Lace up your skates and join us for a family rink party! The deep freeze is over. It's time to get out and enjoy winter.

Date: Sunday, January, 12, 2014
Time: 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Location: Skating rink at Bonnie Doon Park, 9240 93 Street

There will be skating games and free hot chocolate. The rink party is a great way to celebrate winter and the start of the New Year.

For more information, please contact Margaret (780-469-1179) or  Christiane (780-461-6590). If you can help out with the skating party, Margaret or Christiane would also love to hear from you!

If you don't have a  League Membership, this is the perfect time to get one. A League membership is needed to use the rink. You can purchase one  from Monique, 780-469-6311 or [email protected].

Read more about skating at the Bonnie Doon Rink.

Bonnie Doon Community League is slated for a casino on Sunday and Monday, March 2 & 3, 2014. This event is  our largest single funding source and could bring in up to $70,000 to support community league programs. But we need approximately 40 volunteers to run the casino. Please consider helping out.

Working a casino is fun and easy. The money raised goes to programs such as youth soccer, our ice rink, Green Shack and hall improvements. You are provided with a free meal and you have a chance to socialize with your Bonnie Doon neighbors. You can choose the shift that suits you best and you can choose the job that is the most fun for you. The venue will be Casino Edmonton, 7055 Argyll Road.

Parents whose children participate in BDCL's soccer program can fulfill their volunteer commitment by taking a shift at the casino.  It's a great way to cross "volunteering for soccer" off that to do list and helping out BDCL in an important way.

You can sign up for the casino online now at http://volunteersignup.org/M949A

For details on how easy it is to help, please contact our Fundraising Chair, Stephanie.

Lace up your skates! Bonnie Doon Rink is open for the season.

You need a League Membership to skate. You can purchase one at the Rink Shack or from Monique, 780-469-6311 or [email protected].

Stay tuned for details about learn-to-skate lessons and family skates planned for the new year.

Read more about skating at the Bonnie Doon Rink.

There may be snow on the ground, but it will be soccer season before we know it.

Outdoor soccer registration will take place:

Date: Saturday, February 22, 2014
Time: 1pm to 4 pm
Location: Bonnie Doon Hall

Date: Thursday, February 27, 2014
Time: 6pm to 8:30pm
Location: Bonnie Doon Rink Shack

For more information, please contact Date: Saturday, February 22, 2014
Time: 1pm to 4 pm
Location: Bonnie Doon Hall

For more information, please contact [email protected].

Bonnie Doon's Christmas party on November 30 was a huge success! Approximately 200 people, including many kids,  filled Bonnie Doon Hall. Our DJ had nearly everyone on the dance floor. When people were not dancing, they were visiting with neighbours or possibly admiring the festive hall, decked out for Christmas thanks to our volunteers. A big thank you to Stacey Drysdale who, with help from daughters Liv and Gabby and Margaret Russell decorated the hall. They even made many of the decorations!

Thank you to our other volunteers:

Paul Pelchat
Pierre Moquin
Monique Moquin
Elizabeth St-Onge
Don Masson
Marie-Josée Verret
Karen Doucet
Rita Terry
Chris Terry
David Borgstrom
Mark Gordon
Tom Pederson

Merry Christmas from Bonnie Doon Community League!

The Flying Canoe Adventure Walk is a magical way to enjoy the Mill Creek Ravine and Bonnie Doon. This free, family evening event will take place on February 7 and 8, 2014 from 6 pm to midnight. It will include

• Illuminated trails of Mill Creek ravine
• Legend of La chasse-galerie (The Flying Canoe)
• Metis jigs/reels
• Bannock making
• Live music
• Storytelling
• Sleigh ride
• Children's activities
• Hot chocolate
• Ultimate winter patio
• Snow slide

La Cite Francophone is organizing the Flying Canoe Adventure Walk. It is looking for volunteers. Please contact Shannon Brennan at [email protected] if you can help out.
For more information, visit: http://www.thecityoflight.ca/

If funding falls into place next year the earliest the proposed Valley Line will link downtown past Bonnie Doon all the way to Millwoods is 2020. Here is the text from an email the league received from the City December 13...

Thank you for your continued interest and involvement in the Preliminary Design of the Valley Line LRT. Your partnership since February 2012 has helped shape the design philosophy and aesthetic for the Valley Line LRT, and has provided the LRT team with invaluable knowledge about the communities the LRT will eventually serve. 

Is Public Engagement over?

The Public Engagement process that informed the Preliminary Design of the Valley Line is now complete, and a final report detailing the process and the feedback collected will be posted to the project website in late January 2014. Note that this report is a complement to the What We Heard reports already on the project website. 

What will happen to all of the feedback I provided?

Currently, the public engagement team is working to ensure that all of the feedback we heard, including detailed, stakeholder-specific information, is captured and reflected in the specifications that the P3 consortium will need to adhere to in the detailed design and construction phases. In 2014, I will go on to advise on public engagement processes on other City projects through the Office of Public Engagement, so please contact the LRT Projects Hotline with your questions or comments going forward. 

How can I stay updated on the Valley Line LRT project?

Two-way communication and information-sharing between the City of Edmonton and stakeholders like you will continue throughout the forthcoming Procurement, Detailed Design, Construction, and Operations phases. Stay tuned to the project website for project updates, and contact the LRT Projects Hotline for information anytime at 780.496.4874 or [email protected].  

What's the funding status of the Valley Line? 

On October 17, 2012, City Council approved a funding strategy to expand LRT from Mill Woods Town Centre in southeast Edmonton to Lewis Farms in the west end. This expansion will start with the $1.8 billion leg from Mill Woods Stop to the 102 Street Stop. This strategy commits $800 million in City funding and is contingent upon the remaining funding being obtained from the Alberta and Canada Governments. 

The City applied to Public Private Partnerships (P3) Canada for part of this funding. P3 Canada is a federal government agency that assesses P3 applications and can contribute partial funding for identified projects. P3 Canada's mandate is to fund projects that offer cost-effective, viable approaches to building infrastructure. On March 14, 2013, P3 Canada awarded the Valley Line project $250 million from the P3 Canada Fund towards construction of the southeast portion of the new LRT line. For more information on P3 and the Valley Line, check out the P3 factsheet. 

On December 11, 2013, while receiving an update about the status of the Valley Line project, Council voted in favour of a motion from Mayor Don Iveson that established LRT as Council’s number one priority for new spending on infrastructure. Council’s discussion and vote emphasized the need for long-term funding commitments from the provincial and federal governments in order to achieve Edmonton’s goals for LRT and public transit. 

When can I ride the LRT from Mill Woods to downtown?

If the remaining funding is secured by Spring 2014, construction could begin as early as 2016 and be open to the public by 2020.

What's next for the Valley Line?

The LRT team is in the process of documenting and developing all of the data and contracts that will inform the  forthcoming project phases, and the City is actively pursuing long-term funding commitments from the provincial and federal governments . The P3 process advancing is linked to funding status, and more information on the P3 process is available through the LRT Projects Hotline. 

Thanks again for your partnership over the last two years. Don't hesitate to contact the LRT Projects Hotline anytime with your questions or comments -  780.496.4874 or [email protected].  

Best regards,
Elicia Elliott 
Public Engagement Advisor  
Corporate Communications 
Office of the City Manager

BDCL needs someone to take the job of Hall Steward. We will pay this person for  several hours a week at $20 per hour.

Responsibilities include:

• Visit the hall regularly, checking door locks, refilling paper towels, etc.
• Ensure that people who use the hall have left things in good order
• Contact our plumber, electrician, etc when things need repair
• Perform simple handyman jobs when appropiate
• Manage trades people to let them into the building and assess their work

The ideal candidate is a mature adult who has practical knowledge about things that sometimes go wrong in a building. They will also have some connection with Bonnie Doon. Here are some examples of issues that the Steward would have dealt with in the  past year:

You notice that wear & tear on the wall leading to the men's washroom has accumulated to the point where the drywall should be repaired & painted. You add this to your list of things to review with the league's preferred carpenter.

You notice that the metal plate protecting the latch to the kitchen door is bent. You are sure it wasn't that way the last time you entered the kitchen. You discuss this with Stacey, our Hall Rental Agent, who can decide if the previous night's renter should be charged for the repair.

One day you notice the sound of water trickling in the building. You hunt around and discover a slow trickle in one of the toilet tanks in the women's washroom. You jiggle the tank's flapper and discover you can stop the leak if you play around with it. You decide the flapper should be replaced. Because this is such a simple task you buy a new flapper and install it yourself. (You keep the receipt so the league can reimburse you.)

The more hands-on you are, the better but that is not a requirement of the work. It is important that you pay attention to details and that doing things right is important to you. Contact Mark at [email protected].

Are your kids interested in babysitting? Then they may be interested in a What Every Babysitter Should Know, a one-day baby-sitting course being offered by St. John Ambulance. The course is aimed at 11 to 17-year-olds.

Date: Friday, January 3, 2014
Location:  La Cité Francophone, 8627 – 91 Street,
Robert Toutant Hall #006
Time: 9 am to 4 pm
Cost: $25 for Bonnie Doon Community League members; $35 for others
Bring your lunch.

What Every Babysitter Should Know, includes chapters with information on Becoming a babysitter, Caring for kids, Kids and food, Getting along with kids, Keeping kids safe, Handling emergencies and First Aid. The course handbook also includes the Babysitter’s Checklist.

There is a limit of 12 students.

If your son or daughter is interested in taking What Every Babysitter Should Know, please email Margaret or phone her at  780-469-1179. 

Green Shack is a City-wide program that staffs playgrounds with trained supervisors that engage children in fun, outdoor activities.

Some of you will recall that in the spring of 2013 the Province of Alberta surprised us when they announced the elimination of the STEP program from the budget. The Summer Temporary Employment Program funded summer jobs for young people and community leagues relied on it to pay for Green Shack supervisors. The Bonnie Doon Community League and our sister leagues scrambled to replace the funding. Thankfully the Federal Canada Summer Jobs program stepped in.

The City of Edmonton Council recently decided the Green Shack program is a vital part of recreation in our city and voted to provide sustaining funding. The details will be worked out but things are looking brighter for Bonnie Doon Park's Green Shack program for 2014. Here is what we know from the City plus a piece from the Edmonton Journal (posted before Council decided to fund Green Shack).

If you have questions or concerns please post a comment (see the Add Comment link below) or email us.