Fixing Calgary's Business District

[JonnyCanuck]

Living in downtown Calgary as I do, this is a big task. There are already so many office buildings that are connected by Plus 15's and were not built for street level activity. The owners of those buildings are unlikely to change anything in the spirit of improvement. We will not see any new office towers for many, many years.
Sure, there could be the odd older office building converted into residential however these are also the buildings that have limited street level/sidewalk activation opportunities because of how they were built, and how close to the street they are standing. There are still a few empty parking lots that might see residential construction some day. Altogether these spaces are scattered all over the downtown core. I don't see how you can have a cohesive plan if you are trying to activate so many different blocks. I think the focus has to stay on specific areas/neighbourhoods ....
East Village (already planned and execution underway)
West Village (planning is starting to come together)
Eau Claire (planned but progress has been stalled)
Stephen Avenue (elements are already in place and more improvements to come)

That covers the north, south, east & west perimeters of the CBD to draw people. Forget about inside the perimeter.

 

[Silence&Motion]

Add more high density, urban amenity uses (housing, hotels; music venues) in and around the CBD

Smaller amenities are good, but the government has limited control over that, other than relaxing any regulations that might stand in their way.

In terms of major amenities, I would love to see both the Alberta University of the Arts and the Jubilee Auditorium relocated somewhere downtown.

The other thing to keep in mind is the idea of "scenes". Some businesses/amenities create synergies, and other detract from each other. The more edgy amenities are not going to do well surrounded by office buildings. No one wants to go to a club in the lobby of a O&G headquarters. Students attending AUA aren't going to be crazy about eating lunch at the same places as a bunch of suits gossiping about the accounting department.

I would say, aesthetically, something like the Jubilee Auditorium would be better suited for the CBE, since people going there are more formally dressed, and expect to eat at upscale restaurants that also attract the corporate crowd.

AUA would do better in some corner of downtown where there are older buildings that can potentially be used as gallery space, cheap student housing, cheap cafes, restaurants and bars that appeal to young people and artists. Not exactly sure where that would be, but probably somewhere on the edges of the CBE: EV, West End, 10 Ave SE in the Beltline?

It's really unfortunate we didn't build one of our hospitals in the downtown core, because that would create a whole new source of gravity, and activity 24/7. You'd have a lot of demand for apartments from med students/residents and other health care workers who don't want to drive back and forth to the hospital when they're on call in the middle of the night.

 

[darwink]

I think interesting projects to explore over the next 10 years in downtown (mostly at the end of the decade):
ACAD/AUArts to Telus convention centre south - even just a study to see if room sizes work, and how much additional is needed
Food market to Telus convention centre north - remove a public competitor to suffering hotels and ensure the BMO has a strong base to grow from. This can start as a Saturday morning only market even.

Plus many of the other projects others have brought up, but I would prioritize sidewalk widening. One of the forgotten pieces of Plus 15 history is it originally wasn't about weather protection, it was about addressing overburdened sidewalks without reclaiming road space.

 

[Surrealplaces]

If vacant office space sits that way long enough, there may be more incentive for conversions to residential. The main issue is that mostly boutique buildings can be feasibly converted, as the larger floor plates are more difficult to convert. Building code changes could result in making larger office office buildings easier for conversion, and that's something the government might be able to help with.

I am totally on board with converting TCC to something like an ACAD or a public market, etc.. Any kind of multi-use facility that draws people would be nice.

I also agree with improving the pedestrian environment.That's something the city has control of and can do. If there was a way to create incentive to move businesses from the plus + to the sidewalk, that would go a long way to revitalizing some of the streets, and would help make the core more attractive to potential residents.

 

[UrbanWarrior]

Nexen Tower would be a perfect new location for Alberta University of the Arts. It's completely empty, has a large plaza out front (for numerous student art installations) right at two downtown free fare zone stations, and a winter garden for larger art exhibitions. Plus its right next to the new Century Gardens, which also presents some pretty great opportunities.

 

[Disraeli]

Yeah I tend to think it will increasingly be in the interest of owner's of class c and b office space to look at options, whether it is repurposing ground floor space to attract retail, renovating to make it more in line with modern office design and amenities, or converting to condos. I've been in offices in some buildings which felt like you are stepping back in time. I've even seen offices with walls and ceiling tiles still stained with tobacco smoke from back when you could smoke in your office. It's going to be tough to attract a modern company with a 70s corporate vibe.

The other thing to keep in mind is the idea of "scenes". Some businesses/amenities create synergies, and other detract from each other. The more edgy amenities are not going to do well surrounded by office buildings. No one wants to go to a club in the lobby of a O&G headquarters. Students attending AUA aren't going to be crazy about eating lunch at the same places as a bunch of suits gossiping about the accounting department.

Good point. To me, i've come to realize the CBD's fate is sealed as being a more corporate, upscale environment. Apart from live music at the Palomino, or the odd Sled Island show at the Legion, an ACAD student, or hipsters generally, are out of place in the CBD. But that's not to say it can't still be more pedestrian and retail oriented. That's why I like the idea of digital retail signage, and more corporate retail spaces like Nordstrom and H&M in the CBD where office podiums are suited to larger retail space design. I've seen some good examples of office podium redesigns in Vancouver and Toronto that do a good job at this. Inglewood, Kensington etc. should be the go to destination if you are looking for a more kitschy, independent vibe. Beltline can stay a mix.

 

[zagox]

Living in downtown Calgary as I do, this is a big task. There are already so many office buildings that are connected by Plus 15's and were not built for street level activity. The owners of those buildings are unlikely to change anything in the spirit of improvement. We will not see any new office towers for many, many years.
Sure, there could be the odd older office building converted into residential however these are also the buildings that have limited street level/sidewalk activation opportunities because of how they were built, and how close to the street they are standing. There are still a few empty parking lots that might see residential construction some day. Altogether these spaces are scattered all over the downtown core. I don't see how you can have a cohesive plan if you are trying to activate so many different blocks. I think the focus has to stay on specific areas/neighbourhoods ....
East Village (already planned and execution underway)
West Village (planning is starting to come together)
Eau Claire (planned but progress has been stalled)
Stephen Avenue (elements are already in place and more improvements to come)

That covers the north, south, east & west perimeters of the CBD to draw people. Forget about inside the perimeter.

I agree, it is neither likely nor necessary that the centre of the CBD will be a 24/7 multi-use space. Most office districts in most cities are boring 9 to 5 areas, even in cities with great nightlife. No one wants to hang out after-hours in San Francisco's Financial District, Paris' La Defense, or The City of London.

Calgary's problem is mostly that the boring office district is extraordinarily large for a city its size, and people's conception of "downtown" is synonymous with the boring office district.

I think the solution is two-fold:

1) As above, focus on making the 'edges' of the office area more vibrant 24/7 places, especially East Village but also West Village, Eau Claire, and Stephen Avenue.

2) Start to broaden what people think of as 'downtown' to include Eau Claire, Beltline, Sunalta, Kensington, Bridgeland, and Inglewood. New Green Line stations in Eau Claire, Inglewood, Victoria Park, and Beltline will definitely help. Without any capital investment, so would expanding the 'downtown' free-fare zone to Sunnyside, Sunalta, Bridgeland, and Victoria Park stations. Change the signage to reflect this broader conception of 'downtown'. That will make tourists (and locals, eventually) think differently about what constitutes urban Calgary.

 

[Silence&Motion]

To me, i've come to realize the CBD's fate is sealed as being a more corporate, upscale environment. Apart from live music at the Palomino, or the odd Sled Island show at the Legion, an ACAD student, or hipsters generally, are out of place in the CBD.

Scenes can shade into each other. The Legion and the Palomino are at the edge of the so-called "9 Block" area, which contains Arts Commons, U of C's School of Architecture, Bow Valley College, and the new Central Library. This area has the potential to develop its own identity separate from the rest of the CBD to the NW. There's a lot of vacant or under-utilized lots along Macleod Trail north of 7 Ave. With the right developments in those lots, the area could become more of an arts and cultural centre for the city, centred around Olympic Plaza and Macleod Trail. Of course, Macleod Trail itself needs to be completely redesigned (and pretty much every other road in the area as well).

 

[CBBarnett]

Good point. To me, i've come to realize the CBD's fate is sealed as being a more corporate, upscale environment. Apart from live music at the Palomino, or the odd Sled Island show at the Legion, an ACAD student, or hipsters generally, are out of place in the CBD. But that's not to say it can't still be more pedestrian and retail oriented. That's why I like the idea of digital retail signage, and more corporate retail spaces like Nordstrom and H&M in the CBD where office podiums are suited to larger retail space design. I've seen some good examples of office podium redesigns in Vancouver and Toronto that do a good job at this. Inglewood, Kensington etc. should be the go to destination if you are looking for a more kitschy, independent vibe. Beltline can stay a mix.

Yeah I think this is a fair point and all digital retail and corporate approaches are valid options - but even substituting ACAD ( AUA now I think?) is that major change. Take 1,000 - 1,500 18 - 24 year olds and have them spend their time directly in the core rather than the NW. That's a *huge* difference. To get a sense of scale (caveat that it's an imperfect comparison), is the census for 20 - 24 year olds by residential location from 2019:

Community	20 - 24 year old population (2019)​
Beltline	1949​
Downtown Commercial Core	894​
Downtown East Village	319​
Downtown West End	136​

A move of a ACAD-sized post secondary to the core would bump the amount the 20-24 years olds in the area significantly. Trick a few of them to stay downtown after their late night design sessions - or even rent apartments in the Beltline or nearby neighbourhoods instead of living at their parents or in Banff Trail - and you materially and noticeably impact the culture of the area, CBD or otherwise. To the cooler neighbourhoods nearby (Inglewood etc.) a rising tide lifts your boats too.

I've said this before, but the lack of awareness in understanding how/where young adults/students live in this city is a big gap in all things Calgary. No policy or study I can ever recall that is young adult/student-focused in our history.

One more food-for-thought regarding the downtown's issues and where their might be opportunities to inject more youth into the core:
Below is the Beltline's 20 year census records comparing select age groups between 1999 and 2019. Lots of local factors (housing = expensive, students can't afford) and non-local factors (students live at home longer everywhere) apply here but gives a bit of sense of scale of proposed interventions and opportunities to boost local population. I find it hard to believe that we wouldn't boost our young adult numbers if we made the core more accessible and for them (e.g. add post-secondary, encourage night-life, movie theatres and other amenities).

	15-19 year olds	20-24 year olds	25-34 year olds
Beltline (1999)	821	2,463	5,561
Beltline (2019)	270	1,949	11,015
Change	-67%	-21%	98%

 

[Disraeli]

Scenes can shade into each other. The Legion and the Palomino are at the edge of the so-called "9 Block" area, which contains Arts Commons, U of C's School of Architecture, Bow Valley College, and the new Central Library. This area has the potential to develop its own identity separate from the rest of the CBD to the NW. There's a lot of vacant or under-utilized lots along Macleod Trail north of 7 Ave. With the right developments in those lots, the area could become more of an arts and cultural centre for the city, centred around Olympic Plaza and Macleod Trail. Of course, Macleod Trail itself needs to be completely redesigned (and pretty much every other road in the area as well).

The eastern edge definitely has the most potential of any place in the CBD for a more youth friendly, hip vibe. Some neat heritage buildings remain, and there are lots remaining that could be developed into buildings attractive to young people without feeling like they are lost by the sheer volume of office towers. Also, a redeveloped CBE building would be a great spot for an urban campus of some sort, whether it's ACAD/AUA or some other institution.
But the city would really need to step in and nurture that type young person friendly development and design. If left to developers, whatever gets developed on those lots is going to end up catering to high flying 30+ yuppie demographic.

 

[KensingtonLurker]

I love the idea of ACAD moving downtown to the old CBE location. Close to Bow Valley, potentially could take the old Central Library site too. Add in the new SAIT digital program that is taking the Odd Fellows building and there would be a lot of students in the area. Perhaps something where there are education facilities with a few hundred units of residence above.

 

[UrbanWarrior]

The area between the Family of Man sculpture and the CBE Building could easily host a considerable expansion of the building itself as well as a student residence on top.

 

[Silence&Motion]

I know I've already said this, but it can't be emphasized enough. The street grid in the Olympic Plaza, CBE Building area is a huge impediment to ever improving the area. All of the streets are 4 or more lanes, mostly one-way. In some cases the streets widen to six or more lanes when you include the parking lanes. As well, the blocks are massive and have no pathways or even alleyways that divide them up. The result is that even if you were to develop the area, there would be no places for people to walk or hang out.

For all its faults, the central CBD area at least has some narrower streets and plazas that make it somewhat easier and more pleasant to get around on foot. It's not unpleasant, for example, to have a coffee outside Cafe Artigiano at 3 st and 6 ave.

 

[Surrealplaces]

The North-South Corridors are generally pretty good and have potential. Even turning one of the east-west corridors into a two way road with improved sidewalks could help make friendlier intersections where it intersects the North-South corridors.

 

[Disraeli]

The city simply remains adverse to transferring even a portion of the space given to roads back to pedestrians unless it's low traffic areas. Unfortunately, low traffic areas for cars is often low traffic areas for pedestrians as well. The only time you see sidewalk widening is from the mandatory setback from development. If there is an older heritage building, the sidewalk remains narrow and cluttered creating an inconsistent patchwork of decent public realm for a block, then dead spots until there is another recent development. None of this encourages pedestrian movement around the core. The city needs to take the next step and really improve the heart of the issue rather than picking around at the edges. And you don't need to commission elaborate studies and redevelopment plans to figure this out:

Macleod trail @ 8th ave a key N-S intersection with Stephan ave with some beautiful architecture. Has about a 6’ wide sidewalk on both sides with a 50’ wide one way running down the middle. Hardly encouraging for pedestrians. And what a missed opportunity to encourage people to head over to enjoy the river or Chinatown. Same problem on 1st se.

5th st @ 10th ave SW again, some nice old heritage warehouses. Major connecting point into the centre of the CBD and Stephen Ave. The 5th street cycle track runs along it. Thousands of units have been built over the last decade. Yet, sidewalks remain narrow and cluttered to allow for wide lanes on a one way.