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Urban Development and Proposals Discussion

Rundown of the current multi-family (25 units or more) u/c in non-greenfield areas. I've copied this to the front page of the thread so we can keep track and make future comparisons. Anything missing, let me know.
Feb 4, 2022

Core development
U/C Units in Beltline/DT/EV


Oliver - 866
Sunalta Towers - 333
The Hat 14th - 239
1334 10th - 80
Arris Tower west - 310
Park Central II - 460
Sierra Place - 80
West Village Towers - 554
The Fifth - 34
Nude - 177
Curtis Block - 628
11th and 11th - 369
Total Units: 4,130

U/C in Near Inner City (Bridgeland, Kensington, Mission, Inglewood, Bankview)

Theodore - 114
Archer - 40
Riverwalk - 141
Block on 4th - 39
Elva - 61
Dominion - 300
The Bridge - 285
Brio Bridgeland - 25
Era - 178
Nimmons Court - 84
Bankview 19+14 -78
Lynbrook Manor - 48
Scarboro 17 - 52
Total Units 1,446

U/C Suburban (non-greenfield infill)

The Dells - 202
Kingsland Junction - 579
Northland Village - 229
19 + 2 - 51
Trail 19 - 78
Capella - 142
Grammercy - 83
Harrison - 67
Catalyst - 75
DeVille - 333
West 17 - 102
Cascade - 45
Montagomery Square - ?
Total Units 1,986
Now we need a number for all the greenfield homes under construction and then compare how much of our population growth is still on the fringes. Still banking on 85-90%.
 
I came across this article when I was looking for vacancy rate info. It’s a different “glass half full” way of looking at the current situation.
I'm actually surprised Vancouver is even close to Calgary, even with our high vacancy rate!
 
I'm actually surprised Vancouver is even close to Calgary, even with our high vacancy rate!

I love this comparison, it reminds me of two things:

1) We have plenty of businesses seeking downtown office space by any reasonable benchmark, the problem is mainly that we have too many downtown office buildings.

2) Calgary was very lucky to largely avoid the suburban office park trend. We could have ended up with a Denver Tech Center sized development at the edge of the city and half the downtown skyline we have. In my opinion, the main reason that didn't happen is that the racial politics are less bad here than in Denver. Imperial moving to Quarry Park was the exception rather than the rule.
 
I love this comparison, it reminds me of two things:

1) We have plenty of businesses seeking downtown office space by any reasonable benchmark, the problem is mainly that we have too many downtown office buildings.

2) Calgary was very lucky to largely avoid the suburban office park trend. We could have ended up with a Denver Tech Center sized development at the edge of the city and half the downtown skyline we have. In my opinion, the main reason that didn't happen is that the racial politics are less bad here than in Denver. Imperial moving to Quarry Park was the exception rather than the rule.
The main reason for clustering downtown was that lands sales, the misleading term for O&G exploration permits, used to be paper based and companies saw competitive advantage in being within walking distance of the filing office, known under various banners through the years such as the ERCB, EUB and AER. In the US, for example, ownership of sub-surface mineral rights and land registration is far more dispersed, so no equivalent of a centralized office ever existed.
 
Downton office vacancy rates hit +30% in 1982 and towers well under construction were halted. I remember being depressed reading that another tower would not be built for 30 years. Then we got Canterra & Bankers Hall East completed in ‘88 & ‘89 respectively and a fairly regular stream of towers after the 1990s.
You’re right about Suncor being the tallest for a long time though (28 years I think). Then we had a glorious burst with The Bow, EAP, Brookfield & Telus Sky.
I don’t think the next tallest will be an office tower although there may be an office component. If it’s another 28 years your prediction of 2050 will be pretty close 😄
I’m really hopeful it’s much sooner than that though.
Amoco (today's BP), Encor, Canterra, Bankers East and Canada Trust (today's TD) all completed between 1987 and 1991 in spite of the high vacancy rate. The next cycle produced Bankers West and Millennium Tower (former E&Y) in 2000 and TCPL in 2001. The 80's saw irrational exuberance around commercial real estate, so many projects went forward in spite of the over-saturated leasing market.
 
Now we need a number for all the greenfield homes under construction and then compare how much of our population growth is still on the fringes. Still banking on 85-90%.
When I get time I'll see if I can dig up some recent numbers, but I recall multi-family (greenfield included) was making about half of the new units being developed, not sure how much that was inner city core.. That may have been from a couple of years ago....
 
A new tallest building would likely require a revival of the commercial office market. As much as I'd want one soon, I'd expect maybe 20 years.
Friendly reminder that (what will be) the 3 tallest buildings in Canada, Pinnacle One (312m), The One (308m), and YSL (299m), are all residential.

Yes I know the markets are different, just pointing out we don't have to rely on offices to push us past that 250m mark.
 
Friendly reminder that (what will be) the 3 tallest buildings in Canada, Pinnacle One (312m), The One (308m), and YSL (299m), are all residential.

Yes I know the markets are different, just pointing out we don't have to rely on offices to push us past that 250m mark.
At the rate at which our home prices are going up, it won't be long before the condo and rental market picks up, as buyers won't have much choice left, like Vancouver and Toronto. Then I could see multiple 40+ storey towers being stuck up casually, maybe even a 250m+. Not an ideal situation but that's the only way I see a taller tower being built.
 
We'll get a good snapshot tomorrow when the Census gets released. My guess is in the %80 range.
80% for all housing types or for multifamily? For all housing types 80% sounds about right. It appears disappointing at first glance, but that's not too bad. It's always going to be easier to build in greenfield areas, and for years Calgary was probably well over 90% even 95% back in the 80's and 90's.
 
calgary-growth-targets-mdp.png

Cities' cumulative population goal is eventually 50% growth in existing communities and 50% in greenfield development, but I doubt they even care about this target anymore.
 
I can't find the official report/statistic for it, but I have seen numbers like 90% of population growth in Calgary is occurring in the greenfield/new suburban areas. Unit types are different than people though, as many of our new suburbs are actually quite dense, especially when compared to communities built between 1960ish - 1990ish. Just take a look at communities like Sage Hill in the north, or Mahogany and Seton in the south, to see the massive amount of suburban condos/apartments getting built. I think I heard once that for Mahogany, 50% of the units were multi-family.
 
Design team for Arts Common has been announced:

From the article:
The ACT prime design team is an impressive collection of local and global leaders in architecture and design who will bring a rich variety of perspectives and specialties to this major civic upgrade.

Heading up the team is Toronto-based KPMB, a pedigreed architectural firm with proven expertise in major arts and theatre projects, including Toronto’s Massey Hall and the Allied Music Centre, the Royal Conservatory TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning, Minneapolis’s Orchestra Hall, Toronto’s TIFF Bell Lightbox, Boston University’s Center for Computer and Data Sciences, and the Banff Centre for Arts & Creativity.

Working closely with KPMB at every step of the design phase will be Tawaw Architecture Collective Inc., headed by Calgarian (and Canada’s first female First Nations architect) Wanda Dalla Costa. Tawaw will ensure the Indigenous perspective is thoughtfully and meaningfully woven into all aspects of the design.

Rounding out the project team are Calgary-based Hindle Architects, a trusted local firm with a history of successful projects around Calgary, and SLA, an internationally renowned nature-based design studio out of Denmark.
 
I really liked the original Arts Commons renderings from Bing Thom(?), so this new design will have big shoes to fill! Not too familiar with any of these firms (browsed their websites, they all seem OK but nothing really caught my eye) so hopefully they can come up with something unique. Was hoping for a bigger international firm with some flair.
 

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