Everything at Calgary city council is a "journey." Reconciliation. Recycling. Arena deal. Budget. You name it. No matter what it is, we are on a "journey." Oh it's a trip all right... #yyccc

I used that branch from 1981 (when I first moved into Crescent Heights) to 1993 when it closed. I remember the community's reaction (including John McD's). Its closure basically stopped me from using the library ever again. Convenience matters.

This would have been my local library branch. Walkable and bikeable. And while I am sad about its disappearance, I had fun digging into this bit of local Calgary history! #yycbike #yyccc

I genuinely want to write this but am too busy working on my podcast 🙃

Angels v Braves fight has renaissance painting potential

Got this assigned, thanks everyone who shared this around!

I'm looking for someone in Vancouver to do a very simple freelance radio/podcast assignment for The Sprawl this week. It involves going to a certain site and recording ambient sound with a Zoom (or something similar). Paid gig obvs. Any ideas? @jmcelroy.bsky.social

Have been thinking of writing a piece and the first line is: I hate podcasts

And with Jeremy himself…

I am eager to take out The Sprawl's Pop-Up Press again in 2026. May there be sunshine soon—or, at least, an end to all this snow! ☀️

I am gonna blow a gasket owing to Calgary's ridiculous ParkPlus app. It'll take UP TO AN HOUR to get a password reset link??

One of my very first assignments as a journalist, in 2004, was to cover a Stephen Lewis speech in Calgary for the Mount Royal College student paper. Can remember being deeply inspired that day. A truly great man and a great Canadian.

Today is going to be a great day—and that's no joke!

Can't overstate what a mistake it was for Calgary city council to eliminate the civic census in 2020. Most recent census data is 2021 (federal) and everyone cringes to use it in 2026. Given Calgary's explosive growth it's pretty much useless for understanding current pop + demographics. #yyccc

It is amusing seeing Councillor Landon Johnston antagonize Mayor Jeromy Farkas in the manner that Councillor Jeromy Farkas antagonized much of city council from 2017 to 2021. What goes around comes around eh! #yyccc

This is stating the obvious at this point, but Google's search results are complete shite now. Anyone know where I can order custom stickers that have a screaming neon/fluorescent green? Could even be black logo on neon green. (For Sprawl stickers.)

Calgary city council is being asked to approve 4 new communities on the city's outskirts, with 5 more applications on the way in the coming months. I dug into it for the new Sprawlcast. A good listen/read for a snowy Saturday. #yyccc www.sprawlcalgary.com/calgary-subu...

Can I reuse a headline I used six years ago? Only a few words of the headline!

I have very much become the old guy at CJSW. Turn down that speaker in the hall! Keep it down in the live studio! Those drums are too loud! Etc etc. *shakes fist at cloud*

SCOOP: RCMP execute search warrants tied to Alberta's health procurement controversy; at least a dozen officers were at MHCare Medical Corp.'s headquarters on Wednesday www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/alber...

Update: making progress! As one does. The next stop: Sprawlcast!

Hey @klaszus.bsky.social I listened to this @99pi.org episode and I thought it would be nice to do a similar one for Calgary's 311? :D I'd love to know why some of my reports get closed without any comments, for example 😅 99percentinvisible.org/episode/serv...

Have been listening to The Weakerthans constantly since reading this excellent piece. There may have been tears. Feel free to enjoy my "Best of The Weakerthans" playlist (you're welcome): open.spotify.com/playlist/0vL...

SCOOP: Two companies involved in building some of Alberta's addiction recovery centres are mired in litigation, including accusations of forgery on one side and allegations of intimidation involving Sam Mraiche, of MHCare www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic... By @tomcardoso.bsky.social and friend

This Sprawlcast will be the death of me. End of line. 💀

Oh dear. I have 49 pages of clips for the next Sprawlcast. 49!!!! And the episode has to be done for Saturday. (Support local journalism folks - seriously! Sign up here...) #yyccc

“Everything dies,” he concedes. “We’re upset by change and by things dying and passing away, but sometimes they really need to.”

Local journalism 👏🏾. Bravo @klaszus.bsky.social! Quote: "Council needed to get on with LRT, [Ald. Huish] wrote: “We will either face the issue squarely and start building a mass transit system powered by an energy other than petroleum products, or face the age of scarcity without being prepared.”

I miiiiight have gone a tad overboard with this week's Sprawl dispatch. No regrets though! A deep dive on the forgotten origins of Calgary's CTrain free fare zone. #yyccc

With cool pics, I should add

Hands up if you want to read a zillion words on the history of Calgary Transit's free fare zone! That's what's coming in tomorrow's @sprawlcalgary.bsky.social newsletter.

No one tell my wife, it will be a "surprise" 👹

I finished my next Sprawl story on Wednesday. But then I went to the city archives yesterday and did a bunch more research, and am now rewriting the whole thing. Welcome to my life.

Great job by @klaszus.bsky.social, who we find out is not “a person of less character”, in providing the history, benefits, and prospects of the FFZ www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-p...

An odd moment this morning. Leaf blowers blaring at my townhouse complex. Realized I don't have a "clean" audio recording of leaf blowers, and will need it one day. So out I went to make a "quality" recording of the sound that ruins otherwise good audio. Now I have it for when I need it!

I’m very happy to support the Sprawo

Hi #EarlyModern Bluesky - did you know that someone brilliant has built working printing presses using Lego and they are trying to get enough supporters so that Lego will release it as a kit? They look so cool! beta.ideas.lego.com/product-idea...

I'm happy to play the hype man for a second. My pitch is simple: If you care about Calgary one of the best things you can do is subscribe to the Sprawl. The times we are living in cry out for excellent local journalism. And guess what #yyc? It's available at www.sprawlcalgary.com

Hard to get new Sprawl members nowadays! So busy w/ stories that I don't have time to make proper appeals. Also I feel like I've said the same thing 1000x and am sick of hearing myself say it. Even so—if you value independent journalism, pls support our work! sprawlcalgary.fundjournalism.org/donate/

Huh! This story about a small, obscure city tax program is The Sprawl's most-read story of 2026 so far. One never knows what will take off! #yyccc

Is conservative Calgary Councillor Andre Chabot a closet socialist? Find out in today's @sprawlcalgary.bsky.social dispatch! #yyccc

Cleaning my office today as I listen to #yyccc executive committee. "Cleaning"—excavating is more like it. There is the election layer of stuff and then, below that, the Pop-Up Press layer. Couldn't handle it any longer. Feels good to get somewhat organized

“A lot of politicians during Black History Month are talking about John Ware and Violet King and holding up these people as examples of Black excellence. If they are also participating in anti-immigrant rhetoric today, their words of praise for the legacies of previous immigrants ring hollow.”

This is neat. Bashir Mohamed's 2018 Sprawl article about Charles Daniels being denied his seat at the Grand Theatre has led to a permanent memorial honouring his legacy. Less neat: "The rhetoric of today resembles the rhetoric of those years."

These slop accounts are garbage. City council did NOT extend transfer window. They asked admin to start work on it + report back in Apr for council to decide. Accounts like these scrape headlines, have 100,000+ followers & often get it wrong. Meanwhile legit news orgs are banned by Meta. 🤦🏻‍♂️ #yyccc

Alberta is exhausting.

It's really important to always have a good novel going

I gotta stop loading my Kobo with articles about AI to read at night

Spent World Radio Day making radio. New Sprawlcast episode drops tomorrow (Saturday)! 📻

Someone needs to level with Calgarians about how we can't sprawl endlessly, AND keep taxes low, AND maintain infrastructure and services.