Latest news with #HeritageCalgary
Calgary Herald
09-05-2025
- Business
- Calgary Herald
What's next for Stephen Avenue, downtown Calgary's historic main street?
Article content 'It's been a part of our downtown culture and vibrancy for many decades,' he said in an interview. 'However, it's achieved a certain stage of lifecycle where you can just see, walking down the street, the pavement is in rough condition, curbs are chipping.' Article content He noted that underneath Stephen Avenue, many of the water and sewer pipes are up to 100 years old. Much of the revitalization of the street is about replacing that aging infrastructure. Article content 'But when we do that, we want to make sure that we're adding back into the community to set downtown up for success long term,' he said. Article content Article content Josh Traptow, the CEO of Heritage Calgary, said the thoroughfare is the city's second-oldest main street. The only one older is 9th Avenue S.E., in nearby Inglewood. Article content When the Canadian Pacific Railway reached Calgary in 1883, the company built its train station on land to the west of the Elbow River, where downtown currently sits. This was despite most Calgarians and businesses being on the east side of the river at the time. Article content Article content After the train station was built, many of the businesses migrated across the river and Stephen Avenue became the city's main commercial street. From the 1880s to the 1930s, the avenue — which is named after the first president of the Canadian Pacific Railway, Sir George Stephen — was the epicentre of Calgary's retail and business district, housing such mainstays as the Hudson's Bay Company, the Alberta Hotel and the Calgary Herald. Article content 'You had banks, you had the Hudson's Bay store, you had Eaton's, you had the Palace Theatre. That is where the hub of Calgary was — and really still is to this day,' Traptow said. Article content 'If the CPR had not gone west of the river, it's hard to say if our downtown would have shifted from Inglewood to where it is today. It's one of those 'what ifs?' that I'm always fascinated by.' Article content Article content Seeped in sandstone Article content Still located in the heart of downtown, Stephen Avenue is now one of Calgary's most heritage-rich streets, Traptow said. Many of the avenue's buildings were constructed with sandstone in the late 1800s and early 1900s, leading to Calgary's then-nickname of the Sandstone City. With several sandstone quarries outside the city limits, the material was in abundance and 'relatively cheap.' Article content Article content While sandstone is not the most conducive material to dealing with Calgary's climate, Traptow said city council passed a bylaw after the Great Fire of 1886 — a blaze that destroyed many downtown buildings — that any public building must be built out of fire-resistant material. That included Calgary's historic city hall, which was completed in 1911 after facing delays and cost overruns. Article content Preserving Stephen Avenue's sandstone-steeped character has made attempts to reinvent the street a challenge, Traptow said. He referenced a recent development application from Triovest that sought to build a 66-storey condo tower, a 54-storey rental tower and a 24-storey office tower between Stephen Avenue and 7th Avenue. Triovest's application was scrapped in 2023. Article content 'There's lots of places along Stephen Avenue that could accommodate density and development,' he said. 'It's making sure we're being mindful about where density and development happens on Stephen Avenue and not losing the two or three blocks we have that are still largely intact, from a heritage perspective.'
CBC
08-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
Heritage Calgary says little can be done to save historic Maclean house in Ramsay
The historic Maclean home in the southeast community of Ramsay is about to meet its fate. A developer wants to knock it down to make way for some new townhomes. Despite being more than 110 years old, there is no legal way to save it. The CBC spoke with the CEO of Heritage Calgary about that.
CBC
07-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Historic retail and residential building in Inglewood torn down
The 114-year-old Gresham Block was not legally protected from demolition, but Heritage Calgary says changes to the city's approach could help groups advocate for maintaining heritage.
