Here’s another story of a music festival gone horribly, horribly wrong.
I take you back to June 1970, for the Celebration of Life Festival, which was held on a farm in Louisiana. Promoters called it the South’s answer to Woodstock, which had happened a year earlier. The lineup included Pink Floyd, Ike & Tina Turner, the Beach Boys, and BB King. Local authorities wanted none of this, and two days before the show was supposed to start, cops moved in and shut everything down.
This left thousands of people with nothing to do and nowhere to go. Some sat in the field in the blistering heat and humidity. Others found abandoned farmhouses. There was no food, water, sanitary facilities, or medical care. Two people drowned while escaping the heat in the South Louisiana River, while others were injured in fights with police.
The Celebration of Life Festival of 1970 was a total disaster but has been largely forgotten. Good.
Whenever you get a bunch of music fans into a field and introduce alcohol, drugs, and dodgy weather, things can and will go wrong. The Powder Ridge Rock Festival, held at a ski resort in Middlefield, Connecticut, was one such event.
Local authorities tried to stop it, but 30,000 people showed up anyway. There was no music because everything had been cancelled. The promoter, the owner of the ski resort, was arrested for allowing people onto the property. Meanwhile, everyone had to deal with no music, no food, no water, no sanitary facilities, and some very bad drugs, especially the cheap dollar-a-tab acid.
The only artist to show up was Melanie, the folksinger, who performed an impromptu set powered by a couple of ice cream trucks that had been commandeered.
We’ve evolved when it comes to being able to stage music festivals. In the 70s, though, people were still learning, often with disastrous results.
Let’s go back to Labour Day 1972 for the Erie Canal Soda Pop Festival in Illinois. There was a solid line-up: Black Sabbath, Allman Brothers, Fleetwood Mac, Joe Cocker, and more. About 50,000 people were expected, but the actual number of people who tried to get in might have been close to 300,000.
The result was a 30-kilometre traffic jam. Vendors ran out of food and water and you don’t want to know about the porta-potties. And then it started to rain. Hard. The crowd went crazy, burning a food truck. And get this: A cow from a nearby farm was stolen and butchered for its meat. By the end of the weekend, the main stage was set on fire and hundreds were injured.
From sentimental reminders of home to practical necessities.
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Launch time! Whether your baby is prepping to leave home for their first school year away or they’re returning to campus as upper year experts this fall, that late August uni pack can be overwhelming. And from sentimental reminders of home to the dullest (read: practical) necessities from brands like Simons, Frameo and Command, the dorm décor game has reached pretty epic proportions thanks to all those cheeky hauls and budget hacks on social media. Either way: Cue the mom tears.
Big Girl Bed
If it works within your budget, I recommend buying a new duvet cover for school opposed to packing your home kit along for the ride. Way less of a haul and they’ll love coming back to an old favourite. My advice? Choose basic and spice things up with throw pillows and a cozy blanket. Pair it with a basic white sheet set (or matching), and they’re set.
Size up on this organic cotton duvet cover set for the potential of a larger bed in second year. Also available in slate blue and burgundy. [/product_listing]
Finish the look with this well-priced faux mohair stripey throw. [/product_listing]
Where was this thing when I checked into room 403E at Queen’s, where my headboard was a wall of painted white prison cinderblocks? This pillow-slash-backrest has a removable, washable cover and a side pocket for your phone. [/product_listing]
Boring Game Changers
It’s funny how the more boring the item, the more coveted it becomes in those clutch college moments. From a bath caddy to getting your bed up off the floor (for storage and for cold season), it’s all in the details here, kids.
Create much needed extra underbed storage thanks to these stackable bed risers, which come in a variety of pack sizes (also in black). [/product_listing]
I like this metal frame shower caddy because the alternative is probably plastic – and their collapsible cousins tend to, well, collapse.[/product_listing]
Get them as excited about doing their own laundry as you are – thanks to this preppy pajama striped laundry hamper! Woot! [/product_listing]
Depending on the dorm/house/flat laundry scenario, a backpack-style hamper may come in super handy if there’s a laundromat visit involved.[/product_listing]
I own the older version of these storage bags and they are indestructible. I dig this olive-toned version more than my cobalt blue collection, but you get the idea. Note: not suitable as checked baggage (as we learned the hard way at Heathrow). [/product_listing]
Home Reminders
Even if they’ve told you they can’t wait to get out of the house, they’ll miss you the minute they do (or at least once Frosh Week is over).
This beaded display garland should add a little old-fashioned sweetness to their suite. [/product_listing]
For a more neutral interior style, these felt acoustic panels are a vibe. [/product_listing]
I love this digital photo frame because you can load it and update it remotely. Also makes a wonderful grandparent gift for the lo-fi Papa’s and Grandy’s out there. [/product_listing]
Command Hooks are such a must-have. Note: be sure to read the instructions on how to remove the adhesive backing for a stress-free move out! [/product_listing]
This is cheesy but my daughters and I have matching sweatsuits – and wearing mine is oddly comforting when I miss them the most. New from Aritiza’s Back To Campus: The Fundamentals collection is the Cozy Sweatfleece Mega Straight sweatpant and hoodie. [/product_listing]
WATCH: The Luugat Hotel, a former Howard Johnsons converted into single room occupancy housing on the Granville Strip, was to be closed by June. But a month later there is still one tenant living there and the cost of keeping the building open for one person is staggering. Jordan Armstrong has the details.
Global News has learned that one guest has been staying at a former hotel on Granville Street, despite the B.C. government promising to shut it down.
The Luugat, now owned by the B.C. government, still has one last resident — Ryan Donnelly.
The Ministry of Housing said it cost $101,000 to house Donnelly in July and he is still there.
“It’s insane,” Vancouver Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung said.
“I did some quick math and based on the average rent for, let’s say a one-bedroom apartment in Vancouver, you could house somebody at market rent for more than four years for what it is costing taxpayers to keep one person in that building for one month.”
There is now no timeline to shutter the Luugat.
Housing Minister Christine Boyle did not make herself available for an interview on Tuesday.
Last month, Donnelly told Global News he suffers from a seizure disorder and requires a large room.
For significantly less money, the province could rent the Lieutenant Governor’s Suite at Fairmont Hotel Vancouver with the monthly cost, including breakfast and evening snacks in the executive lounge, totalling about $70,000.
Two people are in hospital after a workplace incident in Regina's downtown.
Dave Parsons
Two people are in hospital after a workplace incident in Regina’s downtown.
Police arrived on scene along with fire and EMS and found two men injured. They were taken to hospital with what appears to be non-life threatening injuries.
A platform can be seen dangling from a building, along with debris on the street. The staging appeared to be attached to bricks at the top of the building, instead of a structural anchor, which witnesses guess could be the reason the platform fell loose.
Officers continue to investigate along with occupational health and safety. The area remains closed off, and people have been asked to avoid the area.
Documents show thousands of acres of Crown land may be transferred to five Vancouver Island First Nations. The BC Conservatives are calling for an end to all land transfers. Catherine Urquhart has more.
New documents show that more than 300,000 acres of land could be transferred to Vancouver Island First Nations, which are currently finalizing treaties.
Approximately 30 parcels of Crown land would be given to five First Nations, which are located from Parksville to Victoria.
The list includes Hatley Castle, Royal Roads University, waterfront in Victoria, property next to the legislature, Discovery Island Provincial Park and Sooke Mountain Provincial Park.
“This is a betrayal of our core democracy here in British Columbia,” Conservative leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay said.
“British Columbians as a whole own this province; we should have a say.”
Lawyer Geoffrey Moyse spent decades advising the province on Aboriginal law.
“There was no requirement to renegotiate the Douglas Treaties, so I think this was a political decision,” he said.
The B.C. legislature’s website states, “The Douglas Treaties, along with Treaty 8, which was signed in 1899 between the federal government and Indigenous peoples and included the northeast area of the province, are the only historic treaties in British Columbia.”
“Now, they’re not renegotiating the Douglas Treaties, they’re adding on modern treaty accoutrements to those agreements, but my point is there’s no legal requirement to deal with Aboriginal title or any of that because it’s already been dealt with,” Moyse added.
Some concerns state that transferred lands would essentially become private property with no legal requirement to preserve public access or adhere to existing zoning.
“This is an ongoing theme from this provincial government of not having public consultation when it matters and it’s overriding democratic oversight in this province,” Steve Kooner with the Conservative Party said.
Global News requested an interview with B.C.’s Indigenous relations minister, but he did not make himself available.
The city is taking a closer look at how and where, e-scooters and e-bikes should operate in Edmonton. Councillors heard Tuesday that safety and parking still remain a top concern for Edmontonians and they're looking at ways to address that. Jasmine King reports.
The city is taking a closer look at how and where e-scooters and e-bikes should operate in Edmonton.
Councillors heard Tuesday that safety and parking still remain a top concern for Edmontonians, so they’re looking at ways to address that.
Those concerns ring a bell for Kyrie Herman and her daughter, as they are part-time wheelchair users. The pair use a lot of shared paths and roadways in the city, but sometimes e-scooters block their way.
“We’ve run into a lot of situations where they’ve been parked on the sidewalk, and then they tip over, or even if they’re just like not tipped over, but parked the wrong way, then we can’t get our wheelchairs around them,” said Herman.
Herman and her daughter are able to get out of their wheelchairs and move them out of the way, but that’s not the case for everyone.
“There are some people that are by themselves, so they can’t get somebody to move it, or they’re not able to pick it up and move it or go around,” Herman said.
Herman is one of many who support changes to Edmonton’s shared micromobility program, covering e-bikes and e-scooters.
A new report from city staff says since the program was launched in 2019, use has nearly tripled to more than 1.4 million trips last year.
It also says that parking and ride behaviour remain among the biggest concerns for Edmontonians.
“I think this is the next natural evolution of that conversation, is how do we make sure that we’re best supporting folks who are, not only using micromobility, but the people who are moving about the districts where they are most popular,” said ward Métis councillor Ashley Salvador.
“We need to work to find ways that accommodate everyone, and that can be tricky in condensed zones and in condensed areas, so I think that’s where some of those intricacies come in, but at the end of the day we wanted people to provide options for everyone to safely get where they’re going.”
The city is considering permanent changes to where e-scooters and e-bikes can go, where they can park and how fast they can travel.
Staff say these tools give flexibility to respond to construction, festivals and other emerging issues without needing permanent infrastructure.
Vendors could also potentially include penalties for people who improperly park and incentives for those who follow the rules.
It’s first testing those options out in an expansion project in Mill Woods with designated parking zones. There are also slow zones and no-riding zones, where the devices automatically reduce their speed or shut down, especially around busy public spaces or special events.
That’s already been tested around Whyte Avenue and during the Edmonton Oilers’ 2025 playoff run.
But some councillors are concerned about too many restrictions.
“If you have to be parking two blocks away, I think that starts to take away from the benefit. So that’s important to me and figuring out how we implement that, so that it’s practical but also helps address the clutter that we see at times,” said ward O-day’min councillor Anne Stevenson.
No permanent changes were decided at committee Tuesday.
For Herman, she hopes whatever eventually changes, people follow suit. So shared paths can be accessible for people like her and her daughter.
“With everything, I think the more you do it, and the more we do it as a community, people will get used to it,” she said.
A central Edmonton neighbourhood is a step closer to having its own community arts hub for artists and performers.
ArtsCommon 118 in the Alberta Avenue area has achieved an important milestone after running into roadblocks a number of times over the past two decades.
“This is gonna be a game-changer project for the Alberta Avenue neighbourhoods,” said Christy Morin, the executive director for Arts on the Ave, which has acquired the land needed to build the hub.
Rendering for ArtsCommon 118 in Edmonton.
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ArtsCommon 118 is designed to be a home for artists not just to collaborate and perform, but also live.
“To have a permanent home where artists can not only work and live and talk to each other and make art together but also show their artwork and congregate as a community is invaluable to Edmonton” said multimedia artist Kaida Kobylka.
The multi-use arts hub is set to be built in the heart of Alberta Avenue at 9131 118 Ave., on a vacant lot that has sat empty for years.
Rendering for ArtsCommon 118 in Edmonton.
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This project has stalled a number of times at City Hall for various reasons.
“We’re cautiously optimistic that this project will actually be delivered this time around,” said Erick Estrada, the executive director for the Alberta Avenue Business Association.
“It’s been over 20 years. The city has shown their support to this type of project before three times and I think, hopefully, this time around they made the right decisions.”
Rendering for ArtsCommon 118 in Edmonton.
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The cost of the project is $10.4 million and the City of Edmonton has already committed $3.3 million. That leaves Arts on the Ave to cover the remaining $7.1 million.
“The city is very clearly indicating that there’s buy-in on our end,” said Ward Metis councillor Ashley Salvador. “I also think there’s opportunities to leverage other funding from provincial and federal partners.”
It will still be a few years before ArtsCommon 118 becomes a reality.
“We are very optimistic in this project because we’ve right-sized the project to the land,” Morin said.
Once ground is broken, organizers say it will take two-and-a-half years to build.
Fire investigators were on scene Tuesday at a house in Sherwood Park which has been under scrutiny lately. As Sarah Ryan explains, neighbours of 58 Glengarry Crescent are speaking out about being “terrorized” by its tenants.
For months, residents of Sherwood Park’s Glen Allen neighbourhood have been fed up with a property where an overnight fire this past weekend was the latest in a series of incidents at the home.
Around 2 a.m. Sunday, flames could be seen jumping out the front window at 58 Glengarry Crescent. The fire was eventually put out and accelerant detection dogs were brought to the scene.
Strathcona County says both the fire department and the RCMP are investigating the blaze. Fire investigators were on scene Tuesday gathering evidence.
Strathcona County RCMP and firefighters responding to a blaze at 58 Glengarry Crescent in Sherwood Park, Alta. on Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026.
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The house on Glengarry Crescent has been under scrutiny for nearly a year, where neighbours have plenty of stories of being “terrorized” by its tenants.
Concerns from neighbours of the property garnered attention from both the mayor and RCMP. Alberta Health Services declared the home unfit for human habitation in November 2025.
Global News has been working on this story for weeks, first speaking to neighbours at the end of July.
Area residents say law enforcement had been spotted at the home a handful of days each week, sometimes two or three times a day.
“Lots of police presence, lots of dogs getting loose to the point where we had to call by-law because my dogs have been attacked, multiple people have been attacked,” said Nicole Johnston, who lives next door.
Undated photo of Strathcona County RCMP responding to 58 Glengarry Crescent in Sherwood Park, Alta.
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Undated photo of Strathcona County RCMP responding to 58 Glengarry Crescent in Sherwood Park, Alta.
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Undated photo of Strathcona County RCMP responding to 58 Glengarry Crescent in Sherwood Park, Alta.
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“They have no running water in that house and the landlord seems he doesn’t care anymore,” said Adele Delplanque, who lives across the street.
“It’s a slum house.”
Her husband Robert Delplaque said while different tenants have lived at 58 Glengarry Crescent over the years, the recent tenants are the most disconcerting.
“They come out of the house they yell, they swear at the neighbors.”
Neighbours believe up to 10 people were staying at the bungalow in recent weeks.
“I just don’t feel safe in my home,” Adele said. “We’ve had to put up cameras.”
Everyone was supposed to be out by December 12, 2025, but the Delplaques said that never happened.
“It is condemned. They’re supposed to be evicted and it’s not being enforced,” Robert said. “They keep giving them extension dates. I don’t know why.
“If it’s condemned, it should be shut down and boarded up.”
Global News tried contacting the landlord repeatedly in recent weeks, including via registered letter, but was unable to make contact.
58 Glengarry Crescent in Sherwood Park, Alta. at the end of July 2026.
Global News
Glen Allan residents said they have been seeking help from every authority they can think of: RCMP, Strathcona County’s mayor, SPCA, peace officers and AHS.
Strathcona County Mayor Rod Frank said he understands their frustration.
“We are not sitting idly by. I wish I could make it happen quicker. That’s not the legal process. If we do that, then we’ll be under legal liability,” he explained.
On July 27, Strathcona County RCMP released a statement saying it was aware of concerns being raised regarding activity at 58 Glengarry Crescent in Sherwood Park.
RCMP encouraged neighbours to report criminal activity surrounding the property, saying they’re trying to identify “appropriate long-term solutions.”
But residents are tired of hearing that.
“It’s just been going on for so long and we feel there’s been empty promises,” Johnston said.
“We need somebody to act and help us, you know, shut down this house,” Robert agreed.
Following Sunday’s fire, the neighbours are hopeful the house will be torn down — finally putting an end to their problems.
“It’s unfortunate that it had to come to this,” Robert said.
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