Reasons to Leave Edmonton – Part 1
I’m not normally a person who talks about reasons why people should leave Edmonton. After all, I love this city, and the entire point of this blog is to promote the good things about Edmonton. Still, River City isn’t perfect. The haters out there occasionally have some legitimate complaints.
So, this week, I’m going to talk about some of the biggest reasons why moving away from Edmonton might be a good idea. But, because this is a blog focusing on River City’s positive qualities, rather than it’s negatives, I’ll also suggest ways to “solve” the problems without leaving the city.
The first, and perhaps the main reason why people might want to leave Edmonton is simple: the winter.
Edmonton winters are long, cold, and miserable
Edmonton is one of the most northerly major cities in the world. Because of our location, we have long, cold winters. Global warming is slowly changing this (which is not a good thing, despite how nice it may be to have fewer -20 Celsius days in the winter), but the fact is, it gets cold in River City during the winter.
On top of the cold, our winters are very long. Winter-like temperatures can last as long as 6 months in Edmonton and, because of our latitude, it gets dark very early in the winter.
For most Edmontonians, winter means waking up and driving to work before the sunrises, and not leaving work until the sun has already set. For people like me, who don’t have a window in their office, this can mean getting almost no natural light during the winter months.
The lack of sunlight and the cold can lead to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Even those who don’t suffer from true SAD can find themselves suffering from a general sense of malaise during an Edmonton winter.
I don’t blame people for wanting to leave Edmonton after they’ve experienced and River City winter. Hell, sometimes even I want to leave during the winter.
Despite that, I think there are ways that Edmontonians can make winter work in our favour. Rather than dreading winter, we should embrace it.
An Edmonton Winter Festival
The main solution to the Edmonton winter blues, in my opinion, would be to launch a winter festival, similar to La fête des Neiges de Montréal or Carnaval de Québec (the Quebec Winter Festival). Instead of hiding ourselves away in our homes and malls for 5 or 6 months a year, we should be out and enjoying our city during the winter.
Perhaps an Edmonton winter festival could be focused on Churchill Square, to take advantage of the skating rink in front of City Hall. Surely, something could be done on the river, as well. If the ice is thick enough, we could create a natural skating rink to rival the Rideau Canal in Ottawa.
Like the Rideau Skateway, kiosks could be setup along the river (and in Churchill Square) to sell hot food to keep revelers warm. Coffee, hot chocolate, and warm pastries would sell like crazy in such a situation.
A new Edmonton winter festival could take advantage of the very few winter events that already occur in Edmonton, such as the Ice on Whyte ice sculpting competition, incorporating them into the new festival. Perhaps the festival could kickoff on January 1st at midnight, using the New Year’s Eve Downtown celebration as a way to launch both the New Year, and the festival. (This would be especially symbolic during the festival’s inaugural year).
That’s my suggested solution to the Edmonton winter blues: an Edmonton winter festival. I’ve given a brief illustration of what I think such a festival could and should look like, but I’d like to hear your ideas.
After all, for something like this to ever become a reality, the festival organizers would undoubtedly need input from the community. Let’s get a jump on the game and start brainstorming ideas here.
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11 Mar 08 at 11:04 am
When I first read this titel in Google, I thought I was reading a post about hating edmonton. Turns out I was wrong.
These are all points that people should take into account when thinking about living in our cold climate. It’s not for everyone; but those of us who enjoy it really enjoy it.
Thanks for a balanced and reasonable blog.
- John Carle
Edmonton real estate agent
ReMax Real Estate (Edmonton)
http://www.knock-knock.ca
John Carle
3 Jan 09 at 3:26 pm
You definitely were wrong, John. I love this city, but I recognize its faults, and the challenges that can come with living here.
Glad to have you reading the blog. Thanks for you comment.
Adam Snider
4 Jan 09 at 10:45 pm
The main reason to leave Edmonton?
Because everyone in Edmonton wants you to leave. Seriously, if you dont want to be here, please leave.
Bret
29 Oct 09 at 4:01 pm
Who said anything about not wanting to be here? I’m just looking at some of less enjoyable things that might make someone want to leave town.
Adam Snider
29 Oct 09 at 9:52 pm
Why would anyone go outside at -20 C to participate in a winter festival and freeze your ass off?
I love the idea of making the N. Saskatchewan River into a skating rink…but probably scientifically impossible.
What I love about Edmt is the many many outdoor rinks which are maintained and well used….unlike warmer Calgary where they have mostly disappeared. Rink culture is truly Canadian and in Edmt the rinks have paid managers not volunteers which means reliable ice. Yay Edmt.
Yours truly,
Calgarian
Anne
11 Dec 09 at 9:37 pm
[...] to do when the weather gets this cold? It’s hard to say that we should embrace it. I mean, I’m all for a big winter festival in Edmonton, but this is not the level of pure, nipple-freezing cold that I expect people to [...]
Deep Freeze in Edmonton – Adam Snider - Writer for Hire
12 Dec 09 at 1:37 pm
Why would anyone go outside and freeze their ass off for a winter festival? For the same reason that you enjoy freezing your ass off in outdoor skating rinks, I’d imagine.
Done right, I think it could be quite enjoyable. I mean, not if the weather is in the -30 to -40 range like it’s been for the past week or so, but during the course of a normal Edmonton winter, I think a festival could work well.
Adam Snider
13 Dec 09 at 11:44 pm