New developments, office conversions to bring 1,100 housing units to Calgary's downtown

Andrew Jeffrey · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 10, 2025 9:53 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

Three caller residential developments were unveiled by the City of Calgary Monday, on with the announcement of 2 now-completed office-to-residence conversions, that volition bring much than 1,100 caller homes in total to the city's downtown westbound end.

The 2 recently converted bureau buildings are in Calgary's Eau Claire neighbourhood.

In 1 case, The Hat astatine Eau Claire Place, a seven-storey gathering with 87 rental homes developed by Cidex at 525 3rd Avenue S.W., which was formerly Eau Claire Place I, is present unfastened to residents.

The 17-storey Eau Claire Place II is being converted into a 195-unit gathering by Pacific Reach, and is scheduled to unfastened this summer.

Both projects are the results of the city's Downtown Calgary Development Incentive Program, which provides backing to spot owners for usage successful converting bare bureau spaces into residential units. The Hat astatine Eau Claire Place is the 2nd erstwhile bureau gathering to beryllium converted to a residential operation done the program.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek says the programme is moving to pull backstage assemblage concern and trim the city's downtown vacancy rate. The office-to-residence conversions successful Calgary's downtown travel from a revitalization program that was approved by the erstwhile metropolis assembly successful 2021

"If we hadn't started this 4 years ago, we would beryllium acold down wherever we request to beryllium close now," Gondek said connected Monday.

The projects are supported by much than $20 cardinal invested by the city, which is leveraging much than $350 cardinal from the backstage sector, the metropolis says.

The enactment to revitalize the area is a semipermanent effort that followed the 2014 lipid terms clang that led to much radical and institution office leaving buildings vacant successful Calgary's downtown, Gondek said. 

The metropolis besides announced 3 caller residential developments connected Monday planned for the downtown westbound extremity astir 4th Avenue and 5th Street S.W. They see a 234-unit gathering developed by Cidex astatine 425 5th Street S.W. scheduled to unfastened successful 2028, a 30-storey mixed-use operation with 315 units developed by Cantiro astatine 410 6th Street S.W. scheduled to beryllium completed successful precocious 2027, and a 268-unit mixed-use residential operation astatine 526 4th Avenue S.W. acceptable to unfastened successful 2028.

The metropolis says the projects volition adhd much than $350 million in backstage investment, portion uncovering caller usage for vacant and underutilized buildings.

Five much office-to-residential conversions are scheduled to beryllium completed this year.

The Hat astatine Eau Claire follows The Cornerstone astatine 909 5th Avenue S.W., which was a 10-storey bureau operation converted into a 112-unit residential gathering that was besides partially funded by the city's downtown improvement inducement program.

Developer Cidex is down some The Hat astatine Eau Claire Place and 1 of the recently announced residential buildings. The company's vice-president of improvement Sarah Itani praised the city's efforts to revitalize its downtown, noting the increasing vacancies that Calgary's downtown faced is simply a akin occupation that cities astir the satellite person struggled with.

"The situation that was unsocial to america with lipid and state being truthful prevalent started it for america here, but truly downtowns crossed the satellite person suffered," Itani said connected Monday. "If you don't person radical who are living, working, playing, shopping, doing each the captious things successful your cores, your metropolis conscionable falls to pieces."