Metro - Edmonton : Columnist - Urban Compass by Terence Harding

urban compass by terence harding

Underground stations can be more than dead & buried

February 13, 2012

Imagine you go into an LRT station and find yourself in the midst of a hive of activity. People are buying newspapers from a kiosk, or wares from vendors with small tables. A quartet is playing chamber music and a magician is amusing all and sundry.

Make their valentine’s memorable

February 06, 2012

For many Edmontonians, a meal out marks a special occasion. This Valentine’s day, thousands of couples will be doing just that.

City was once a place of ‘breathtaking developments’

January 30, 2012

Thanks to my friend John Buckberrough from Vancouver, I was able to take a little trip back in time to an Edmonton that only some of us are likely to remember. John collects gas station memorabilia, specifically old British American Oil memorabilia.

Denying salary increase deserves kudos

January 23, 2012

You can find courses on leadership that talk about how to lead from behind, from beside and just about any place else.

Knowing which way the wage goes

January 16, 2012

The Alberta Average Weekly Earnings Index (AAWEI) is probably something most of us are not too familiar with, but we should be.

There’s no place like home

January 09, 2012

My 37th year of living in Edmonton is fast approaching.

Can santa make you suspend your disbelief?

December 19, 2011

Very few of us would argue against the position that the champions of conspicuous consumption have hijacked an important Christian religious observance.

CITY NEEDS TO MAKE BETTER USE OF OUR TAX DOLLARS

December 12, 2011

I hate paying for things that don’t return their promised value.

Celebrating edmonton as a winter wonderland

December 05, 2011

This winter is going to be better than the last one. And it’s not because we are necessarily going to have warmer weather, less snow and cleaner streets. It’s going to be better because of METROPOLIS:

Driving home a better deal for the city

November 28, 2011

As city hall grapples with the budget, it faces two major challenges. It must ensure it has the money to do what needs to be done. And it must keep a tax hike on this side of the financial twilight zone. One of the perennial challenges it faces is that it has a limited number of sources of revenue.

Who do you see as a mayor with vision?

November 21, 2011

The next civic election might just be more interesting than the previous two. As anyone who is even remotely interested in our civic government knows, it is difficult to unseat an incumbent mayor or councillor.

Same old city budget Song and dance

November 14, 2011

Do you ever wish you could act like the city? If you could, when you wanted more money you would get it. You wouldn’t need to ask permission. You wouldn’t have to justify your need for it or explain what you did with the money you got the last time you asked. You could just say, I need more money and that would be enough.

Look out! cabbies are on our tail

November 07, 2011

I saw my first black-and- white Edmonton Police Services patrol car the other day.

Making museum history

October 31, 2011

I’m sure this week we’re going to hear more about the apparent demise of a new downtown Royal Alberta Museum. The announcement that the Feds were not going to pony up their share of the dollars needed to build it was very bad news indeed.

Life’s not a beach at city hall

October 23, 2011

I don’t always agree with what he wants, but there are some initiatives he has championed that I do support. Unfortunately, they often come to naught, but it’s certainly not his fault.

Downtown arena still causing a stir

October 17, 2011

I promised myself I wouldn’t write another word about the downtown-arena debacle. But promises are made to be broken.

Enough arena talk, it's time for an arena question

October 03, 2011

Well, today we start another week in the weird and wild land of Oz known as Edmonton.

Council's butt debate should go up in smoke

September 26, 2011

Imagine you can create the agenda for city council on Wednesday. What would you put on the list?

The familiar becomes part of Edmonton culture

September 19, 2011

Edmontonians often talk about what a hotbed of creativity this city is, but few of us know just who the creatives are and what contribution they make to the cultural life of Edmonton.

Around here, we do film fests differently

September 12, 2011

Unless you avoid television news, entertainment shows and Internet news sites, you are probably quite aware that the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is in full swing.

The taxing saga of Katz and the dome

August 29, 2011

In Edmonton did Khubla Katz a pleasure dome decree.

If you build a museum, they will come

August 22, 2011

A problem with writing a Monday column is that many of the things I want focus on have already been talked to death by others.

#YEG rider feedback abounds

August 15, 2011

The advent of social media has given companies and organizations one more way of keeping track of what their customers or clients are saying about them.

Ways the city can work for you

August 08, 2011

If you have ever wondered what difference architectural controls can make to the quality of life in a city, take a walk along Rice Howard Way.

Falling into the arena’s rabbit hole

July 25, 2011

On the one hand, we have Daryl Katz, who has gained a great deal from free-market competition, suddenly becoming a monopoly capitalist.

City’s actions contradict its agenda

July 18, 2011

I think we should change Edmonton’s slogan to the City of Antimony.

You can save a piece of history

July 11, 2011

You may not realize that we have a proud history of tearing down architecturally interesting and/or historic buildings.

Happy as a clam, or depressed?

July 04, 2011

Here’s a little quiz to determine how well you know your city.

Insert council’s concerned reaction here

June 27, 2011

Welcome to bizarro land. Is it only me, or are you as shocked and stunned that members of city council have no clue what is going on in city departments unless they are so informed by the city auditor.

Advocating for those who can’t

June 20, 2011

Last Saturday, the Alzheimer’s Society of Alberta and the Northwest Territories held its annual memory walk in Sir Wilfrid Laurier Park.