The West End’s annual 12th Street Music Festival is coming up on Sunday, August 1, and will feature free live music from local bands on two stages, children’s entertainment, displays by local businesses & community groups and events for kids and adults.

Last September I wrote that New Westminster’s SkyTrain safety statistics challenged our community’s assumptions about crime issues at our five SkyTrain stations. First of all, crime is generally down. Secondly, when measuring overall incidences of crime per 100,000 passengers, 22nd St. Station turned out to be worse than the much busier New Westminster station.

We often hear that New Westminster is a small town, not just in size but in style. And that can be both good and bad. This week, in the Moody Park Youth Centre’s campaign to win a $25,000 grant in an online contest, there was a whole lot of good going around.

Crime statistics show that New Westminster is a safer city than in past years. So why don’t people feel safer? We all know someone who knows someone whose house has been broken into several times, or who has witnessed flagrant drug dealing, or seen a new ‘girl’ working 12th St. And then there’s the newspaper crime beat. A New Westminster man was recently arrested (and released on bail) for allegedly sexually assaulting a young woman near a Vancouver SkyTrain Station (and some people misheard it as a rape at 22nd St. Station). Cats were doused in paint thinner. Children were followed by a suspicious man in a truck near a school. People remember stories, not statistics.

Hey New West: our teens need your help. And all you have to do is visit a webpage and click a button.
The new Youth Centre at Moody Park is *thisclose* to winning $25,000 in the Kraft Celebration Tour contest. Up against only one other project in B.C. the youth centre campaign needs your votes to win. In addition to the money, the winning project will also get a live TSN SportsCentre broadcast in the community.
Take a moment please, and vote online during the 24-hour period the contest is open (from …

The City of New Westminster just sent out the following news release about a new plan proposed for school construction in New Westminster. The proposal includes replacing Massey Theatre, keeping Mercer Stadium and adding a new sports field to the school that will be built on the former St. Mary’s Hospital site.

Summerfest in Grimston Park was a great success! Thanks to everyone who came. The turnout surpassed our expectations. We estimated that we had about 500 people at the movie alone, and maybe 1000 over the course of the afternoon. Our sleepy little West End park was packed with happy families!

Odysseus stopped up his ears with beeswax because he knew alone, he would not have the strength to withstand the lure of the sirens’ call. I did the modern green equivalent.

A robust transit system is one of the hallmarks of civilization. In the ancient world, it meant roads. And today, it means an affordable, accessible public transit system that runs on clean energy, and stands as a force to change the world for the better.

You can now access free wifi in Queen’s Park, the New Westminster Public Library, and the Uptown business district, courtesy of the City of New Westminster.

This week is I Love Transit Week over at the Buzzer Blog, and on Thursday, July 15, Jhenifer is hosting an evening transit meetup called I Love Transit Night at New Westminster’s Heritage Grill. Plus, The Buzzer has offered us a Summer Commuter Prize Pack to give away to our readers. To win, just leave a comment on this post sharing an anecdote or commentary that illustrates what you like about public transportation.

Just a quick note for our readers who may be new mums: Thank You Mommy Wellness is presenting a special workshop for new moms and moms-to-be this Friday, July 16: “3 Common Mistakes New Moms Make That Keep Them From Fitting Into Their Pre-pregnancy Clothes.” Tickets are $15, but get in free if you mention that you heard about it on Tenth to the Fraser!

Vancouver may have Bard on the Beach, but New Westminster has Bard in the Park, and it’s free to boot.

Shadows & Dreams Theatre Company returns to the Queens Park Bandshell every Saturday & Sunday at 2pm from July 17 to August 1 to perform William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.

Bring your swimsuits and a picnic blanket to Grimston Park on Saturday, July 17 for Summerfest, a new community celebration in New Westminster’s West End. Enjoy a family-friendly evening of play and live music, shop the mini-Farmer’s Market, and finish the evening off with a special free screening of E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial under the stars.

Get a glimpse of New Westminster’s transportation history from 1900 to 1990 through a collection of historic photographs on display now at the library.

New Westminster Museum & Archvies’ Rob McCullough is working on creating an interpretive panel about the history of Grimston Park to be unveiled at the inaugural Summerfest in Grimston Park, Saturday, July 17. Rob is currently seeking photos, stories and comments from those who have enjoyed the park over the years since it opened.

I’ve had a few people post comments about a current court case in New Westminster on unrelated posts on this blog. The City of New West is involved in a case currently before the Supreme Court of B.C. relating to the former owner of the Windsor Hotel’s unsuccessful attempts to relocate a liquor store to 12th St. a few years ago, and the commenters I mention would like us to write about it. (Note: I haven’t approved the comments, as they are off-topic, and also because I am concerned about …

Green Drinks is a monthly meeting of people interested in sustainability and the environment, and is usually free of themes or agendas. This week, however, there’s a special focus on Metro Vancouver’s ‘Zero Waste Challenge.’

The new playground at Grimston Park is now open, and it is AWESOME. The park’s designers have done an incredible job creating a welcoming and imaginative space to play for kids of all ages. While the temporary fence is still partially up, and there’s still some work to do (laying sod, painting the wading pool), the playground and pool are now open for play.