University District: An Urban Village in Calgary

(Calgary) The Germain Group has opened its 19^e hotel in Calgary’s newest University District. A testament to the appeal of a multi-award-winning project that is set to be the largest off-plan LEED ND Platinum certified neighbourhood in the country. The move diversifies Calgary’s residential offering, which is dominated by single-family homes.

Living 10 kilometers from downtown Calgary without a car? Unbelievable, but true!

“The University District will become a city unto itself. Everything you need is here,” Rosa Martinson boasts as she and her neighbor Dave walk their dog. Across the street, we pass two other friends who rave about their car-free neighborhood. What they like? The University District’s safety, amenities, green spaces and after-hours life, while downtown is dying. But when Maria Hernandez and Daniela Palacios chose to make U/D their home, they had to believe it was possible, because much of the project was still in the planning stages.

A new face for Calgary

In 2014, when city council approved the ambitious University District plan, former mayor Naheed Nenshi said the U/D would change the face of Calgary forever. And he made sure to warn the former chair of the University of Calgary Properties Group—formerly the West Campus Development Trust, founded in 2011—not to miss out. There was nothing on the land owned by the University of Calgary, or at least its real estate subsidiary, but it was an ideal greenfield site already served by transit, given its proximity to the University of Calgary, the Alberta Children’s Hospital and even the massive Market Mall.

More than 2,000 people currently live in the University District, which won the 2022 Best Growing Community award from the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA).

At the end of the 20-year project, covering an area of ​​81 hectares, there will be 15,000 living in 7,100 units, whether condos, townhouses or rental apartments – which is rather avant-garde in Calgary, a city where the symbol of the single-family detached home has long dominated. Especially since the owners of the U/D are only owners of their house, but not of their land, which is subject to a 99-year lease. This model is inspired by that of the neighbourhoods surrounding the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver.

Everything has been carefully planned in terms of the number of floors in the buildings (a maximum of eight for now). The Alt Hotel, owned by Groupe Germain in Quebec, is the tallest building with 16 floors. “For us, it’s a great way to further our sustainable development approach, because it’s our first LEED-certified hotel,” says Hugo Germain, Vice President of Operations.

Brand new, brand new

Since Save On Foods opened three years ago, new stores and boutiques have opened almost every month on Retail Main Street, the shopping strip that leads directly to the university and has a huge 525-space heated underground parking lot (which pleases Calgarians who remain attached to their cars).

The U/D is also popular for its dog parks and its pond bordered by a natural amphitheater and a cycling and walking trail. Every Wednesday evening in the summer, there is a market with artisans and music in a public square equipped with splash pads and barbecues. In the winter, there is even a refrigerated ice ring. The University District’s slogan is live, work, play [vivre, travailler, s’amuser]says Jacqueline Tran, marketing and communications manager for the University of Calgary Properties Group (UCPG). “The goal is to have everything you need there.”

Students left out

While many people told us they liked how new and clean everything is in the University District, others pointed out that the streets lack soul. Richard White, who writes the blog Everyday Tourist, spoke to us at the Monogram Coffee Shop, and described the U/D as “an urban village” that “started from nothing.” “The densification and diversity of residential offerings in the University District is quite unique in Calgary,” he notes, noting that the neighbourhood developed without any public funding.

Hence one of the most important criticisms of the U/D: the high cost of living there and – paradoxically – the lack of student residences. “Students are priced out from the University District […] “Renting a one-bedroom apartment can cost $2,000,” says Mateusz Salmassi, vice-president external of the University of Calgary Students’ Union (UCSU).

Byron Miller, a professor in the University of Calgary’s geography department who specializes in urban planning, also has trouble understanding why students aren’t included in the U/D’s master plan. “The university has seen its budget cut by 20%. It’s under pressure to find sources of revenue,” he tries to justify. Mr. Miller would also have liked to see more bike paths and he points out how the market is king in Calgary. Unlike Montreal, real estate developers do not have to include a minimum threshold of social housing (see other tab).

We did, however, come across students who have the means to live in the U/D. However, we saw very few families. Building a school is not in the short-term plans, Jacqueline Tran told The PressShe did not hide the fact that the U/D currently mainly accommodates older people (some apartments are even connected to a retirement home) or “downsizers” – people who want to live in a smaller space.

There is, however, a demand for townhouses, says Jacqueline Tran.

For Byron Miller, we must anticipate rather than react. “The market responds to demand, but not to needs,” he argues.