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Urban Development and Proposals Discussion

Anyone know anything about the health foods store there called Amaranth? Love to see this parking lot/retail developed, but would be sad to see a local grocer in the beltline drop away if it was good.
It is great for certain things, and grabbing last minute stuff.
So it looks like a DP got submitted for a new Beltline Tower, at the Sony Store site on 4th Street:

Grovesnor at one point owned this, but sold it when they left town I think. Does anyone recall who bought it?
Its title transferred in late 2018, early 2019. $10 bucks for the title, then a likely corporate search will tell ya.
 
So it looks like a DP got submitted for a new Beltline Tower, at the Sony Store site on 4th Street:

Grovesnor at one point owned this, but sold it when they left town I think. Does anyone recall who bought it?
And not to be outdone, or maybe trying to beat them to the punch, Gibbs Gage has now submitted for a new tower directly next to this one, where Reds Diner is:

Anybody else starting to get the faint bit of optimism that Calgary is about to enter another few years of some pretty good boom times? Oil touched $84 today I think......
 
And not to be outdone, or maybe trying to beat them to the punch, Gibbs Gage has now submitted for a new tower directly next to this one, where Reds Diner is:

Anybody else starting to get the faint bit of optimism that Calgary is about to enter another few years of some pretty good boom times? Oil touched $84 today I think......
Definitely optimistic about Calgary’s future, and it’s not just oil and gas prices. Energy companies truly are diversifying their portfolios, and not just paying lip-service or developing token projects like they did in the past. It’s adapt or die, and Calgary companies are adapting in a big way.
 
Even if it's not more high-paying jobs, stability and healthy growth are more than enough to keep a city rolling. We likely won't see any more layoffs in the short term and the Liberal's immigration goals will likely mean more record population growth.

The housing market is looking strong in Alberta as well. Persistently strong price growth in the detached home sector might start making the condo sector look more attractive for lower-income individuals and couples, as seen in Vancouver & Toronto. Not an ideal way of growing condo demand, but I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of new condo tower proposals start popping up in the next couple of years. I mean we are reaching almost a 10-year gap without a wave of new condo proposals. Just like newer built rentals, I'm sure there is going to be pent-up demand for newer built condos.

The unemployment rate will likely still take some time to come back to 2014 levels but that doesn't mean Calgary isn't growing in other areas. The only risks I see on the horizon are if there is a crazy new variant or interest rates are raised too quickly due to inflation concerns.

All and all, good times are ahead, economically and for us development junkies on SRC Calgary!
 
And not to be outdone, or maybe trying to beat them to the punch, Gibbs Gage has now submitted for a new tower directly next to this one, where Reds Diner is:

Anybody else starting to get the faint bit of optimism that Calgary is about to enter another few years of some pretty good boom times? Oil touched $84 today I think......
It's too bad the Red's building is involved, it's a funky little corner, but it's also good to see more activity underway.
 
The land use amendment for the Red's Diner site in the Beltline goes to CPC this week. This is a just a bit of an adjustment to the zoning, to allow a bit more FAR, a greater floor plate for a tower, and better formalizing affordable housing as a density bonus component by my quick read. The report is here:

As this is just land use, there is no DP submitted. However, there is an image in the applicant outreach summary, found here:
Keep in mind, this image is likely just a place holder, and until a DP is submitted, it may not be representative of what gets built here.
View attachment 288846
The land use redesignation for this latest tower (Red's Diner site) went to CPC in December of 2020. Here is my post from that meeting, showing a potential tower massing saving Reds. Not sure if the now submitted DP is similar to this or not yet.
1607975375462-png.288846

Item 7.2.4 of the December 17, 2020 meeting:
 
A new building proposed along Glenmore Trail in Kingsland, at the address 612 67 Ave SW.
It is on this parking lot, so adjacent to some big height, across from Chinook, and next to the recently upzoned former car dealership. So, might be substantial. No renderings that I can find yet.
One of the weirdest sidewalks in the city btw. I walked it last year for the hell of it. What is just a normal sidewalk on the west side suddenly starts sloping and sloping until you're trying not to lose your grip. I'm sure nobody actually uses it but I did wonder how a stroller or wheelchair user would fare. Or what it would be like on a winter's day. Any idea how it got to be like that? I presume it was never planned as an actual sidewalk?
 
Even if it's not more high-paying jobs, stability and healthy growth are more than enough to keep a city rolling. We likely won't see any more layoffs in the short term and the Liberal's immigration goals will likely mean more record population growth.

The housing market is looking strong in Alberta as well. Persistently strong price growth in the detached home sector might start making the condo sector look more attractive for lower-income individuals and couples, as seen in Vancouver & Toronto. Not an ideal way of growing condo demand, but I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of new condo tower proposals start popping up in the next couple of years. I mean we are reaching almost a 10-year gap without a wave of new condo proposals. Just like newer built rentals, I'm sure there is going to be pent-up demand for newer built condos.

The unemployment rate will likely still take some time to come back to 2014 levels but that doesn't mean Calgary isn't growing in other areas. The only risks I see on the horizon are if there is a crazy new variant or interest rates are raised too quickly due to inflation concerns.

All and all, good times are ahead, economically and for us development junkies on SRC Calgary!

A few things:
a). The cost of housing continuing to rise is bad. I'm sure you, like most Canadians, own your home. However, the increase in value is functionally irrelevant, because if you sell you'd have to buy back in somewhere else at the inflated cost. It's good for investors, and that's about it. The real outcome is a housing crisis for people who aren't already wealthy, and pumped up GDP which is also functionally irrelevant.

b). I like more high-paying jobs, I do not like more high-paying jobs in fossil fuels as a result of increased resource prices. Whether or not you have an moral obligation to the environment, climate change is happening, and non-renewable resource jobs are on the way out. More jobs in fossil fuels now means there's more jobs to be lost later, what's the point in kicking the can down the road even more than we already have? Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver don't become ghost towns when the price of oil drops, I think there's a parable about eggs and baskets in there somewhere.

c). Inflation is ~4.5% and not slowing down soon. Interest rates must rise, and many many people are overleveraged on overvalued investments. I'm calling it now, it's bad news. My advice to anyone who will listen is don't carry debt you cannot afford to service at a significantly higher interest rate.

I have cautious optimism that we are being given the opportunity to leverage the "good times" in order to make some necessary changes. Invest public funds in renewables, invest in affordable housing, and for god's sake stop giving tax breaks to oil companies who pack up and leave at the drop of a hat. Otherwise we're just going to dive back into this self-inflicted disparity in a few years time, but I guess that's just the Alberta way.
 
A few things:
a). The cost of housing continuing to rise is bad. I'm sure you, like most Canadians, own your home. However, the increase in value is functionally irrelevant, because if you sell you'd have to buy back in somewhere else at the inflated cost. It's good for investors, and that's about it. The real outcome is a housing crisis for people who aren't already wealthy, and pumped up GDP which is also functionally irrelevant.

b). I like more high-paying jobs, I do not like more high-paying jobs in fossil fuels as a result of increased resource prices. Whether or not you have an moral obligation to the environment, climate change is happening, and non-renewable resource jobs are on the way out. More jobs in fossil fuels now means there's more jobs to be lost later, what's the point in kicking the can down the road even more than we already have? Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver don't become ghost towns when the price of oil drops, I think there's a parable about eggs and baskets in there somewhere.

c). Inflation is ~4.5% and not slowing down soon. Interest rates must rise, and many many people are overleveraged on overvalued investments. I'm calling it now, it's bad news. My advice to anyone who will listen is don't carry debt you cannot afford to service at a significantly higher interest rate.

I have cautious optimism that we are being given the opportunity to leverage the "good times" in order to make some necessary changes. Invest public funds in renewables, invest in affordable housing, and for god's sake stop giving tax breaks to oil companies who pack up and leave at the drop of a hat. Otherwise we're just going to dive back into this self-inflicted disparity in a few years time, but I guess that's just the Alberta way.
Although your concerns are reasonable, here's my take;
A.) Yes home prices rising too quickly is bad but there is one good takeaway. Rising home prices create a lot of wealth for homeowners. This allows people to leverage their home values and take out equity. This further stimulates the economy. My cousins in BC have been able to do so much more with all the extra equity built up from their homes. Whether that's buying another home, car, or investing in a business. However, I still hope our prices won't skyrocket to those levels. Calgary's selling point is affordability and I'd like to see it stay that way. Rising interest rates will likely hamper any astronomical price increases.

B.)Agreed, which is what I meant to really say when I wrote "stability." A diverse, stable job market is more than enough to allow cities to maintain a healthy economic environment. High-paying jobs are an ideal situation, we'd all like that, but seeing how the last 7 years have been, I'd happily take average incomes with strong job security. Knowing you're not going to get laid off, or if you do lose a job, being able to find one as soon as possible really helps with consumer confidence.

C.)This is definitely the biggest threat. However, I don't think we'll see the overnight lending rate go anything over 3% for a while. I still think we'll be stuck on the theory of lower highs for interest rates, for the foreseeable future. I'd be shocked to see interest rates reach over 4% or 5%

All and all, I don't think the future will be anywhere as near crappy as the last 6 years were in Calgary. I'm definitely more bullish.
 
And not to be outdone, or maybe trying to beat them to the punch, Gibbs Gage has now submitted for a new tower directly next to this one, where Reds Diner is:

Anybody else starting to get the faint bit of optimism that Calgary is about to enter another few years of some pretty good boom times? Oil touched $84 today I think......
lot's of experienced commodity traders that I take trade ideas from are betting on $200 Oil by next year! Oil companies will have to invest in new projects to get rid of cash as they can only pay so much into dividends and into shares buybacks.
 

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