False Creek Open House: Rogers Arena

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Last November there was a series of Open Houses and public consultations regarding North East False Creek, on some of the land between Stadium Station and Science World. The conversation has picked up once again and tonight you can attend an Open House regarding development immediately surrounding Rogers Arena.

False Creek Concept Plan
Context Plan October 25, 2012. Rezoning Application for 800 Griffiths Way – Rogers Arena

According to the Vancouver Public Spaces Network: “The West Tower is a 22-storey office tower, which has already been re-zoned and is just completing a prior-to approval process. The East Tower would be built above the existing Canucks team store and would be a 31-storey mix of retail, office space, and residential. The South Tower, located just south of the Georgia Viaduct, would be a 32-storey all-residential tower.”

Where Queen Elizabeth Theatre Salons (650 Hamilton)
Date Monday, February 20, 2012
Time Open House is 5:00pm to 8:00pm (drop-in) with a presentation at 7:00pm
Walking Tour Departs at 6:00pm rain or shine

If you cannot attend tonight’s events you can also provide feedback online.

2 Days in Seattle

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Disclosure: Unpaid, Personal Opinion — I was not paid to write this post of any other. I was not expected to provide coverage. I, and I believe most of the participants, treated this as a contest prize. Please review the Policy & Disclosure section for further information.

Over the last few weekends, the Seattle Convention and Visitors Bureau (“Seattle CVB”) has been inviting specific individuals to enjoy their “2 Days in Seattle” campaign.

topsy2daysinseattleUsing Klout, one of many systems that calculates a score for social media users, they sent out invitations throughout major cities in the Pacific Northwest. Klout offers a “Klout Perks” system where companies can offer deals, products, and services to select individuals based on their Klout score. You can claim perks for handbags, wine, books, coffee, and more.

According to Topsy, there have been over 1,420 mentions of #2DaysinSeattle over the last few weeks with the most mentions happening on the first weekend, February 4, 2012.

This perk was offered to those with a specific score (or higher) from Vancouver, Portland, San Francisco, and LA. Seattle CVB offered the following complimentary perks: 2 nights in a downtown Seattle hotel, spending money, gas money (if you drove) or a train/plane ticket, and gift cards for local shops and tours. In exchange, they hoped that participants would tag their photos, check-ins, and tweets with #2DaysinSeattle, sharing their adventures with their own friends and followers. Using that tag, Seattle CVB could also track where visitors were going and reply with suggestions via their incredibly helpful @SeattleMaven account.

While I was not obligated to provide any coverage of this trip, I thought I would try something new with the following collage and collection of places that John and I explored.


Our stops during #2DaysinSeattle

We didn’t bust out our large Nikon cameras for this trip, we wanted to keep things light. The following photos were all taken with our iPhones and posted to our Instagram accounts. Instagram is a simple social network just mobile photos.

2 Days in Seattle Collage Miss604

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UBC Arts Last Lecture 2012 with Strombo

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The Arts Undergraduate Society of UBC will be hosting their annual Arts Last Lecture on Friday, March 16, 2012 and they have announced that George Stroumboulopoulos will be their guest speaker.

ubc-arts-last-lecture

Where Old Auditorium, UBC
When Friday, March 16, 2012 at 7:30pm

Each year, the Arts Undergraduate Society invites a speaker to deliver a “Last Lecture” to the graduating class in the Faculty of Arts. It not only gives the students a chance to celebrate their accomplishment with peers but hopes to empower and inspire the UBC graduates as they set out into the world.

I received an email from the organizers who said that although this is mainly directed towards the graduating class, the event is open to the public, all students (of all years) and faculties. Tickets start at $10 and they are available online. Follow @ubcAUS on Twitter for more information.

From the Miss604 Flickr Pool: Lions Gate Bridge Lights

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It was on this day, February 19, 1986, when the Lions Gate Bridge was illuminated for the first time, a gift from the Guinness family that initially had the bridge built. In honor of this, I have picked out some photos from the Miss604 Flickr Pool.

Photo of the Day Project 2011:February 15 2011
Photo credit: tlmacdonaldphotography on Flickr

On the Lion's Gate South West bound
Photo credit: popejon2 & EP-3 on Flickr

The Lions Gate
Photo credit: EP-3 on Flickr

Entering the Lions Gate Under the lions
Photo credit: Matzuda & arnoldkwong on Flickr

Lions Gate Bridge
Photo credit: Matzuda on Flickr

The 100-watt mercury-vapour bulbs, all 170 of them, were replaced in 2009 with high-efficiency LED lighting. This change cut the power consumption by 90% and now saves the province more than $30,000 a year in energy and maintenance.

Lions Gate Bridge
Photo credit: neil.fisher on Flickr

Lions Gate
Photo credit: Darko Sikman Photography on Flickr

Vancouver @ Night
Photo credit: Tyler Ingram on Flickr

As always, please click through on these images to view more work from the photographers and feel free to share your own photos with the Miss604 Flickr Pool.

Randy Ponzio Tribute Concert

Comments 1 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Tonight a collection of Vancouver musical talent is gathering for a benefit show at the Commodore Ballroom. They’ll be playing in memory of Randy Ponzio and raising funds for his children.

I asked Chris Brandt (Nimbus Recording) to contribute a few words about Randy:

“Randy Ponzio was an inspirational artist, a dynamic musician, and a compelling performer. First and foremost, however, he was a beautiful human.

The shared stories of Randy since his death have been about him as a person. His dedication to charity, his boundless compassion, and the fire with which he attacked life – music was merely the channel he broadcast on.

His lyrics are akin to those of Bob Marley, and he was one of the few artists with the sincerity to pull off songs about love, peace, foundation, and family.”

“He didn’t sing about love as a vehicle of storytelling. Randy hugged with his whole body. His music did too.

In the months before his death, Randy was reaching a new plateau in his career. He won both the Shore 104 FM Song Search and the Nimbus Showcase Event in quick succession, and the grand prize for each included recording time at the Nimbus School of Recording Arts. With that, he spent a great deal of time with the staff and students at Nimbus.

The students were inspired by his presence, as he shared his craft and made every student feel seen and heard. This consistent level of engagement is why no one that met Randy was a casual acquaintance. If you knew him, you were close to him.”

RandyPonzio_BenefitConcert-WEBWhere Commodore Ballroom (868 Granville)

When Friday, February 17, 2012. Doors at 8:00pm.

Artists Kyprios, Hey Ocean!, David Morin, Tonye Aganaba, Foundation, Beauty vs Facts, Valerie Ponzio, Jess Vaira, Alex Maher, Dan Ross, Mario Vaira, Airtights, Un-1, Aspire, Jessi Nicholson, Heads Hang Heavy, Atma, Little T, Kelsey Klassen, Ed Lam, Chantel Upshaw, Asha Moyo.

Tickets Available via Live Nation and at the door for $25.

Download Randy’s album