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There have been a number of noteworthy skyscrapers added to the downtown core in the last decade, each playing a role in making Calgary's skyline one of Canada's largest and most impressive. And the two-tower Centennial Place is in the upper echelon in terms of sheer visibility — measuring 183 and 118 metres to the tip of their spires, they are some of the tallest buildings in Alberta.
The 2010-built office complex, developed by Oxford Properties Group and designed by WZMH Architects and Gibbs Gage Architects, erupted out of its deep crater in early 2008. Serviced by four tower cranes, the synchronized rise of the development began with the construction of the taller building's soaring lobby, punctuated by a series of perimeter columns that can be seen in the photo above, taken from the corner of 4th Street and 3rd Avenue SW.
At 5th Street and 3rd Avenue SW, above-grade construction of the shorter tower was similarly in its early stages, though a bit behind its taller sibling. The future plaza at the corner of the intersection was temporarily used as a construction staging area. Standing prominently in the background, Devon Tower and the Millennium Tower would soon be obscured from this vantage point.
The views have certainly changed in recent years. The transparent lobby of the 40-storey east tower meets the street, with successive rows of tinted blue glazing sheathing the tower levels. A Plus 15 connection to Devon Tower reaches over 3rd Avenue SW, and on the other side of the above image, the recently completed Eau Claire Tower adds another contemporary office building to the central business district.
On the opposite end of the block, the 23-storey west tower and its fronting corner plaza have been completed, and another Plus 15 link, this time to the Eau Claire Tower, integrates the complex with its surroundings. The Calgary City Centre project, completed in 2015, pokes out in the background.
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