OT: One More Off Topic Off Season Thread

[Gordy Elbows]

Had a 74 blue Gran Torino RT Sport. This was basically every lunch hour or after school in the Harry Ainlay parking lot.

Had a few lunch hours like that (in the 60s)….had to retire when an ice cream truck beat me out. An ice cream truck ffs!

 

[brentashton]

Tea Houses at Lake Louise now have to helicopter waste and garbage from the huts. They used to pack everything in and out. ...

With Jasper essentially being closed much of the summer its added weight to how busy Banff National Park is. probably never been worse.

Doesn’t the “hired help” clean this up? Probably the people who think that Uber Eats delivers to the summit, when they do these sojourns.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Doesn’t the “hired help” clean this up? Probably the people who think that Uber Eats delivers to the summit, when they do these sojourns.

Yeah. We always pack our own snacks and pack everything out. The wife likes the idea of gettng something at the Tea houses and I'm not into it feeling that these shouldn't even be there. it caters to a swiss notion that there should be commerce around every mountain turn and that Alpine regions are just gold mines...

I prefer keeping Canadas version as natural as possible. Banff townsite you can imagine drives me bonkers nowadays.

 

[Drivesaitl]

This should disgust any Edmontonian:

Take our premium most visited park in the city that hosts many of our top annual events and close it for several years and turn it into one huge monster construction site. The aerial footage released is supposed to show us progress. I see devastation of an area. I see the worlds largest urban park construction site.

Oh wait for all the improvements the administration always says regarding any major project in the city. Yet these improvements move on a glacial time frame and by and large are not asked for by taxpayers. Vanity projects.



Think about this. Would they close the entirety of Central park for several years and get away with this crap? The city was telling us the infrastructure was all outdated, needs to be teared out, all redone. How is it that all the other cities don't do shit like this to their top parks?

Oddly enough prior to the whole park being closed a large area had just been closed for several years to build additional building and infrastructure on the lake. They hardly finished doing that one. Take bets on when this boondoggle will ever be open and when it will be green again. What a shitload of mature trees gone from the park.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

This should disgust any Edmontonian:

Take our premium most visited park in the city that hosts many of our top annual events and close it for several years and turn it into one huge monster construction site. The aerial footage released is supposed to show us progress. I see devastation of an area. I see the worlds largest urban park construction site.

Oh wait for all the improvements the administration always says regarding any major project in the city. Yet these improvements move on a glacial time frame and by and large are not asked for by taxpayers. Vanity projects.



Think about this. Would they close the entirety of Central park for several years and get away with this crap? The city was telling us the infrastructure was all outdated, needs to be teared out, all redone. How is it that all the other cities don't do shit like this to their top parks?

Oddly enough prior to the whole park being closed a large area had just been closed for several years to build additional building and infrastructure on the lake. They hardly finished doing that one. Take bets on when this boondoggle will ever be open and when it will be green again. What a shitload of mature trees gone from the park.

City of Edmonton wrote the book on how to overspend, under deliver, demolish the time frame, completely mismanage and generally f*** up capital projects.

 

[brentashton]

City of Edmonton wrote the book on how to overspend, under deliver, demolish the time frame, completely mismanage and generally f*** up capital projects.

Calgary’s public transit green line debacle is working hard to unseat the city of champions.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

Calgary’s public transit green line debacle is working hard to unseat the city of champions.

Yup. A provincial “Hold my beer” moment.

 

[K1984]

This should disgust any Edmontonian:

Take our premium most visited park in the city that hosts many of our top annual events and close it for several years and turn it into one huge monster construction site. The aerial footage released is supposed to show us progress. I see devastation of an area. I see the worlds largest urban park construction site.

Oh wait for all the improvements the administration always says regarding any major project in the city. Yet these improvements move on a glacial time frame and by and large are not asked for by taxpayers. Vanity projects.



Think about this. Would they close the entirety of Central park for several years and get away with this crap? The city was telling us the infrastructure was all outdated, needs to be teared out, all redone. How is it that all the other cities don't do shit like this to their top parks?

Oddly enough prior to the whole park being closed a large area had just been closed for several years to build additional building and infrastructure on the lake. They hardly finished doing that one. Take bets on when this boondoggle will ever be open and when it will be green again. What a shitload of mature trees gone from the park.

This City can do literally nothing right. Bridge on a critical route needs maintenance? Closed for 3 years (that's before it inevitably gets f***ed up and delayed again). Park needs work? 3 years. I have no idea when the West LRT expansion is supposed to be finished, but as a west-central resident all I know is pretty much every major route in and around my house is riddled with constriction that appears to have no end in sight after about 4 years of it.

This piss poor Mayor and Council cries crocodile tears about provincial funding, but at no point to they appear interested in examining the blatant inefficiencies in our current budget, a lot of them related to construction. Rather than find efficiencies, they'll just jack up property taxes blame the Province while playing victim.

 

[Drivesaitl]

This City can do literally nothing right. Bridge on a critical route needs maintenance? Closed for 3 years (that's before it inevitably gets f***ed up and delayed again). Park needs work? 3 years. I have no idea when the West LRT expansion is supposed to be finished, but as a west-central resident all I know is pretty much every major route in and around my house is riddled with constriction that appears to have no end in sight after about 4 years of it.

This piss poor Mayor and Council cries crocodile tears about provincial funding, but at no point to they appear interested in examining the blatant inefficiencies in our current budget, a lot of them related to construction. Rather than find efficiencies, they'll just jack up property taxes blame the Province while playing victim.

Plus we get hit with another projected 13.5% tax hike for all these vanity projects and all done over killed vs what is required.

That said the city admin is rotten to the core and has been for alongwhile. They recommend projects like this without giving full details including that there will be massive eradication of mature trees due to the project. They blindside as well. Then the public gets blindsided and kept in the dark.

What a shit show Valley line has been as well, all phases. City just destroying business in outlying regions with these debacle projects. West end now unrecognizable through Jasper Place all the way to WEM.

 

[K1984]

Plus we get hit with another projected 13.5% tax hike for all these vanity projects and all done over killed vs what is required.

That said the city admin is rotten to the core and has been for alongwhile. They recommend projects like this without giving full details including that there will be massive eradication of mature trees due to the project. They blindside as well. Then the public gets blindsided and kept in the dark.

What a shit show Valley line has been as well, all phases. City just destroying business in outlying regions with these debacle projects. West end now unrecognizable through Jasper Place all the way to WEM.

It's criminal that they decided to essentially gridlock the entire west end for almost a decade. You can't tell me that there wasn't a way to do this in a way that doesn't lock down 156th, 142nd, 149th, 87th, Stoney Plain Road for years on end at the same time.

This directly conflicts with their "vision 0" obsession due to the volume of cars cutting through residential areas to try and get around the slog, but they seem too obtuse to care. A council obsessed with every single form of "safety" measure might view surrounding a hospital with gridlock fuelled by construction as a problem, but this group seems to not be able to recognize it.

The traffic stand still in all directions surrounding the Misrecordia is one of those things that I know for a fact has probably caused someone to die at some point, but unfortunately it's probably impossible to know for sure.

 

[Stoneman89]

It's criminal that they decided to essentially gridlock the entire west end for almost a decade. You can't tell me that there wasn't a way to do this in a way that doesn't lock down 156th, 142nd, 149th, 87th, Stoney Plain Road for years on end at the same time.

This directly conflicts with their "vision 0" obsession due to the volume of cars cutting through residential areas to try and get around the slog, but they seem too obtuse to care. A council obsessed with every single form of "safety" measure might view surrounding a hospital with gridlock fuelled by construction as a problem, but this group seems to not be able to recognize it.

The traffic stand still in all directions surrounding the Misrecordia is one of those things that I know for a fact has probably caused someone to die at some point, but unfortunately it's probably impossible to know for sure.

We lived in Pleasantview for 30 years until moving this spring to the west end. Love it by the way. Anyway, Pleasantview had the "neighbourhood renewal " treatment in 2023 (new sidewalks, curbs, streets, lights, etc). They said they were mostly done at the end of last year, other than one dead end street (due to winter shutdown). I drove back there this year to have a look, and they had ripped up a whole bunch of new sidewalks and crosswalks to put in some fancy paving stones. Another whole construction mess all summer long that has residents less than impressed and frustrated. Oh, and that dead end street that didn't get finished because of winter coming last year? Still torn up with a whole pile of stuff to do (sidewalks, curbs, street, etc.) If I lived on that street I'd be ready to seriously harm someone.

 

[K1984]

We lived in Pleasantview for 30 years until moving this spring to the west end. Love it by the way. Anyway, Pleasantview had the "neighbourhood renewal " treatment in 2023 (new sidewalks, curbs, streets, lights, etc). I thought they were mostly done at the end of last year, other than one dead end street (due to winter shutdown). I drove back there this year to have a look, and they had ripped up a whole bunch of new sidewalks and crosswalks to put in some fancy paving stones. A whole construction mess all summer long that has residents less than impressed and frustrated. Oh, and that dead end street that didn't get finished because of winter coming last year? Still torn up with a whole pile of stuff to do (sidewalks, curbs, street, etc.) If I lived on that street I'd be ready to seriously harm someone.

It's at the point now where I think they are doing maintenance on the few roadways that don't have construction just to f*** with people. Stops and starts too.

The intersection of 149th and Stoney Plain Road was a no go zone for me for about a year due to that slog. Was driving in the area one day and noticed it was back to two lanes going south so I started using it again. Made it a week before randomly, and unannounced, it was right back to one lane again, and the hundred car backlog of cars at the light to go with it.

I am generally a fairly even tempered person, but that half hour or so when I was stuck in that took a major toll on my blood pressure. Not sure what is so hard about posting warnings like "back to single lane next Monday," but it's like they prefer to watch people suffer.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

James Earl Jones is gone.

This year really sucks.

 

[brentashton]

James Earl Jones is gone.

This year really sucks.

I just saw that too. Couldn’t agree more.

Wife and I saw him and Vanessa Redgrave on Broadway in 2010, performing Driving Miss Daisy.

The set consisted of 2 wooden benches and a steering wheel tore out of some old rig that he had to hold for almost the entire performance.

It was all about the acting.

RIP to Mr Jones (Vader).

 

[Stoneman89]

James Earl Jones is gone.

This year really sucks.

TBH, I thought he passed some time ago.

 

[bellagiobob]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1833251162545619335

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

 

[Drivesaitl]

It's at the point now where I think they are doing maintenance on the few roadways that don't have construction just to f*** with people. Stops and starts too.

The intersection of 149th and Stoney Plain Road was a no go zone for me for about a year due to that slog. Was driving in the area one day and noticed it was back to two lanes going south so I started using it again. Made it a week before randomly, and unannounced, it was right back to one lane again, and the hundred car backlog of cars at the light to go with it.

I am generally a fairly even tempered person, but that half hour or so when I was stuck in that took a major toll on my blood pressure. Not sure what is so hard about posting warnings like "back to single lane next Monday," but it's like they prefer to watch people suffer.

The city for over 30yrs now has been working on traffic abatement and calming measures so the thought that the city is f***ing with drivers is a given.

These kinds of measures taken in Pleasantview, Crestwood etc and on 106st were purposely designed to divert traffic volumes or stop it altogether.

To a City Admin this is a perfect roadway, they would give +A to this and put gold stars on it.

Yes the city actually did crap like this and worse they've installed crap like this, met with furor from public, ripped it out, tried bumps, different meridians, closed roads and now their super tool of just converting road lanes to bike paths and roads to bike thoroughfares altogether.

A common citizen reply to traffic shortcutting measures is that if designated roadways were actually flowing and serving their purpose and hopefully with some coordination of lights then people wouldn't be traffic cutting. So that the commonsense answer to shortcutting is to make main roadways more efficient. But this is never wanted by our admin or councils. They want us to stop driving altogether or make it 30k/hr...

Many roadways traffic would have moved quicker 100yrs ago when these were on the road.

Oh look, grannies got a leadfoot, somebody stop her....

The funniest rip roaring news of the summer was when archeologists(they actually employ them on these projects) discovered street car lines running exactly where the Valley Line route is now. Street cars and lines that were ripped out the last century in the name of some other changes. When shit like that happens you take note, again, of how backwards and random managed this City has always been.

So that the time is a flat circle spoof is that all these public mass transit initiatives had been ripped up before in the name of progress, and then again to eradicate progress ad infinitum

 

[joestevens29]

We lived in Pleasantview for 30 years until moving this spring to the west end. Love it by the way. Anyway, Pleasantview had the "neighbourhood renewal " treatment in 2023 (new sidewalks, curbs, streets, lights, etc). They said they were mostly done at the end of last year, other than one dead end street (due to winter shutdown). I drove back there this year to have a look, and they had ripped up a whole bunch of new sidewalks and crosswalks to put in some fancy paving stones. Another whole construction mess all summer long that has residents less than impressed and frustrated. Oh, and that dead end street that didn't get finished because of winter coming last year? Still torn up with a whole pile of stuff to do (sidewalks, curbs, street, etc.) If I lived on that street I'd be ready to seriously harm someone.

Blame your city council that continues to put projects out there that they don't even have final drawings for. Either that or they realize after one winter that their drawings don't properly work for drainage they go back to the drawing board.

Their biggest problem is trying to make everything beautiful instead of the normal remove and replace the existing. Which in a time where taxes are raising you should just be doing the normal remove and replace.

Their own maintenance division is now fighting with them and wondering where their funding is going to come from as they have to damn near double their workforce to maintain all this stupid beautification shit.

 

[timekeep]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1833251162545619335

Have you seen his Letterman's top 10? One of my uncle's had his voice and he was as big too.

Those hurt falling off of them and most of the time sliding down them.

 

[yukoner88]

Lake Louise has suffered the same fate.

Even 20-25 years ago, Lake Louise was just a bunch of Asian people farting everywhere

 

[BIeucheeseWithWings]

My cousin and her friend won the latest season of The Amazing Race Canada. Loool. I didn't even know she was on the show.

 

[oilers'72]

Saw this after watching another video and thought it was a rather interesting look at Edmonton from an American's viewpoint (while watching a 2024 travel video of the city).

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

This, the General Lee and Burt Reynolds Trans Am are probably my favorite iconic movie or TV cars.

 

[rboomercat90]

My cousin and her friend won the latest season of The Amazing Race Canada. Loool. I didn't even know she was on the show.

They were fun to watch and deserved to win. They probably got a big boost from having the last set of challenges in their hometown. TBH though, I spent most of the show just hoping that creep from Calgary and his girlfriend lost.