It’s been 100 years.  One hundred years of Edmonton battling its brand … its image … its reputation … which has resulted in something quite UNremarkable.  Better than Winnipeg and Regina … kinda like Ottawa … but comfortably less flashy than Toronto, Vancouver or Calgary.

• Definition:          un·re·mark·a·ble  [ri-mahr-kuh-buh l]
• Adjective:           Ordinary. Common. Average. Good Enough.
• Adjective:           Not worthy of attention.  Not worth remarking about.

We used to be known for Wayne Gretzky and West Edmonton Mall.  But Wayne left town and someone built a bigger mall.   We used to be known as the City of Champions.  But a couple bad seasons quickly left our teams not worth remarking about.  We used to be a government town, a university town, a festival town, a sports town, a creative arts town, an entrepreneurial town and a volunteer town.  But we have never wrapped that kaleidoscope identity into something we can stand up with and shout to the world.

Why?  Because over that 100 year history we have been afraid of building remarkable things.  In 1912 we thought a $2.25 million chateau-style hotel was way too extravagant for the city, and nearly kyboshed the MacDonald Hotel.  Kinsmen Sports Centre was unnecessarily big, as was Commonwealth Stadium.  We were spending too much money on acoustics at the Winspear.  Hall D at the Shaw would never work.  And, the majority of Edmontonians thought lipstick on the old Art Gallery would be good enough.

Our history is riddled with big visions deflated by endless debate.  And Edmonton’s identity has suffered from this lack of unity, a lack of confidence and a lack of action.

In my first week at EEDC, Councillor Amarjeet Sohi asked me, “On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rank Edmonton’s brand?”  I indicated that I believed we were a 1.5 out of 10.  After a clear audible clenching sound throughout the council chambers, Councillor Kerry Diotte thanked me for my brutal honesty.

I question whether we are serious about changing our identity?  Sometimes I think that maybe the tagline “Edmonton: Good Enough” is what we really want?  But, my hope is for more … much more.  My hope is we unshackle ourselves from this civic brand of indecision and inaction … of good enough … and push for remarkable things.

We live in a city with a $56 billion economy, growing at 3.5% per year.  We serve over 1.2 million people in the capital region, growing at 22,000 people per year plus over 9,000 new students that gainfully enter our workforce every June.  Household incomes are the envy of the country, corporate profits are high, commodity prices are buoyant, we have no consumption tax and we have the 2^nd lowest tax structure in North America.  Yes we have potholes, and poverty and social challenges.  Yes we will always need more schools and hospitals to accommodate our growth.  But we also need big, bold, remarkable ideas to attract those same people who may want to come and live here in the first place.

It’s our brand and our image … and it drives population growth, investment and self esteem … and it makes cities either great or ordinary.  Great cities must maintain a vision of “remarkable” despite a public policy environment that is filled with austerity, intervention, budget cuts, fiscal deficits, debt and uncertainty because they forgot to live within their means.

Do Edmontonians want to settle for good enough … for average?  Or do we want to be remarkable?

Allan Scott built the Art Gallery.  He was also one of my predecessors here at EEDC.    And the man had a terrific vision.

In 2002, Allan initiated the Downtown Renaissance to start getting rid of surface parking lots, accelerating residential construction and making Edmonton’s downtown core a hub for education, entertainment, sports and hospitality.  A huge amount of progress has been made over the past 10 years.  I know we’re not there yet, but we are on our way.

Progress will always get us there … eventually.  But occasionally you need catalytic projects that knock down barriers (aka blinders) and that allow more investment to flow.  Greg Christenson’s RailTown project (Jasper/109^th), MacEwan University Campus, LRT Expansion, Winspear Centre and Prem Singhmar’s new hotel (Quarters) are all examples of such transformative projects, and Edmonton’s new downtown arena needs to be next.

A major downtown sports, entertainment and hospitality complex is core to all vibrant cities, as it stimulates massive activity by way of new hotels, restaurants and bars that in turn encourage people to stay after work, spend money and play.  This is a HUGE opportunity for our service and tourism economy, as it helps makes Edmonton vibrant and fun 7x24x365 … no matter if you are attending a gallery, having a drink on a patio or simply walking home.  It also fills the density we are missing on our streets, in residential towers and all the opportunities in between that are percolating in the minds of entrepreneurs.  But most importantly, it is a symbol of our awesomeness … which I’m not afraid to shout to the world.

Over the years, many of our big ideas have been deflated.  EXPO was crushed. Our river valley is still disconnected.  The Terrace Building is still an eyesore.  Hell, it took us 20 years to make a decision on the airport.  Edmonton’s new downtown arena needs to be awesome.  I can evangelize the economic impact, the value of the team, the surrounding development and the impact on local suppliers until I’m blue in the face.  But equally as important, I want to evangelize the need to unshackle us from the past, from this debate and from the fear of doing something remarkable in this city.  This is big … and it is exactly what this city needs to knock down the barrier to becoming AWESOME.

We are inviting the world to “Come Build [It] Here.  Let’s Build [The Arena] Here … Now.

– Brad.