Oliver Square no more, shopping centre rebrands to 'Unity Square'
A shopping centre in Edmonton has changed its exterior signage and online branding to remove ‘Oliver’ from its name.
Previously known as Oliver Square, the central Edmonton shopping centre will now be called Unity Square.
Frank Oliver, a Canadian politician and journalist brought the first printing press to Edmonton. He served as minister of the interior and superintendent general of Indian affairs where he pursued policies that harmed Indigenous communities, including restricting land ownership.
An Edmonton neighbourhood, park, school, and pool also feature Oliver’s name. Community members have been pushing for name changes to remove associations to the historical figure.
- Oliver Community League calls for neighbourhood name change
- Frank Oliver plaque vandalized for second time within a year
- Grandin name removed from Edmonton Catholic elementary school in unanimous vote
- Grandin Fish ‘n’ Chips rebrands, drops Grandin name
The property manager for the shopping centre confirmed the name change and said further details would be announced after the long weekend.
CTV News Edmonton received a flyer that BentallGreenOak, the company managing the property, plans to mail out to members of the community to inform them of the name change.
“Change is all around us, including our name,” the flyer read.
According to the flyer, unity was chosen because it is featured in the word community and that it has associations with the words ‘hub’ and ‘centre’ – places where people cross paths.
“Welcome to Unity Square, where the awesome power of community connects.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cargo ship had engine maintenance in port before Baltimore bridge collapse, officials say
The cargo ship that lost power and crashed into a bridge in Baltimore underwent 'routine engine maintenance' in port beforehand, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
Families shocked after Niagara Falls hotel cancels bookings made year in advance of solar eclipse
After having the foresight to book their Niagara Falls hotel rooms more than a year in advance, several families planning to take in the solar eclipse next month were shocked to find out their reservations had been cancelled.
B.C. rescuers face 'high likelihood' of failure to reunite orphaned orca with pod
The race to reunite an orphaned orca calf that’s stuck in a shallow lagoon with a neighbouring pod has entered its fifth day, and a marine scientist says the clock is ticking.
Video shows police interrupting auto theft in progress outside Toronto home
New video footage obtained by CP24 shows the attempted theft of a vehicle in a North York driveway earlier this month that was ultimately interrupted by police.
Majority of Canadians believe in life after death: Angus Reid survey
A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.
MyPillow, owned by U.S. election denier Mike Lindell, formally evicted from Minnesota warehouse
A court ordered the eviction Wednesday of MyPillow from a suburban Minneapolis warehouse that it formerly used.