10 of our favourite Edmonton stories in 2023

It’s been a wild 2023 in Edmonton, and we’re taking a look back at some of our favourite stories of the year.

From a lucky lotto winner to iconic moments at Rogers Place and a new local legend, here are some of our favourite YEG stories of 2023.

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All of the Junos moments

When Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger told us his favourite restaurant

Laine Mitchell/Daily Hive | @burgerbaron99/Instagram

The iconic Alberta-born rock band Nickelback hit the red carpet for the Juno Awards at Rogers Place, dishing with Dished about their favourite restaurant in Edmonton.

Nickelback was at the ceremony to perform and also be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, and we caught up with them on the red carpet.

When asked what their favourite restaurant in Edmonton was, lead singer and guitarist Chad Kroeger was quick to name a favourite location.

“For Edmonton, it’s the Burger Baron. Mushroom bacon cheeseburger at the Burger Baron on, I think it’s on 118th, it’s just down the street from the old arena. I would never ever come to Edmonton without stopping at the Burger Baron.”

And Connor McDavid!

Laine Mitchell/Daily Hive | @uccellinoyeg/Instagram

We also caught up with Connor McDavid on the red carpet about his fave YEG eateries.

“Allegro is really good, Vivo, Uccellino is really good as well,” McDavid said.

“Edmonton has got a really good restaurant scene, super underrated, it’s something that I definitely learned when I moved here.”

Avril Lavigne’s iconic “get the f**k off the stage”

@Much/Twitter

Avril Lavigne told off a topless protestor at the 52nd Juno Awards in Edmonton at Rogers Place in early March.

Lavigne was on the stage presenting the next performer when the protester stood behind her, with Lavigne saying, “Get the f**k off, b***h.”

Unsurprisingly, reaction to the interaction was swift on social media.

Edmonton in “The Last of Us”

SchnepfDesign/Shutterstock | HBO/Imdb

After an episode of the Alberta-shot HBO series The Last of Us premiered earlier this year, it was hard to mistake the Alberta Legislature building in Edmonton making a big appearance.

Fans of the series in the province were quick to notice the Alberta Legislature being featured prominently in episode two of the series, titled Infected.

The building looks absolutely decrepit and seedy, with vegetation growing all over it and abandoned vehicles and tall grass surrounding it.

A new park in the River Valley

City of Edmonton

In early fall, the City of Edmonton opened the new Northeast River Valley Park to the public. Previously known as Our Lady Queen of Peace Ranch North, the park is located at 17th Street NE and 153rd Avenue NE.

Larger than Hawrelak Park’s 168-acre footprint, Edmonton’s newest park runs at a massive 190 acres, which is the equivalent of 150 football fields.

The park has some wickedly unique features like barn bridges, an ornamental lake, a large events centre for gatherings and weddings, children’s connections, a children’s playground, and public washrooms.

This mansion in need of some TLC

Gillian Sutherland/MaxWell Devonshire Realty

A stunning custom-built mansion in Parkland County, once hailed as an “architectural masterpiece,” was listed on the market earlier this year, but its condition and pricepoint caught the eye of many online.

The six-bedroom, seven-bathroom, 8,000-square-foot home was selling then for $2.5 million, with one major caveat: almost all of the windows and doors were smashed out or boarded up.

Shelves were torn off, and in some cases, the entire walls of this home west of Edmonton were been ripped out. In addition, the once bright and inviting kitchen was completely destroyed.

Sadly, the home burned down before a new owner could restore it to its former glory.

Edmonton man wins the big bucks

WCLC

When Edmonton’s newest lotto multimillionaire was revealed, the lucky lotto winner said he was too shocked to figure out what to do with his massive windfall. Nassim Fattouh won the September 5 Lotto Max draw, which saw him net an enormous $50 million prize. Fattouh usually picks up a Lotto Max ticket whenever he stops for gas, but he was shocked when he scanned his ticket in-store.

“I brought my ticket to the store and scanned it on the self-checker,” he said at his prize claim interview. “I saw all the zeroes on the screen and said to the clerk, ‘Something’s wrong. The machine is not working.’”

“I scanned the ticket again, and the same thing happened,” he continued. “I took the ticket to the clerk, and her machine made all sorts of sounds – that’s when I lost my mind!”

High-speed rail for YEG?

Transpod

Earlier this year, the company behind the plan to build a high-speed tube between Edmonton and Calgary shared its plans for where its stops will be in the province.

Once completed, the trains would reach 600 km/h, and TransPod says the tickets will be 45% cheaper than a flight.

We hope to see it come to fruition!

Support for a CTV reporter who became ill during a live hit

Jessica Robb/Twitter | @IanSeggie/Twitter

Support poured in for a CTV Edmonton reporter in January after she “became ill” during the 6 pm news, with many taking to Twitter to wish her well.

Jessica Robb was doing a live hit on the six o’clock news when she started to have trouble speaking and responding to anchor Nahreman Issa.

People expressed their support for Robb on Twitter, commending her composure during the incident.

“Wow. She put up a hell of a fight to keep her composure,” wrote one user, with another responding, “She did good. I hope it’s nothing serious.”

That guy who got stuck in the Talus Balls

@cwks/Instagram

There’s no doubt in our minds that this is the best story to come out of YEG in 2023.

The internet went wild after a 26-year-old man, later identified as Wakeem Courtoreille, became trapped inside the Talus Dome off Whitemud Drive after reportedly climbing on top of the art installation and slipping in.

Firefighters had to rescue him, prying him out and damaging some of the balls in the process. He was later charged with mischief over $5,000.