Museum showcase the province's past in completely different ways. Fort Edmonton Park is a historical park, with live characters recreating Edmonton’s past up until the 1920s. The Alberta Aviation museum is on Kingsway Ave by the soon to be closed municipal airport. The Art Gallery of Alberta was opened in 2009 and is a wonderful addition to Churchill Sq.

Edmonton city Hall is also located at the N end of Churchill Sq and is a wonderful source of information.

Transit: The city has an extensive bus network and an LRT system that runs from Clareview in the NE through downtown to Century Park in the SW. A new line to NAIT in the NW is under construction and plans are well underway for lines to the SE and W. ETS is the acronym for Edmonton transit.

Roads:

Edmonton’s road system was originally based on a grid system, with most newer neighbourhoods (1980’s+) switching to a named and curving street style.

Major E – W Avenues are 23^rd Ave, Whitemud Dr, 82^nd Ave, Jasper Ave, 111 Ave, Yellowhead Tr and 137^th Ave and 167^th ave.

North South roads are 75^th St, 99^th St, Gateway Blvd, 109^th St, 149^th St, 170^th St. Due to the configuration of the river valley, not all of these roads line up exactly.

There is also the Anthony Henday Drive, which is the cities outer ring road and a lot of local use this a quicker route that also helps avoid city congestion.

Airport:

The Edmonton International airport YEG is located approximately 20 minutes south of the city. Off Hwy 2 or Queen Elizabeth 2 Hwy.

Sports teams:

The Edmonton Oilers    

The Edmonton Eskimos

The Edmonton Oil Kings

The Edmonton Rush      

The Edmonton Drillers  

The Edmonton Capitals

FC Edmonton                

Parks;

Recreational facilities;

Schools;

Edmonton Public schools

Edmonton Separate schools

University of Alberta

GrantMacEwan University

N.A.I.T

Attractions;

Muttart Conservatory

Fort Edmonton Park

John Janzen Nature Centre

Edmonton Space and Science Centre

Edmonton Police