Laughin' it up inside the man cave - Guys' retreat in basement or garage seen as key to a happy marriage - 05/12/10 11:52 AM
The hallway that leads into the depths of Jason Konoza's basement is deceiving. Framed Disney illustrations on the walls hint at rainbows, butterflies and baby deer, which is fitting for only part of the space, a play area for Konoza's two children, six-year-old Zachary and three-year-old Addison. Inch farther into the lair and the pictures of Bambi morph into photos of the Beatles. Plastic furniture becomes a luxurious leather couch, where Konoza's best friends are sprawled, a gigantic bag of Munchies between them.
"The man cave," says Konoza, "starts here." About six years ago, Konoza sold his beloved comic book collection … (2 comments)

Whyte Avenue landmark for sale - Six-year-old building replaced three destroyed by fire - 05/12/10 11:50 AM
The building that rose from the ashes of three burned-down Old Strathcona Avenue historic buildings is up for sale. The three-storey retail building, at Whyte Avenue and 104th Street, is listed for sale by commercial realtor DTZ Barnicke with an asking price of $12.9 million. When fire destroyed three buildings owned by lawyer John Day and his two sisters in March 2003, they replaced it with a single building, with variations in height, cladding and window treatment, plus indentations in the front face to suggest three separate structures in period styles.
Designed by Cohos Evamy Architects and erected by Clark Builders, … (0 comments)

Rebirth of a wildlife park? - Son of game preserve's founder envisions resort for nature lovers on same lands - 05/12/10 11:49 AM
Tigers, rhinos and gorillas no longer ramble around this rolling 360-hectare spread at the corner of Highway 14 and Range Road 223 in Strathcona County. But for tens of thousands of Edmonton-area schoolkids who ogled their first lion or camel at the Alberta Game Farm in the 1960s or '70s, the memories are fresh. "One fellow I talked to said, 'You know, your damn emu plucked the popcorn right out of my hand when I was eight,' " chuckles Todd Oeming, whose father Al started the game preserve, once among the world's largest, in 1959.
Al Oeming, a renowned wildlife conservationist, … (1 comments)

Building on Jasper so ugly it stops traffic in its tracks - Happily, an overdue makeover is on the way - 05/12/10 11:48 AM
The Associated Engineering Building is so ugly blind dogs cross the street. Bats cringe at its radar signature and unpopular men congregate outside to look comparatively Clooney. The Associated Engineering Building squats nauseatingly on a prime piece of downtown real estate, the southwest corner of Jasper Avenue and 109th Street. Note that people driving south over the High Level Bridge must witness its hideousness.
Thus the traffic jams, as drivers stop mid-bridge to upchuck. I can see the Associated Engineering Building from my home. I looked once and was left bald. Now, when I gaze upon it through safety glasses, I … (0 comments)

Living the 'Canadian dream' - Departing lieutenant-governor says he never really thought about groundbreaking career - 05/12/10 11:46 AM
Lt.-Gov. Norman Kwong once called his life story the "Canadian dream." The football star and businessman saw rich irony in his 2005 appointment as Queen's representative in Alberta. Decades earlier, his immigrant parents were not allowed to vote because of strict anti-Chinese legislation.
"They talk a lot about the American dream," Kwong told reporters at the time of his swearing-in ceremony. "Well, my story has to be the Canadian dream. My father was an immigrant grocer who couldn't even vote in Canada until his 40th year in Canada, and he has a son who becomes the lieutenant-governor of this province. There's … (0 comments)

Edmonton can fund LRT expansion without tax hike: Mayor - 05/04/10 07:28 PM
Edmonton can fast-track its aggressive LRT plans without raising taxes or axing certain priority projects, says Mayor Stephen Mandel. Mandel revealed a plan Tuesday to use provincial gas tax grants, surpluses, investment income and other sources of cash to run LRT lines to NAIT, the west end and into the southeast.
"We have to reallocate some of the dollars we're spending if we want to build an LRT, and it's not going to be a tax burden on our citizens," he said. "We should be able to do this within the confines of the financial package we have now." He said … (0 comments)

Edmonton trying to get lawsuit over elephant tossed - 05/04/10 07:28 PM
A lawyer says there's no basis for a lawsuit over whether Lucy the elephant should be moved from Edmonton's Valley Zoo. Steven Phipps is trying to get a judge to toss out the lawsuit filed by two animal rights groups and an individual from the Edmonton area.
He says the province could pull the Valley's Zoo's operating permit if it felt that Lucy was being treated inhumanely. But Clayton Ruby, who is acting for the plaintiffs, says provincial regulations aren't being enforced and no one seems willing to take up Lucy's cause.
The lawsuits alleges that the 34-year-old Asian elephant is … (0 comments)

Old Man Winter returns to Edmonton - 05/04/10 07:27 PM
Winter decided to make a surprising return Tuesday morning. The blast of heavy snow and strong winds caused thousands of homes across the city to be left without power. Close to 17,000 homes were in the dark after the city saw heavy, wet snow and forceful winds.
"We had city wide outages, we had lines down, we had snow on the wires," Epcor's Michelle St-Amand said. "We managed to get everybody up fairly quickly. We brought out all our resources." A fire was even sparked early Tuesday at a south-side home after a downed power line landed on a garage.
"It … (2 comments)

Industry CEO warns of 'irrationality' - 05/04/10 07:26 PM
Economists who have been arguing that overeager home buyers in Toronto and Vancouver are inflating prices have found an unusual champion in one of the country's top real estate players. Phil Soper, chief executive officer of Royal LePage, is warning of "irrationality" in the country's largest cities, an unusual admonishment from someone whose profession stands to gain from hot housing markets.
There is more enthusiasm for housing than seems reasonable given the underlying economy, Mr. Soper said in an interview yesterday. He also cautioned homeowners to brace for an extended period of stagnant house prices that could begin later this year. … (0 comments)

Edmonton LRT 'huge game changer' - 05/04/10 07:25 PM
The silver glint of the Century Park LRT station is the main display photo for a Blue Quill condominium listing on real estate agent Mike Muranetz's website. "Why pay high property values for location when this half duplex is only a few minutes' commute to the University of Alberta area?" the listing reads.
Buyers see the area as a more desirable place to live now because of its proximity to the station, Muranetz said. "It's a no-brainer. Obviously, location is important," Muranetz said. "You can walk out the back gate, walk up the trail and, boom, you're at the LRT in … (0 comments)

 
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