Educator | Communicator | Photographer
“I don’t want to move away from this neighbourhood. I love it here, everything is so close and there is such good energy. But the fact is that it’s too expensive for a person to try and make it on their own here with the money they pay. If you’re not a couple earning huge bank or like, somebody that inherited their house: you need to live with like, four other people. It’s okay, I’m sure I’ll find a way to stay in the community.” Name withheld.
“I organize and run a live variety talk show. It’s an open stage to share with local Calgarian performers, it’s called “Late Night at The Plaza.” Admission is by donation and we run on Wednesdays at 10 pm. We’re going to take a three week break and kick off the next season in September.
This neighbourhood? It’s seriously magical. When I was a kid living in Airdrie, I’d say, ‘Let’s go to Kensington!’ This place is amazingly fun.” Karlee, Director of Late Night at The Plaza. More details available at: facebook.com/latenightplaza
“My family first came here from Ireland 46 years ago. My Gran was pregnant, had and kid, and then went back to Ireland to get the rest of the family and they all settled here in Sunnyside. I grew up in this neighbourhood and played in Riley Park when I was a little kid. I worked at the House Coffee Shop for over 7 years.
I like the different kind of people that this neighbourhood brings together. It’s such a wide diversity of people. You see people of all walks of life sharing space with each other. The local business is great too. I’ve been friends with some of these business owners since I was 5 years old. Yeah, it’s a great place.” Morgan.
“It really is the greatest neighbourhood in the world. I’m chairman of the BRZ, and I’m totally in love with this community. We always try to incorporate local artists and pottery makers in our store. Even the labels on our tea tins feature local artists, and more than a few of the pots and mugs are made local. The chocolate bars are local, the mugs are local, that one’s made by an ACAD student, the honey is from The Bee Hive… it’s all local.
I love the feeling here. The residents are really involved in their community. People try to support the small businesses here, whether you’re from this neighbourhood or not.” Jonathan Kane, Owner, The Naked Leaf
“Yeah, Front Lawn Dance! I guess the first question we asked ourselves is how to use dance to place-make and to reach out to the community? Well, ContainR was a site where the intention was to include people and community so it was a natural choice to start there. We hope that people will join in and participate in these performances as we move forward – and they always do.
We hope to unite the community one dance step at a time.
What do I love about Sunnyside? There’s something for everyone: kids, adults, teenagers… there’s always an event or project that connects people of all ages and backgrounds to others.” Pam Tzeng, Marketing Assistant, Springboard Performance.
“You find these little pockets behind alley ways, alcoves next to buildings—these little places to duck out and sit, ten feet from the busy sidewalk. You sit with a coffee and old friends, and you joke about the good old days.
Or maybe you take someone by the hand, lead them into a small tucked away plaza and kiss them under the coloured lights of the night: alone together, steps away from the crowded streets, the twilight of the summer. That’s what I love about Sunnyside. You can quote me, but please don’t take my picture.” Name Forgotten.
“We’re the Bloco Vivo Samba group. In the summer, we practice on Wednesday nights between 6 – 8pm. Why Riley Park? Well, it’s a nice place, great surroundings and it’s a good feeling to bring some rhythm to the park.”
“What do I like about Sunnyside? It’s fun to walk through. I come here for the Fairy Tales film fest. It’s a great place to hang out! Neither of us live in this neighbourhood, but we’re always over here.” Rob
“Lots of cool friends, lots of them work at Vendome and the Kensington Pub. This place has got a good vibe. I don’t know, I just like it. It’s a great walking neighbourhood.” Ben
“I love this neighbourhood. Um, what do I love about this neighbourhood…? I love the people. They keep me happy and doing what I do. What’s not to love about it? Look around, there’s so much to enjoy.” Guy, a psychic reader with 17 years experience. He specializes in tarot, astrology, numerology and reading people’s auras. Find him at New Age Books or on his facebook page.
“We started Espresso Kino in May. All summer long we’ve played silent and experimental films. In the fall and winter it’ll be essential long form cinema. The Roasterie was the only place that we could think of that would do it, none of the large theatres would touch it—it’s the kind of thing that would be only shown in classrooms.
Plus: fuck it. It’s my neighbourhood. I live here and I want this kind of thing to exist, so we went out and made it happen.” Sean, organizer of Espresso Kino nights on Thursday evenings at The Roasterie. The full schedule is available at their Facebook page here.
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