Category: Streets (Page 7 of 9)

First milestone achieved! Three months into #Sunnyside365 project! It’s the first day of Autumn. The leaves are starting to change, emerald leaves shift to gold as the seasons give way for each other and all of a sudden, colour bursts from everywhere in Sunnyside.

Every once in a while, the graffiti art out behind Charisma and Effective Health Solutions changes over. The bright colours are a welcome change to the drab concrete alley way.

“Five houses on 9a Street. Between 3rd and 2nd. They run their office out of one of them, two more look like they’re packed with the dregs of society, and two are boarded up (they looked like crack dens you’d see on Breaking Bad). They’ve also got an empty dirt lot over on 2nd and 1st that they haven’t done anything with. They were also charged by the City for entering into a contract without a license back when the flood happened…

I supposed that’s just how it goes. It would be nice to see those houses fixed up, or at least torn down to build something nicer. You should go take a picture of that, maybe it would be an example of urban decay or like, ‘Anti-Gentrification.'”

“This summer we’re into Kensington! The City of Calgary, in partnership with the Kensington Business Revitalization Zone (BRZ), will be implementing improvements to Kensington’s public realm. The project will focus on redesigning and replacing the streetscape of Kensington Road N.W. between 10 Street N.W. and 14 Street N.W. and on 10 Street N.W. between Memorial Drive and 5 Avenue N.W.
Improvements will include the replacement of ageing infrastructure like, sidewalks, trees, street lights and street furniture to provide safer mobility in the area for all.

Currently the sidewalks in Kensington are suffering from broken or missing interlocking paving stones. By replacing the paving stones with new concrete The City will eliminate trip hazards for pedestrians and provide a uniform look for all sidewalks in the area.

Many of the trees in the Kensington area are old and dying which results in high maintenance costs every year. These old or dying trees will be replaced. Additionally, tree trenches will be installed under the sidewalk. Tree trenches provide extra room for tree roots to grow and hold rain water to keep the tree healthy.

Energy efficient LED street lighting and pedestrian lighting will be installed on 10 Street N.W. and Kensington Road N.W. Pedestrians account for much of the traffic in Kensington, providing pedestrian street lighting will enhance safety and allow citizens to enjoy Kensington once the sun goes down.

Street furniture including litter receptacles, bike racks and newspaper corrals will be installed. The installation of benches, where space is available, is also being considered by the project team.

Planning meetings between The City, BRZ and community members have occurred over the past year and will continue until construction begins. Once a contractor has been selected a more detailed construction schedule will be available. The first phase of construction is scheduled to begin in September. Efforts will be made to minimize the impact to local businesses during construction.
September/October 2015: First phase of construction begins.
Summer 2016: Construction continuation on 10 Street N.W. and Kensington Road N.W. Additionally, tree installation will take place throughout the entire project area.
Fall 2016: Construction completed.” City of Calgary Website.

“Maybe somebody should go out and shoot a ‘Before-and-after’ photo, eh?” Point taken, see you in a year!

“It’s the Memorial Drive Brownstones Project. Thirteen houses along Memorial drive were subject to purchase by the Dobbin Group with the agreement that they would apply for heritage status for a group of buildings they own in the neighbourhood. They play fair, engage with the community and the re-zoning is unanimously approved by City Council. The deal goes through.

Fast forward a few months and the property has been sold to a developer from Vancouver who wants to work with the community. It’s a chance for people here to actually get engaged with the future of this neighbourhood, they should take it–not a lot of communities in other places get this chance – https://mightybell.com/communities/65557/posts/715012“

“People talk about ‘gentrification’ and drop the word like it’s a weapon or something… I don’t think a lot of people really know what it means. Mostly, I think people are scared of the idea of gentrification. Like a bunch of stuffy people from other cities are going to come here and buy property, speculating that it’s going to improve at some astronomical rate.

I think the truth is that this is how things go. They go in cycles. It’s not like this property has never been valuable…. it’s just been used and enjoyed in a way that we all got used to: cruising the streets in the summer, Salsa Fest, the coffee shops, the bong stores, the tattoo places, the tea shops, the clothing stores, the pubs–there’s an ass for every seat. There’s a tenant for every condo. I just wish the fucking landlords would figure out that they need to work with the businesses that lease their properties.

Can you imagine being in a place like Vancouver where nobody local actually owns anything? Not the business spaces, not the condos, not the houses? It’s all multi-nationals. That’s my nightmare. Not this ‘gentrification’ idea that’s buzzing around.” Name Withheld. Construction crews tie the new Lido and Kensington Condo buildings into the local power and service grids.

If you’ve ever seen the strange looking, blank eyed faces painted throughout the neighbourhood, then you’ve seen Earthfolk–a local artist and ACAD alumnus known in particular for his mural and street art projects. His work varies in medium and content, but may be generally described as a mash-up of characters, icons, and text that form a peculiar relationship with each other to explore a range of emotional, intellectual, and spiritual themes.

“The Sunnyside, Hillhurst, and Kensington neighbourhoods have been integral in my development as an artist, particularly in regards to public murals. Having been given numerous opportunities to paint in such a positive, cultured, and diverse area of Calgary is great exposure, great experience, and has enabled me to stay engaged with the public. I’m grateful and excited to see that the overall enthusiasm for urban art-forms seems to be growing, though I have mixed feelings about the impending effects of gentrification in the area. Such opportunities continue to be an uphill pursuit and there remains a lot of pressure to produce bland and “friendly” work with little to no artistic integrity. I’ve been extremely lucky, so I encourage everyone to support local artists.” – Earthfolk (Find out more about this amazing artist at www.earthfolk.org)

“10:31 AM MDT Tuesday 25 August 2015
Special air quality statement in effect for:
City of Calgary
Poor air quality over Southern Alberta.
Forest fire smoke travelling in from the Northwestern United States is reducing visibilities and creating poor air quality over much of Southern Alberta today and tonight.
Individuals living in or travelling in this area are advised to be aware of potential health concerns that can be associated with current air conditions. In the current conditions, even healthy individuals may experience temporary irritation of eyes and throat, and possibly shortness of breath.”

“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.

Sunflowers searching for a few rays of sun on a gloomy August afternoon. It’s been a week of constant thunderstorms and hail warnings. Most gardens in the community have been flattened by the severe weather, but these guys have withstood the barrage from Mother Nature so far…