O-day’min Park (formerly Warehouse Park)

[TAS]

Skyrise Cities now confirmed as influential municipal lobbying group

Just to put this issue of the park's winter maintenance to bed, I did receive a follow-up from city that stated the following:

"We fully agree with your assessment. The current condition of the walkways, specifically the windrows blocking entrances and the ice buildup, is not acceptable.

While the contractor previously reported to us that maintenance was complete, our inspection confirms that the quality of work does not meet the City’s standards or the requirements of their contract.

We are taking the following steps immediately:

Contractor Accountability: We have contacted the contractor to address the discrepancy between their reporting and site conditions. We have directed them to rectify the windrows and address the icy sections to bring the park up to the standard required for safe mobility. We have completed an inspection of the site, and the Project Team will continue to inspect to ensure compliance.

Please continue to use 311 as the primary avenue for reporting concerns.

We are committed to ensuring the contractor fulfills their warranty obligations so that the park and its walkways remain safe and accessible for all."

 

[archited]

It occurred to me that winterizing the paths in O-day’min Park could be a venture with double benefit and could be structured so as to defray the costs of doing so. If the CoE were to promote an Edmonton version of a 'walk of fame' a trust could be established for 'walk' candidates to be so honored. Like Hollywood in L.A. it could be an effort that spans decades and that gives another level of importance to the park with maybe a bit of a downtown tourism cachet and another reason to focus on a heated path through the park dealing with winter snow events. It could feature as a centre-piece the ubiquitous Edmonton (albeit controversial) bird -- the magpie. Why magpie? In 2025 it became the City's official bird in honor of its deep connection to the urban landscape of the City; Magpies embody traits associated with Edmontonian character -- tough, resilient, resourceful, and hardworking; the birds thrive in Edmonton's urban environment and are therefore common sights (even making Edmonton "Canada's Magpie Capital"); and Magpies also play an ecological role controlling pests and cleaning up urban waste.

There are many honorees that come to mind...
-- Wayne Gretzky (perhaps most notable in the minds of Hockey fans) plus other sports figures like Jackie Parker, Tom Wilkinson, Warren Moon, Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Lori-Ann Muenzer, Kelsey Mitchell and Danielle Serdachny
-- in the arts -- k.d. lang, Mac DeMarco, Graeme Moorhouse, Michael J. Fox, Tommy Chong, Nathan Fillion, Laura Vinson, and Tommy Banks
-- in politics -- our PM Mark Carney, William Hawrelak, Jan Reimer, and Stephen Mandel
-- in Architecture -- Douglas Cardinal, Esther Marjorie Hill, Mary Imrie, Barry Johns, Gene Dub, and Peter Hemmingway
-- First Nations -- Thelma Chalifoux, Doreen Wabaska, Kim Wheeler, Alex Decoteau, "Willie" Littlechild, Lewis Cardinal, and Chief Darlene Misik
The list is pretty substantial.
We might start off with some historical figures (maybe members and coach of the Edmonton Grads) and notables such as Henry Marshal Tory, Alexander Cameron Rutherford, and Grant MacEwan
When O-day’min Park paths are filled up it could then extend to adjacent City sidewalks and another way to connect through the adjoining alley to Beaver Hills Park.

 

[TAS]

^ would be amazing to see something happen like that. I would love for the city and business community and others to buils on what we have and add more reasons for people to visit our city and downtown.

I think the City should also embrace some of it's symbols more (or why have them?) - for instance, lets get our official flower lining one or more of the walkways or something.

Official Flower: The Marigold

Symbolizes sunny Alberta and Edmonton’s role in the Klondike Gold Rush of the 1890s
Like the flower’s many varieties, Edmonton is home to a vibrant medley of different cultures and backgrounds.

 

[archited]

Iconic symbols for a variety of categories in the embed could include:
-- for sports an embed that relates to the specific sport of the individual being honored (e.g. player with hockey stick for Hockey; player with football for CFL; player with basketball for basketball; etc.)
-- for musicians a note symbol, for singers a microphone, etc.
-- for politicians a dais with person speaking through a microphone
-- for artists a paint brush; sculptors a recognizable statue; etc.
-- for architecture a T-square and calipers
-- for First Nations totems and/or tepees
... and on like that
as well the embed recipient could receive a medallion commemorating the experience related to their honor (placed in their estate if they are no longer with us)

 

[archited]

With identifier hockey icon added... the identifier icons would match the honored subject.

Another suggestion might be to cluster like-honorees by category along the various paths with blank placeholders left for future additions so that the entire field can be laid out in advance with maybe a "key" map in the alleyway between the two parks. Following through then, the alleyway becomes an exciting addition connecting the two parks together with the following features:
-- embedded LED lights in the alley and across the two streets (105th and 106th) defining the connection in strong pathway terms -- the lights should be more than just pattern arrays; they should define a motion pattern that alternates bidirectionally and they should be able to change color as well (emotionally charged to celebrate seasons and events)
-- a colored "umbrella" array overhead that is LED up-lit illuminated (light concealed in the stem "handle" of each umbrella) -- ideally the umbrellas would be different sizes (diameters) with large ones lower in positional elevation and smaller ones higher, all to exaggerate a sense of 3-d and depth perception. These lights, too, would have the ability to change colors and could be synced with the pathway lights for event effect.
-- the honoree embeds then also connect the two parks through the alley (not on the street crossings)
-- the alley and the street crossings are rebuilt so that they can also be heated during weather events.
-- the street crossings are slightly elevated so that crossing vehicular traffic is forced to slow and so that they can be sloped for drainage.

 

[archited]

One additional thing -- a QR code in the embedded element honoring Edmonton's outstanding could connect with a smart phone app that could have a 2 minute video/audio overview of the honoree's impact on Edmonton.

 

[Stevey_G]

With identifier hockey icon added... the identifier icons would match the honored subject.
View attachment 705297
Another suggestion might be to cluster like-honorees by category along the various paths with blank placeholders left for future additions so that the entire field can be laid out in advance with maybe a "key" map in the alleyway between the two parks. Following through then, the alleyway becomes an exciting addition connecting the two parks together with the following features:
-- embedded LED lights in the alley and across the two streets (105th and 106th) defining the connection in strong pathway terms -- the lights should be more than just pattern arrays; they should define a motion pattern that alternates bidirectionally and they should be able to change color as well (emotionally charged to celebrate seasons and events)
-- a colored "umbrella" array overhead that is LED up-lit illuminated (light concealed in the stem "handle" of each umbrella) -- ideally the umbrellas would be different sizes (diameters) with large ones lower in positional elevation and smaller ones higher, all to exaggerate a sense of 3-d and depth perception. These lights, too, would have the ability to change colors and could be synced with the pathway lights for event effect.
-- the honoree embeds then also connect the two parks through the alley (not on the street crossings)
-- the alley and the street crossings are rebuilt so that they can also be heated during weather events.
-- the street crossings are slightly elevated so that crossing vehicular traffic is forced to slow and so that they can be sloped for drainage.

Respect to the effort but this one honestly might age like milk in the coming decade.

 

[TheCanadianAaron]

Taken On December 31st, 2025