Canadian Monopoly - Vote for Kitchener & Nominate our Other Municipalities

[UrbanWaterloo]

Canadian Monopoly

Task: Vote for Kitchener & Nominate our Other Municipalities

Link: http://www.monopolyvote.ca/en_CA/world

[UrbanWaterloo]

Voted for today, have you?

Current Standings as of January 12, 2010 5:08PM

Kitchener: #43 ; 0.8%
No local municipalities in the Top 20 Wildcard Cities.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Heard a bit of chatter on chym this morning.

[UrbanWaterloo]

It was a rough day...

Current Standings as of January 13, 2010 11:25PM

Kitchener: #55 ; 0.6%
No local municipalities in the Top 20 Wildcard Cities.

[UrbanWaterloo]

...and the dropping continues... :(

Current Standings as of January 16, 2010 1:35AM

Kitchener: #59 ; 0.5%
No local municipalities in the Top 20 Wildcard Cities.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Finally, a bit of positive news here, at least in the Wildcard race.

Current Standings as of January 18, 2010 12:38AM

Kitchener: #60 ; 0.5%
Waterloo: Wildcard #18

[Greg Moore]

CTV SWO mentioned our dismal showing on the late news last night.

Kitchener: #60 (now #58)
Waterloo: #16 (now #15)

[Spokes]

City needs more people on board if it wants to win game contest

January 21, 2010
By Melinda Dalton, Record staff

WATERLOO REGION — If Kitchener doesn’t drum up more support, and fast, for its place on the Monopoly Canada promenade, it will not pass GO and will not collect the bragging rights that comes with having small square of real estate on the time-honoured board.

Earlier this month, Kitchener was named one of 65 cities pre-selected for a chance to grab a spot on the new Canadian edition of the board game, which will be released right around Canada Day. The cities were selected based on population size, according to Monopoly producer, Hasbro Canada.

As of Wednesday evening, Kitchener ranked 60th in the popularity contest, sagging below Greater Sudbury, Norfolk County and Iqaluit.

But, that ranking hasn’t deterred the city or its business community. Yesterday, the downtown Kitchener Business Improvement Area sprung to action, launching a get out the vote campaign via its Facebook and Twitter pages.

“It’s a great project to show our pride in this community,” said Mark Garner, who heads the BIA. “We need to get behind this now and draw some visibility.”

The BIA is now looking at ways to partner with the city and other stakeholders to draw more attention to the contest and bring in more local support.

Voting for the pre-selected cities takes place online until Feb. 7.

While Waterloo and Cambridge didn’t make the pre-selection cut for the latest version, that doesn’t mean their chances at making the board are dashed. Two spaces will go to the so-called “wildcard” entries — the most popular write-ins.

Ramping up local votes now will be no small task, but isn’t impossible. Calgary and Saint-Jean-sur-Richealu leaped to the top of the boards after their mayors held press conferences and posed for photos dressed as Mr. Monopoly.

As of Wednesday evening, Banff topped the wildcard list. Cornwall, which didn’t even make the top 20 a week ago, was at No. 2, although it temporarily held the No. 1 spot.

It’s unlikely you’ll see Kitchener Mayor Carl Zehr donning a top hat and cane to make a last-minute push to get his city on the board.

“I don’t put a lot of stock in it,” he said in a phone interview from Ottawa, where he’s attending the big city mayors’ caucus. “Unless the city is really, really behind it, you run the risk of having our city Baltic Avenue. . . . It’s a fun kind of thing, but I would regret half-heartedly going into this.”

This is the second time Hasbro has reached out to the voting public to choose new properties for its well-recognized board. In 2008, three Canadian cities generated enough votes to make the international Here and Now edition, with Montreal claiming the coveted Boardwalk space.

Canadian landmarks like Niagara Falls and the CN Tower were also featured in the Canadian Here and Now edition, but those were selected by the company. The original Monopoly board, with properties based on streets in Atlantic City, is celebrating its 75th birthday this year.

Cambridge hasn’t generated enough votes to even rank on the wildcard list so far, but the city is hoping to change that. Emails went out to all city employees encouraging them to write-in the city Wednesday afternoon. Notices also went out to all the youth groups and advisory committees and the city added a voting link on its home page.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to engage our community and raise awareness about the opportunity to nominate Cambridge for the wildcard list,” Mayor Doug Craig said in an email response.

Waterloo has made some advances on the wildcard list, sitting at number 15 as of Wednesday evening.

Mayor Brenda Halloran, who admits to losing more of her fair share of Monopoly games, said she’s thrilled the city is getting so many write-in votes.

“It ties in to being an intelligent community who likes to have fun,” she said, adding she wouldn’t even mind if the city wound up on one of the cheaper game properties.

“As you play the game, you could improve that if you build more hotels,” she said with a laugh. “You never know. It could creep up in value over time.”

After registering on the site, www.monopolyvote.ca participants can vote for three cities and one write-in per day.

Only the top 10 wildcard cities will make it through to the final round of voting and, as of the end of the month, the leaderboard will be blacked out so no one will know exactly where they’ve ranked heading into the finals. The top 10 wildcard cities will be announced on Feb. 8 and the public will have two weeks to vote. Hasbro will reveal the final board in June.

The lowest rent spaces on the board, those right after GO, will be occupied by the wildcard winners. After that, voting will determine where cities will sit on the board.

That’s just one more reason for local Monopoly lovers to get out and support Kitchener, said Garner of the BIA.

“I’d hate to see us on (cheaper) side of the board,” he said. “Of course, I think we’re Park Place.”

mdalton@therecord.com

http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/659728 (http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/659728)

[UrbanWaterloo]

Nice to see our ship has stopped sinking and we're actually starting to now climb (albeit from a ridiculously low position). The media attention must be helping. :cool:

Current Standings as of January 21, 2010 10:25PM

Kitchener: #55 ; 0.6%
Waterloo: Wildcard #15

[UrbanWaterloo]

http://www.topicsites.com/career-money/climbing-ladder.jpg
http://www.topicsites.com/career-money/promotions-advancement-career-changes.htm

Current Standings as of January 22, 2010 8:40PM

Kitchener: #52 ; 0.7%
Waterloo: Wildcard #10 :cool:

[Spokes]

City of Kitchener is stepping up a bit: http://www.kitchener.ca/living_kitchener/monopoly.html

[Shawn]

I voted for Kitchener and Nominated both Waterloo and Cambridge today!

Come on people!! By-pass JAIL and hop on the nearest RAILWAY and GO vote!

[UrbanWaterloo]

Current Standings as of January 27, 2010 1:45AM

Kitchener: #43 ; 0.8%
Waterloo: Wildcard #9
Cambridge: Wildcard #19

Nice job people, Kitchener's climbed 9 places in 4 1/4 days, Waterloo's bumped up a spot, and Cambridge is now registering! Still another 26.5 days to go...

[Spokes]

How many do they take?

[UrbanWaterloo]

Top 20 from the main vote, and 2 Wildcards. The wildcard's will be reduced to the Top 10 starting February 8, 2010.

Kitchener's moved up 3 spots in a day & Cambridge is up a spot.

Current Standings as of January 28, 2010 12:05AM

Kitchener: #40 ; 0.9%
Waterloo: Wildcard #9
Cambridge: Wildcard #18

[Spokes]

Top 20 from the main vote, and 2 Wildcards. The wildcard's will be reduced to the Top 10 starting February 8, 2010.


Uh Oh. If Kitchener's going to make it we need to put a serious amount of voting in in the next week or so.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Agreed, it would be nice to experience a continued surge now. However, we've recovered fairly well and as long as we can keep moving up a spot or two per day we'll make it. 20 Spots Higher in 25 Days is the minimum goal.

Here's one strategy: http://www.facebook.com/#/pages/Downtown-Kitchener-BIA/251192113469?ref=ts

Downtown Kitchener BIA Ok so here is an update: We get three votes daily so please support Chatham Kent as they fight to stay on top, Oshawa, and Kitchener! Together we can all make the Monopoly Board!Yesterday at 1:57pm
Downtown Kitchener BIA UPDATE: Ok Kitchener we have 3 votes a day for Canadian cities so to help us get on the board some awesome people from Chatham Kent will use one of their votes in exchange for ours, so when you vote for Kitchener everyday also be sure to vote for Chatham Kent! Go Southwestern Ontario!Yesterday at 1:45pm

[Spokes]

Agreed, it would be nice to experience a continued surge now. However, we've recovered fairly well and as long as we can keep moving up a spot or two per day we'll make it. 20 Spots Higher in 25 Days is the minimum goal.

Here's one strategy: http://www.facebook.com/#/pages/Downtown-Kitchener-BIA/251192113469?ref=ts

Downtown Kitchener BIA Ok so here is an update: We get three votes daily so please support Chatham Kent as they fight to stay on top, Oshawa, and Kitchener! Together we can all make the Monopoly Board!Yesterday at 1:57pm
Downtown Kitchener BIA UPDATE: Ok Kitchener we have 3 votes a day for Canadian cities so to help us get on the board some awesome people from Chatham Kent will use one of their votes in exchange for ours, so when you vote for Kitchener everyday also be sure to vote for Chatham Kent! Go Southwestern Ontario!Yesterday at 1:45pm

Oh ok, I misread your original post, I thought the main group was being cut on the 8th as well. We still need the votes though

[UrbanWaterloo]

Kitchener's up another two spots. :cool:

Current Standings as of January 29, 2010 4:10AM

Kitchener: #38 ; 0.9%
Waterloo: Wildcard #9
Cambridge: Wildcard #18

[UrbanWaterloo]

Oh ok, I misread your original post, I thought the main group was being cut on the 8th as well. We still need the votes though

Looks like you're right & we only have a bit over a week left. Here's the welcome message on the leaderboard today:


Have your say in Canada's exclusive Monopoly!
I've taken the leader board away to add a little mystery to the final placement of cities on the new board to be released later this year but keep voting for your pre selected cities until February 7 as there’s still everything to play for.
The voting's very close and you can still make a difference - we're so near the end so whether your city was at the top or the bottom, vote like mad and the top spot could be yours.
The 20 pre-selected cities with the highest worldwide votes will make it onto the board. Plus, you will have from February 8 to February 21 2010 to vote on the most nominated Wildcard cities. Only the top two will make it on the board!

Kitchener can still do this, but it's going to be much, much tougher than I previously thought.

Current Standings as of January 30, 2010 6:35AM

Kitchener: Unknown (Last known standing was #37 on January 29, 2010; Downtown Kitchener BIA)
Waterloo: Wildcard #9
Cambridge: Wildcard #19

City of Waterloo Web Banner
http://www.waterloo.ca/portals/57ad7180-c5e7-49f5-b282-c6475cdb7ee7/CS_Rotating_Banner_images/Monopoly_vote_ad_banner_0110.jpg
www.waterloo.ca

City of Cambridge Web Banner
http://www.cambridge.ca/sectionImages/0_vote_monopoly.jpg
www.cambridge.ca

[UrbanWaterloo]

30/01/2010 8:21 PM

Krystal Behrendt sent a message to the members of VOTE KITCHENER 4 OUR NEW CANADIAN MONOPOLY BOARD.

Subject: vote everyday

"just a reminder keep voting everyday. We are doing great last night we were at 35 th place. This is what Kitchener is all about team work lets do this.. The leader board is down on the monoploy site but it is still taking votes so keep the votes coming in, we need at least 3000 votes a day to make it. Chatham kent is voting for us as well so lets help them vote for chatham kent too"

[UrbanWaterloo]

Looks like Waterloo's on to Round 2! :D Hopefully Kitchener's been climbing steadily.

Current Standings as of February 4, 2010 1:30AM

Kitchener: Unknown (Last known standing was #35 on January 30, 2010; Downtown Kitchener BIA)
Waterloo: Wildcard #8
Cambridge: Wildcard #20

[Spokes]

Do you think maybe they took away the viewing if the leader board because they'd like to have a bit more control over what cities are chosen at the end.

Without citing any specific examples, I think there were a few cities that they probably would have wanted on the board but wouldn't have enough votes, and some cities who got a ton of votes and maybe caught them off guard.

[Ktown4ever]

I think that is exactly what they are doing!

[Spokes]

I think that is exactly what they are doing!

I wouldn't be surprised, because some of those cities that were towards the top of the leaderboard, you'd NEVER expect to get on the actual board. They couldn't get rid of someone from the top 5 though haha.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Wildcard Voting is On: Vote Waterloo!

Current Standings as of February 8, 2010 2:15PM

1) Banff 23.2%
2) Niagara Falls 20.1%
3) Victoriaville 11.2%
4) Kenora 9.0%
5) Moose Jaw 8.1%
6) Waterloo 7.9%
7) Corner Brook 6.5%
8) Matane 4.9%
9) Cornwall 4.6%
10) Beauceville 4.4%

[Greg Moore]

We are toast. :(

[UrbanWaterloo]

True, the first day wasn't kind to us. However look at how Beauceville shot up from 10th place (4.4%) to 5th place (8.5%) in a day; if only Waterloo could do the same.

Current Standings as of February 9, 2010 12:30PM

1) Banff 20.5%
2) Niagara Falls 19.6%
3) Victoriaville 10.3%
4) Kenora 9.2%
5) Beauceville 8.5%
6) Moose Jaw 8.0%
7) Waterloo 7.5%
8) Corner Brook 6.3%
9) Cornwall 5.8%
10) Matane 4.4%

[UrbanWaterloo]

The big story these first two days of wildcard voting has to be the spectacular rise of Beauceville: from last to third. They must be getting a lot of local press on Monopoly.


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Beauceville.JPG/800px-Beauceville.JPG
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beauceville,_Quebec

Current Standings as of February 10, 2010 6:00PM

1) Banff 18.9%
2) Niagara Falls 17.8%
3) Beauceville 14.1%
4) Kenora 9.4%
5) Victoriaville 9.3%
6) Moose Jaw 7.3%
7) Corner Brook 6.7%
8) Waterloo 6.6%
9) Cornwall 5.9%
10) Matane 3.9%

[UrbanWaterloo]

:(

Current Standings as of February 13, 2010 1:30AM

1) Beauceville 18.1%
2) Banff 17.4%
3) Niagara Falls 16.4%
4) Victoriaville 9.8%
5) Kenora 9.8%
6) Moose Jaw 6.7%
7) Corner Brook 6.4%
8) Cornwall 6.2%
9) Waterloo 5.8%
10) Matane 3.5%

[UrbanWaterloo]

Things don't look good with just under 6 days of voting left.

Current Standings as of February 16, 2010 6:10PM

1) Beauceville 19.9%
2) Banff 16.8%
3) Niagara Falls 15.8%
4) Victoriaville 11.3%
5) Kenora 9.5%
6) Cornwall 7.0%
7) Moose Jaw 5.8%
8) Corner Brook 5.7%
9) Waterloo 5.0%
10) Matane 3.2%

[UrbanWaterloo]

http://www.monopolyvote.ca/en_CA/world/leaders

"I've taken the wildcard leader board away to add a little mystery to the final placement of cities on the new board to be released later this year but keep voting for your wildcard cities until February 21, 2010 as there's still everything to play for."

[Urbanomicon]

Waterloo boy wants city on Monopoly game

February 19, 2010
By Johanna Weidner, Record staff

WATERLOO — Jordan Rutledge is determined to see his favourite city on his favourite game.

The eight-year-old votes every day for Waterloo to get a spot on a new Monopoly Canada board game. And he’s urging everyone else to do the same by going door-to-door in his neighbourhood and posting flyers.

“We need a lot of people to do it,” Jordan said.

Waterloo is in the wild card competition for two spots on the board. With precious few days left before voting ends on Feb. 21, Jordan is eager to get people casting a daily ballot for Waterloo.

Kitchener was one of 65 cities picked to run for 20 spots in the first voting drive that ended earlier this month.

Jordan’s father heard about the Monopoly competition on television and soon the Grade 3 student at Bridgeport Public School started his own campaign.

“He got me hooked onto it,” Jordan said.

As far as he’s concerned, no game beats Monopoly.

“I really like the Monopoly game,” he said. “It’s the funnest game I’ve ever played.”

He likes the little players travelling around the board and collecting piles of money. Jordan doesn’t hesitate to do a little bragging about his Monopoly prowess: “I always win.”

Waterloo was in seventh place last week, but tallies are being kept secret in the last few days of voting. The top 22 cities and their locations on the board will be announced in June.

Jordan dreams of seeing Waterloo on the Monopoly board when his family pulls it out for the traditional Christmas game. He’s already got about 10 versions, but the Canadian edition is certain to become a favourite if Waterloo gets a stake on the board.

Vote for Waterloo online at www.monopolyvote.ca (http://www.monopolyvote.ca).

jweidner@therecord.com

http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/672881

[UrbanWaterloo]

"Thank you for your continued interest in MONOPOLY CANADA. Voting has now ended but please make sure to look for the new MONOPOLY CANADA game launching Summer 2010."
www.monopolyvote.ca

[Spokes]

But no results? Ridiculous!

[van Hemessen]

I hope they decide to arrange the board logically so we don't see Sherbrooke and Medicine Hat taking Boardwalk and Park Place.

Or some such ridiculousness.

[Duke-of-Waterloo]

/\ touche

[Urbanomicon]

I hope they decide to arrange the board logically so we don't see Sherbrooke and Medicine Hat taking Boardwalk and Park Place.

Or some such ridiculousness.

My bet is Ottawa as Boardwalk and Toronto as Park Place.

[Spokes]

"GO" Canada! Hasbro celebrates 75 years of MONOPOLY this Canada Day with an all new edition created by Canadians!
The world's favorite family game brand announces the 22 cities elected by fans across Canada to appear on new MONOPOLY: Canada Edition game board
Toronto | June 22, 2010 | http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/June2010/22/c7212.html

The results are in! After passionate campaigns across the country and more than one million votes from MONOPOLY fans from Kelowna to Kawartha Lakes, 22 of Canada's favourite cities now have a home on the new MONOPOLY: Canada Edition game board. Chatham-Kent, Ontario now represents the coveted Boardwalk spot, with Saint-Jean-Sur Richelieu Quebec capturing Park Place to round out the prestigious dark blue property group in the popular game invented by Charles Darrow in 1935.

"We are thrilled to celebrate Canada Day with this new all-Canadian edition of the world's favorite family game brand featuring cities voted by Canadians!" said Michelle Sinclair, Brand Manager of Games & Puzzles for toy and game-maker Hasbro Canada. "We hope that Canadian MONOPOLY fans will enjoy playing on a game board that includes an interesting mix of our cities featuring all of the dynamic cultures, sights and history of this country."

Votes were cast during a six-week period in early 2010. The first four weeks of voting determined 20 of the 22 cities featured in the game, picked from 65 pre-selected cities based on the population size of the province in which they resided. The remaining two spots were reserved for a wildcard vote for any city across Canada. Ten cities with the most nominations for the wildcard faced off for two weeks in February 2010 and Beauceville, Quebec and Banff, Alberta earned the brown property spaces on the game board, traditionally occupied by Baltic Avenue and Mediterranean Avenue.

Celebrating Great Canadian Cities

The following 22 cities earned spots on the MONOPOLY: Canada Edition game board, and are listed with the highest rent properties first:

- Dark Blue: Chatham-Kent, Saint-Jean-Sur-Richelieu
- Green: Calgary, Sarnia, Edmonton
- Yellow: Windsor, Quebec City, Trois-Rivieres
- Red: Medicine Hat, Gatineau, Shawinigan
- Orange: Kawartha Lakes, Chilliwack, Montreal
- Magenta: Kelowna, North Bay, St. John's
- Light Blue: Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver
- Brown: Beauceville, Banff

Along with the 22 property spaces featuring great Canadian cities, the game will include updated Chance and Community Chest cards that highlight events and culturally relevant scenarios from Canada. Players may take flight at the International Balloon Festival in Saint-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, skate along the Rideau Canal in Ottawa or win big at the casinos in Niagara Falls. The new MONOPOLY: Canada Edition also features an Electronic Banking unit with cards instead of cash. Players can collect rent and buy their favourite Canadian cities with the touch of a button!

Today, the MONOPOLY brand provides entertainment experiences for players around the world. Whether they play the board game, digital or online games, or participate in casino or lottery gaming, there is a MONOPOLY experience to fit every lifestyle. Stemming from the strategic alliance between Hasbro and Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS), EA has created digital versions of MONOPOLY which are available for download for mobile phones or free online at www.Pogo.com. MONOPOLY is also available for console gaming systems, including the Nintendo Wii(TM), Xbox 360(TM), PlayStation(R)2 and PLAYSTATION(R).

The new MONOPOLY: Canada Edition will be available in stores across the country, in both English and French on June 28th, 2010 for an approximate retail price of $39.99. For more information please visit www.hasbro.ca.


Board stiff: Waterloo Region shut out of latest Monopoly game
June 23, 2010 | Record staff and The Canadian Press | http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/733410

TORONTO — Windsor’s on there. So are Chatham-Kent, Kawartha Lakes, North Bay and Sarnia.

But you won’t be building hotels on Kitchener, Waterloo or Cambridge any time soon. Waterloo Region has been shut out of the Canadian version of Monopoly.

Despite a public push by the cities and the Kitchener Business Improvement Area for online votes, none of the cities garnered enough to make the game.

Kitchener was one of 65 cities pre-selected to be in the running for a spot on the iconic board. Waterloo and Cambridge came on as wild card candidates – write ins that could take one of two reserved properties.

“The challenge was to communicate to people that they could vote more than once – many people joined in to support but didn’t realize that that to put us over the top they needed to vote daily throughout the contest,” city of Cambridge spokesperson Linda Fegan said in an emailed statement.

“To us, we will always be a great place to invest, raise a family, build a business, and to visit; whether we are on the Canadian Monopoly board or not, Cambridge is the place to be.”

Votes from across the country were tallied to determine the squares in the new game, giving patriotic players the chance to land on 22 Canadian cities.

The highest real estate squares, the dark blue normally occupied by Boardwalk and Park Place, went to Chatham-Kent and Saint-Jean-Sur-Richelieu in Quebec.

The green squares went to Calgary, Sarnia and Edmonton, while Windsor, Quebec City and Trois-Rivieres, Que., grabbed the yellow spots. Medicine Hat, Alta., and Gatineau and Shawinigan in Quebec are painted red.

Kawartha Lakes, Chilliwack, B.C. and Montreal are orange. The Magenta squares were allocated to Kelowna, B.C., North Bay and St. John’s, N.L.

Light blue squares went to Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver.

Votes were cast during a six-week period earlier this year to determine 20 of the cities from the pool of cities pre-selected based on population.

The other two spots, the brown properties, were reserved for the wildcard winners. Those went to Banff and Beauceville.

The popular board game, produced by Hasbro, has gone through a number of incarnations since being invented by Charles Darrow in 1935. For instance, Electronic Arts has created digital versions that are available for download for mobile phones.

This new Canadian edition features an electronic banking unit with cards instead of cash, allowing players to collect rent and buy their squares with the touch of a button, Hasbro said in a release.

More than 275 million copies of Monopoly have been sold in 11 countries and 43 languages. There are more than 200 different editions.

The new Canadian edition will be available in stores in French and English on June 28, Hasbro said.

[Urbanomicon]

I'm a little curious as to why a place like "Chatham-Kent" would be "Boardwalk". Usually they put the largest cities and/or the capitals as the highest rent properties (Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver). Canada's capital, largest city and third largest city have the second lowest rent in the game.

[RangersFan]

I'm a little curious as to why a place like "Chatham-Kent" would be "Boardwalk". Usually they put the largest cities and/or the capitals as the highest rent properties (Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver). Canada's capital, largest city and third largest city have the second lowest rent in the game.

Thats because Chatham-kent is the best...... All kidding aside I was raised in Chatham and couldn't believe it took the Boardwalk piece, and whats almost as astonishing no Waterloo Region representation

[KevinL]

I'm a little curious as to why a place like "Chatham-Kent" would be "Boardwalk".

Apparently, it got the most votes. Which is really quite silly; I can't see this game selling well as a result.