It looks just fabulous.

I never knew that a comma could be used in a URL. Had to check it in IE and zoom-in closely with the Mac. It's true!

with the exception of 1982 to 1986 the Riversdale riding has been held by a CCF/NDP member for about 50 years. Over that 50 year span it has gone from a neighborhood of hard working Ukrainian immigrant families to an area of drug addicts and prostitutes. In fact, Lorne Calvert's riding has one of the highest rates of child prostitution in NORTH AMERICA.

You have to wonder if that wasn't the CCF/NDP plan.

And murals...I saw a mural.

Wow! Breath-taking! Particularly in the 2nd photograph, the paradoxical effect of the decorative streetlights and monochromatic banners juxtaposed against the steel bars on the windows of adjoining buildings is itself a metaphor for the breadth and diversity of the cultural mosaic of the inner city.

They're probably more fun than the old ones to throw stones at, too.

So...where are the fuses?

CRB

Rue du Calvert et Romanow Drive...Good one!They have created one of the fastest growing sectors in the Saskatoon economy - poverty!

Rue du Calvert et Romanow Drive...Good one!They have created one of the fastest growing sectors in the Saskatoon economy - poverty!

Not bad looking, far superior to Windsor,ON. main street Ouellette Ave.

So is the position of Lamp Lighter a union job or do they contract out?

Considering the two globes below each flag, it would be nice to see these places photographed at twilight or darker. Maybe those flags will get a bit less dreary, though maybe they just need a bit of high resolution sunlight.

Nice street lights, hope they still have un-global-warming tungsten in them.

[quote]It is currently represented by Councillor Pat Lorje. She first elected in 1979, and was re-elected in 1982, 1985, and 1988. Lorje then moved into provincial politics; she ran for the NDP and was elected in 1991, and re-elected in 1995 and 1999. She left politics in 2003 and moved to San Francisco with her husband. She returned to Saskatoon after a couple of years, and was again elected as Ward 2 councillor in 2006. [/quote]

San Francisco You Say! Very Interesting!

Saddam used to put heads on top of his lamps as an extra touch. Kept the locals peaceful!

Nice streetlights. They did something like that near where I live. Took down the wooden poles and stuck everything underground and replaced the streetlights with something nice.

A lot less ugly.

Of course the neighbourhood didn't improve until they chased a goodly fraction of the bars out.

Hey, spiffy banners. Looks like they are going to celebrate something important in 2005! Taxpayer's dollars at work again.

Wow, I's really love this place. Love the 3rd pic Kate. The banners make me feel at home, accepted and quite tolerant! Definitely the next stop for the morning show series, Where in the world is Matt Lauer

The trash cans metal bar motif ties in with the communities use of iron bars and chain link nicely.

Are those "WANTED" posters?

The parallel lines of the above ground wiring create a sense of prairie distance whilst mimicking the gravel in the gutter and creating a juxtiposition with the vertical steel bars in the windows and the frost fences .

pure art

Did somebody discharge a neutron bomb there?

The shot looking west up 20th (the 3rd one) is quite sad really.

See the tee pee on the right and the orthodox church on the left. The bars on the windows and doors of the buildings fronting 20th Street weren't there when the orthodox church was first put up. The tee pee was put up much later. Both it and the church are supposed to be symbolic of serving a larger being or a larger purpose. Let's hope the tee pee is as succesful with its congregation as the church was with its.

But I don't see it happening

Perhaps it would have helped if they painted the street Gold....

must be a slow news day, Kate. Let us not forget that this riding is represented by Carol Skelton, and has been for some time now.

looks like Simpson Street in Thunder Bay

Is that an oxymoron?

Just by looking at the photos anyone can tell the place is lousy with NDP' ers.
From wiki

Riversdale exists within the federal electoral district of Saskatoon-Rosetown-Biggar. It is currently represented by Carol Skelton of the Conservative Party of Canada, first elected in 2000 and re-elected in 2004 and 2006.
Provincially, the area overlaps two constituencies. The west part is within the constituency of Saskatoon Riversdale. It is currently represented by Lorne Calvert of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party (NDP), first elected in a 2001 by-election and re-elected 2003. Previously, Calvert had been the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Moose Jaw Wakamow since 1986. The east part lies within the constituency of Saskatoon Centre. It is currently represented by David Forbes of the NDP, first elected in a 2001 by-election and re-elected in 2003.
In Saskatoon's non-partisan municipal politics, Riversdale lies within ward 2. It is currently represented by Councillor Pat Lorje. She first elected in 1979, and was re-elected in 1982, 1985, and 1988. Lorje then moved into provincial politics; she ran for the NDP and was elected in 1991, and re-elected in 1995 and 1999. She left politics in 2003 and moved to San Francisco with her husband. She returned to Saskatoon after a couple of years, and was again elected as Ward 2 councillor in 2006.

Not just represented by the NDP - two consecutive NDP Premiers, no less!

Lipstick on a pig.

Do you think we're stupid? I know pictures taken from Gstaadt in the Swiss Alps when I see them.

"Not just represented by the NDP - two consecutive NDP Premiers, no less!"

So before true dope ia how many places had bars on the windows? The just society, indeed.

As one of those Militia dudes from Dundurn am I being confronted with my past sins?

P & P; Simpson Street you say? Perhaps it could use a community mall type of thing like the recently canned Station 20 project in Saskatoon. Oooops! I forgot Victoriaville ;-) Me bad.

Looks just like downtown Winnipeg. Wonder what else we have in common. Oh, yeah, an NDP government.

C'mon, Barbara, downtown Winnipeg doesn't look as nice as that!

Barbara -- my thoughts exactly. Life wasn't exactly heaven on earth downtown under Filmon and the Tories, but at least I wasn't afraid to walk down there. Now? You wouldn't catch me downtown during the day, nevermind after midnight.

Gee, I thought Hamilton looked bad. Oh yeah, it still does!

Good post Kate. The truth is a bitter mistress for the NDP...

"Over that 50 year span it has gone from a neighborhood of hard working Ukrainian immigrant families to an area of drug addicts and prostitutes."

And during that 50 year span Saskatoon has also what, tripled in size[1]? Pushing on that area from all sides into becoming an inner city core, as all cities in north america have in this era of cheap oil, pushing poverty into it from all sides.

Also noticeable; that is one of the older neighbourhoods in Saskatoon. Many of the other areas don't share it's problems, for no other reason than they are newer. The people who have been living in new areas have recently went through selection pressure in order to be able to afford to live there in the first place. Riversdale perhaps not so much.

There are, by the way, moderately pleasant suburbs in saskatoon-riversdale(I grew up in one. Calvert kept forgetting to mention our neighbourhood in his newsletters), along with the not-so-pleasant areas(hell, I used to walk along that very road in #2 on my way to work), but even those slowly get pushed to the center of the city, and as the city grows, they rot, and the city's problems gets centralized within them. As Saskatoon continues to push it's urban sprawl outwards in all directions as fast as it can, expect this to grow worse. The NDP aren't completely blameless here, mind you, but let's be reasonable.

[1] google cache

I made the Chelsea's Bakery sign. Now that was a definite improvement!

Texas Canuck, too true!
Victoria and Syndicate was a busy intersection.

Typical municpal problem solving. "Hey everyone! I have a great idea! Let's put decorative street lights down 20th street to spruce it up!" Question "What about the homeless people and the prostitutes?" Answer "Oh, come on! The spiffy lamps will make them all look better!"

Every city has these neighbourhoods. It's cheaper, and more importantly, politiclally easier, to propose shiny retro-style street lamps than it is to actually do something about cleaning up the neighbourhood.

No wonder all your comments are so dismissive on this area of Saskatoon. ALL OF YOU DON'T LIVE THERE. If anyone of you lived there, you would have to live up to your beliefs and you would do everything in your power to improve it RIGHT? If you say No to that than you are full of it (that stinky brown stuff)

Another thing I find odd is that all of you are laughing at Calvert's cosmetic improvements, but you fail to see that it is Atchison's call on what happens to this neighbourhood. ONCE again Kate pulls a MSM gaffe by misleadingly you all by putting the blame on the NDP when all along its the city council that she should be mocking.

AM I Wrong??? NO

I see many other posters recognize the existence of a "transformative decorative street light industry" in urban centres all across the country. Some of the other stories we were told: "They help attract business and jobs to the community"; "they help us reach for the future by giving us a sense of our past"; "they help existing businesses prosper".

Doesn't every local business district in Canada have some of these? How is the transformative prosperity going?

Eh, the place still looks crap.

And I suspect China is just a little bit richer for it.

No offense but it looks like downtown Cheyenne, Wyoming except with fewer billboards. But, it doesn't look much worse than the little burg just north of me. Zoning is only a word in Iowa.

One of my employee's pointed out the 420 above the bakery in the second photo. I wonder if they bake 'special' brownies?

Mon Dieu, zees ees obviously a cheap photoshop. Eet ees ma Champs Elysee minus zee Eiffel Tower! Si belle, si gentil! Mon cafe is on the left in zee troisieme photograph. Ah, mon gai Paris! Or must we now change our saying to "See Reeverdale, and die"? Enchante.

Looks exactly like Selkirk Ave in Winnipeg, minus the *ahem* "Spirited Energy"

censorship

Its a good thing this site doesn't speak for anyone else except Kate, because Kate is misleading her blogging public by laying blame for the lights on Calvert. The decision for the lights rests solely on City Council. So call this item Rue de Atchison; if not then Kate is clearing showing that she is feeding the conservative hate frenzy on the NDP

Or call it Rue de Skelton, because its a federal conservative riding. Maybe she should get the credit. But NOOOOOOO Kate wouldn't dare spin anything like the MSM would!

I see the problem. There are no safe injection sites.

Ta.

The Scold
--
Need advice? E-mail your questions to:
askthescold [at] gmail [dot] com

You misunderstand, Beardyscree.

I don't blame Calvert for the streetlights.

I blame him and Romanow for the prostitution, drug abuse, child neglect, crime, and general malaise of that community. (Until a couple of years ago, Carol Skelton wasn't in office, she was in opposition.)

But Roy and Lorne - they weren't just MLA's, they were provincial premiers, and look what it got Riversdale. Decline.

Maybe the old adage is correct after all - people get the government they deserve. They returned Calvert to his seat. Perhaps that's how they like things.

and then there is the BIG BOX effect.
118th Ave in Edmonton USED to be a thriving commercial area.
then came West Edmonton Mall.
thereafter the decline........

"But Roy and Lorne - they weren't just MLA's, they were provincial premiers, and look what it got Riversdale. Decline. "

but when they do spend money to make their neighbourhood better, you get people like yourself/Gormly/etc saying it's an election ploy, as though they needed to spend the money to get elected. It's also entirely unfair to blame them for the state of affairs, as Atchison has his role, as does Skelton/Harper. Or is it too hard for you to see how they all play a role...I mean, at least Calvert was trying to make things better with Station 20 West, all you have with Skelton is broken equalization promises.

When he announces a project one month before an assured election defeat, it's an election ploy.

As I said, Riversdale got the government they deserve.

"conservative hate frenzy on the NDP"

I would humbly propose that there was a CCF hate-frenzy for Conservatives looong before the 1980s.

---------------

"Or call it Rue de Skelton, because its a federal conservative riding."

The thinking of those who complain to MPs about burned-out streetlights -> or those who don't have a clue about Constitutional separation of powers.

"at least Calvert was trying to make things better with Station 20 West"

It was just a matter of time before someone exhumed this poor excuse for urban renewal. The more that the facts of this sordid debacle are dragged kicking and screaming into the light of day, the worse the entire scheme begins to smell ... badly.

Stay tuned for more news. And, above all, follow the money.

Beardyscree and oxy - what are you doing to improve the neighborhood? A neighborhood is about the people, not the streetlights, the bars on the windows or the politicians who represent the area.

What are you doing in the tee pee to improve things for the children eating charity meals? What are you doing so they and their kids don't have to rely on charity for the rest of their lives? What are you doing to make sure the kids go to Princess and other schools in the neighborhood and get a GOOD education so they can get jobs or start businesses and raise their families as a family? What are you doing to create a culture of intollerance of the behaviour of the bad behaving elements in that area. You who reside there must turn it around.

And the rest of us throwing stones shouldn't mock the community or its residents. We should be pointing out the deficiencies, encouraging Beardyscree and oxy and others in the area to change for the better, holding back on the charity as it only breeds a culture of dependancy - and when the change starts then we can jump in and help if we are so disposed.

But this isn't Atchison's problem. It isn't Romanow's or Calvert's problem. It isn't Skelton's problem. It is the community's problem and as spokesmen for the community, Beardyscree and oxy - what are you doing about it?

"oxy - what are you doing about it?"

I volunteer. I volunteer for different groups in the community and surrounding areas (such as the CRU wellness centre which was formerly in Mount Royal West). In previous years I was involved in a direct action group known as food not bombs which operated out of the west side community clinic kitchen. I am involved in the solution, now I ask, are you? or are you just a stone thrower?

"holding back on the charity as it only breeds a culture of dependancy "

I find it interesting you say that. I mean, considering the government will pull money away from a community centre (which would have held a grocery store, paying commercial rates to rent the space, and would encourage people to buy their own food instead of relying on charity), and put money in to food banks which will give hand outs. It's just sort of..well..contrary to your belief in cutting charity.

Biff; "The more that the facts of this..."
facts such as?

Trent; also, are you suggesting that child prostitutes don't work hard enough? That question has been bugging me all day.

Socialism doesn't work.

When you try it again, it still doesn't work.
And when you finally put up pretty banners, the leaders are acknowledging that even they know it doesn't work.

But the dumb people will always believe, don't they?

Thanks Oxy - engaging in meaningful debate on how to fix it is where I can contribute. I hope that by focusing on the issue we can move forward.

I am afraid that the volunteering being done though well intention is not solving problems. It is only treating symptoms. That was my point. The kids still come for food even though volunteers have been volunteering for decades. Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is often viewed as insane behaviour. Don't get me wrong. The kids and those that can't support themselves for reasons not of their own making do need support and help and the volunteering does help here.

But what is being done to deal with they causes and not the symptoms? Eliminating the causes is what will deal with the problem permanently. Are you or Beardyscree addressing those?

I truly feel sorry for the residents of that neighborhood. I truly feel sorry for the residents of many of our Native (and other) communities that are worse or not much better than that neighborhood. But I don't think that what we are doing is working to improve things for them.

If you apply a medical analogy providing charity is applying triage and stopping the bleeding. At some time the underlying wound has to be dealt with or the patient will not recover. Similarly, the cause of the suffering that is being treated by the volunteering that is done has to be repaired.

And the cause isn't something that happened in the 19th century. It isn't something that happened in the 1960's. The cause is something that is happening now. The good and the bad from the past that may have happened to us or an ancestor may shape or influence our behaviour now, but we have a choice of how to respond to that. We can choose to wail and whine and complain about the past and ask for more charity or we can take charge and fix the underlying causes. This won't happen overnite and it won't happen at all unless leaders in the community take ownership of this as an issue.

I applaud you for volunteering. I urge you to address the underlying causes.

owl: Remember; these pictures were taken in an area owned primarily by small businesses. This was the result of the market making a decision to leave this place dry. If anything, judging only by this area, it's capitalism which doesn't "work". Of course saying that is unfair to capitalism, since although there are areas like this in saskatoon-riversdale, there are also other areas which may seem unfairly pleasant, too.

But refer to my first comment in this thread if you want to try something other than knee-jerk anti-socialist rhetoric.

"Thanks Oxy - engaging in meaningful debate on how to fix it is where I can contribute. I hope that by focusing on the issue we can move forward."
--I agree on this. It's certainly is much more useful to discuss the issue on why things are and seek solutions than to blame the NDP. I mean, the personal choices of a few are hardly the fault of a particular party, but I don't expect that from most people on this site.

Anyway, I wish to address the comment about covering symptoms. For starters, the system is broken. Now, instead of blaming capitalism, (or as this site prefers, socialism) for leaving these people behind, I will suggest it has to do with multiple areas of interest. Thinking about community , for starters. Conservatives will demand that people become independent. That was what was happening with Station 20 West. The grocery store would provide a place to buy food instead of getting it handed out. The grocery store was independent and would support itself. A rally of 2500 people happened several weeks ago. That shows that the community cares about itself.

"deal with the problem permanently. Are you or Beardyscree addressing those?"

I am involved in the development of the inner city coop, to help people become independent. There is also importance in dealing with symptoms. I think of two kids who would come to me for soup. Studies show that children with nutritious food available do better in school than those without (damn reality and it's left wing bias). By offering food to these kids, often dressed in what I would consider rags, they would perform better than had they not had had the opportunity to eat. Better marks and more attention paid in school will pay off the initial investment.

I am also reminded of one time I was playing basketball with a kid at CRU. We were talking about family life. He told me that if CRU did not exist, he'd be out selling dope with his brother. Instead, he was being active, in a community orientated project, being educated about the connections one must have with their community. I see these cases as treating the problem, not just a Bandaid solution.

"I truly feel sorry for the residents of that neighborhood. I truly feel sorry for the residents of many of our Native (and other) communities that are worse or not much better than that neighborhood."
Don't feel sorry, us Pleasant Hill residents do not need your sympathy, as we will deal with the issues with or without you. Provided that poverty exists everywhere (EVEN IN ALBERTA... Drayton Valley comes to mind considering it's Meth problem), it does lead me to questions Kate's connection with the world if she thinks 20th St. is the only place where it exists, and places the blame on Calvert/Romanow.

Thanks again oxy.

As I said, I agree that we must look after those who are unable to look after themselves. The kids must be fed, but if all we do is feed the kids we will end up with well nourished kids who drop out in high school. I hope you and/or your friends are also working on keeping them in school from the time they are kids, through the time they are teens and onto their young adulthood. I think involvement of people like you in the community recreation center will be a necessary part of this type of change, but I don't think it will be sufficient. What happens to and for the kids after they reach working age? Who will be there to help them then?

I was intrigued by your comment about helping people to become independent. That is certainly part of the solution. When people can look after themselves within the system, they are not part of the problem. When they can help others as part of the community, they are part of the solution. I see that you are trying to be part of a solution. What are you doing to get more people within the community to be part of the solution?

I'm afraid that I can't agree that the system is broken (capitalism or socialism or whateverism). It seems to work for the large majority of the people elsewhere in Saskatoon and Canada and the world. What is there about this area that makes it not work there? Could it be that the system is not followed in this area? If that is the case, could helping to get people to follow the system help the community turn around? This might mean being less tolerant of those people that do not subscribe to notions of community behaviour that are independance based. It might require the community to take corrective measures against such behaviours. The brother of the basketball playing kid comes to mind. His business is a poison in the community. His independance comes at a price the community should not accept. Does anyone in the community try to correct that behaviour?

Glad to hear that you don't need my sympathy. But it was not extended only to you. It was also extended to the other residents of the community that are adversely affected by the decline, but who do not have the ability to rise to the occasion like you.

Keep up the good work. I think efforts like you are doing are underappreciated - but I hope that more is done that will address the root causes that I see as being very related to a large portion of the community's lack of desire or ability to participate in a system that works everywhere else.