move to - Calgary Herald

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move to
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Table of contents
They O
T
MOVED R
Y
CALGA
HUNGRY FOR WORKERS Fuelled by the energy sector, Calgary is looking for as many as 140,000 workers
over the next decade.
4
HEAD OFFICE HUB Calgary’s oil company head-office
count is a frequently quoted statistic; it’s just the tip of
the iceberg.
CTV sports broadcaster
Lisa Bowes.
3
6
Olympic gold medallist
Cassie Campbell-Pascall.
8
SMALL BUT MIGHTY Calgary’s entrepreneurial spirit is
going strong with small business accounting for nearly
95 per cent of all city businesses.
9
10
12
FAIR WEATHER Calgary is a winter city but with our
abundance of sunshine and warm Chinook winds, we
are more than snow.
13
11
Marketing and advertising
executive at WAX Partnership
Sheldon Lachambre.
LOCO FOR LINKS Golf-crazed Calgarians have no
shortage of links to satisfy their passion both within
and outside the city. World longball champ Lisa
Vlooswyk tells us why she loves Calgary.
4
Ground3 Landscape Architecture principal Jonathan Sagi.
15
Glenbow Museum president
and CEO Kirstin Evenden.
14
A LOT TO LEARN With two universities, a polytechnic
college and a plethora of educational options for kids,
Calgary is a top-notch centre for learning.
COWTOWN TO NOWTOWN Yes we have the Stampede with Stetsons and cowboy boots. But Calgary
has evolved from a pastoral prairie city into a colourful
cosmopolitan centre.
Stantec principal, landscape
architect and land planner
Chris Jennings.
16
18
move to
12
14
17
Profile/cover photos:
Wil Andruschak and Calgary
Herald Archive.
THE YOUNG AND IMPRESSIVE A young, diverse
population and a great quality of life. What’s not to like
about Calgary?
8
Human resources VP and
wine marketer and buyer
Brien and Peggy Perry.
Muse Restaurant executive
chef Xavier Lacaze.
6
16
MOVE TO CALGARY Finding a home in Calgary is easy
with options from estate acreage homes and contemporary single family homes in the suburbs to live/work/
play choices near the core.
18
Move to Calgary is a special publication of the Calgary Herald in
partnership with Calgary Economic Development, www.bepartoftheenergy.ca
Editor: Barb Livingstone, 403-235-7339
[email protected]
Co-ordination/design: Jennifer Worley
Distributed May 9 in the Windsor Star, Hamilton Spectator and
Waterloo Region Record, and May 11 in the National Post GTA
Lisa Bowes first
moved to Calgary in 1994
when TSN
transferred
her from WinName: Lisa Bowes
nipeg. When
Age: 45
it moved her
Occupation: Sports
again to ToBroadcaster, CTV
ronto three
Place of Birth:
years later, she
Toronto
clearly remembers driving east
on the Trans-Canada
toward Strathmore. “I
kept looking in my rear view mirror at
the receding Rockies and actually said out loud:
“I’ll be back!” In 2004, while working at CBC in
Toronto, she learned of an opening at CTV in
Calgary, so she convinced her husband of three
weeks to head west for a lifestyle change.
MOVED TO
CALGARY
What is the best thing about Calgary?
I love Calgary’s entrepreneurial spirit. I’ve found
it’s much easier to take a proposal directly to
a decision maker in Calgary than elsewhere.
My enrichment broadcasting program, with
the Calgary Board of Education — Kidcasters
— runs four times a year. The goal is to expose
12- and 13-year-olds to the television industry,
their community and athletic role models. I’m
proud to say that we’ve reached approximately
800 students in the last six years.
I have also been able to start The Golf for Girls
Charity Classic which partners local athletes
with female business leaders to raise funds for
disadvantaged women and girls. Living in Calgary, you get the feeling anything is possible!
Is there one thing you think people elsewhere should know about Calgary? There
is an expanding “foodie” scene in Calgary that
I don’t think outsiders appreciate. The restaurants along Stephen Avenue (downtown’s
pedestrian mall which CBC food critic John
Gilchrist calls “one of Canada’s best restaurant
rows”) are world class.
Hidden gems?
The Douglas Fir Trail along the southern bank
of the Bow River in Edworthy Park is almost a
sacred place. You are just a few minutes from
downtown and yet you feel like you are in a
mountain forest.
— Richard White
move to
www.bepartoftheenergy.ca
Calgary-based companies are
driving more than $75 billion
of the $108 billion of major
energy-related projects in the
province. More than 6,400
petroleum engineers work in
Calgary and another 77,600
workers are employed in
natural and applied sciencesrelated careers.
— Calgary Economic Development
— Pictured: Calgary Economic Development’s President and CEO Bruce Graham. Photo: Calgary Herald Archive
Insatiable appetite for workers in Calgary’s hot economy
By BRIAN BURTON
I
t’s happening again. Consistently strong oil
prices are driving a resurgence in Alberta’s
economy and Calgary is hungry for workers.
Labour supply is the number-two concern of
companies surveyed by Calgary Economic Development, says President and CEO Bruce Graham. Their
number-one concern is the jittery world economy,
but that’s a fret for the global pace of business that
drives oil prices, rather than for the local economy.
What business leaders most want is help to
attract the nearly 200,000 workers Calgary is
projected to need over the next decade. “Our
number-one mission is creating awareness
around the employment and job opportunities
here in Calgary and Alberta,” Graham says.
And that has led to the Be Part of the Energy
initiative launched with the support of 42 Calgary corporate partners.
Crude prices that fell to as low as $34 per barrel in the midst of the 2009 recession, rapidly
recovered to $72 and then climbed to $101 by
January of $2011, where they’ve held steady.
Calgary unemployment levels are now below
five per cent, as oil companies gear up and other
sectors catch the lift from the oil patch, Graham
says. Housing starts have soared 68 per cent,
from 6,318 in 2009 to 9,292 in 2011, and building permits have risen from $2.7 billion in 2010
to $4.5 billion in 2011. The city’s sales of industrial land reached $71 million in 2011, more
than doubling projections.
In the worst-case scenario, with continued low
natural gas prices and a prolonged slump in oil
prices, the Petroleum Human Resources Council estimates that the oil industry will need at least 39,000
skilled workers to replace retiring members of the
boomer generation over the next decade. Best case,
the industry will need about 140,000 workers to
fill retirements and new jobs created by continuing
strong oil prices and a recovery in natural gas.
For those who find the numbers hard to credit,
Graham says it’s best to remember the oil sands
sector alone has been spending $10 billion to
$15 billion per year on project development and
provincially-approved projects would see that
figure peak at $20 billion in 2014. In total, there
are now some $110 billion in projects on the
books, according to the province.
Based on this kind of growth in the energy sector
alone, the province has estimated total labour demand at 190,000 for Calgary and another 410,000
for the rest of Alberta over the decade ending in
2021 — with a potential shortfall of 114,000 workers unless extraordinary measures are taken.
Premier Alison Redford highlighted the
skilled labour issue during a recent trip to Chicago: “We’ve had discussions with a number of
labour organizations in Chicago who’ve been
doing work with decision-makers in the U.S. ...
to try to find avenues where we might be able
to accelerate access of skilled labour into Alberta.” The same message is also being delivered
in Los Angeles, Phoenix and Denver. The effort
doesn’t start or end with the U.S., Graham says.
PAGE 4 | MAY 2012 | MOVE TO CALGARY | www.calgaryherald.com/movetocalgary
CED has conducted a supply/demand study of
labour across Canada, the United Kingdom and
Ireland to find the best places to recruit skilled
workers in 25 occupations expected to be in
short supply. (See list) So far, concentrated
recruitment efforts have focused on Central
Canada, with an international campaign in the
months ahead. Part of this effort will involve
“positioning Calgary in a different light,” he
says, frankly. “We want to change the thinking
about what Calgary is today.” Oil and the Calgary Stampede are only part of the picture.
“Calgary has become a global business centre with
the amenities and quality of life that go with it,” Graham says. “The energy sector has provided the basis
for intensive technology development and location
has made Calgary a transportation and distribution
hub for North America. Calgary is second only to
Toronto as a head-office location in Canada.”
With growth, Calgary has become far more diverse than its cowboy image would suggest. Calgary Chamber of Commerce chief economist Ben
Brunnen notes that in 2011, two thirds of new
arrivals to the city were from outside Canada and
that Calgary is “becoming a destination for new
Canadians.” Fully one-quarter of city residents
are from visible minority groups.
And with growth and diversity has come increasing sophistication, Graham says.
“We want to get this message out as widely as
possible,” Graham says. “We want to create opportunities, so that people who are looking to move
can consider Calgary as a very attractive option.”
Workers
wanted
Calgary needs workers in nearly
every trade and professional
occupation. A CED study has
identified 25 of the jobs in highest
demand:
Registered nurses, lawyers and
Quebec notaries, mechanical engineers, food counter attendants,
kitchen helpers and related occupations, early childhood educators
and assistants, licensed practical
nurses, physiotherapists, food and
beverage servers, information
systems analysts and consultants,
restaurant and food service managers, software engineers, electrical and electronics engineers,
dentists, cooks, chemical engineers, food service supervisors,
computer programmers and Interactive media developers, drafting technologists and technicians,
architects, visiting homemakers,
housekeepers and related occupations, senior managers — financial, communications and other
business services, community and
social service workers, receptionists and switchboard operators,
bus drivers and subway and other
transit operators, truck drivers.
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move to
— Pictured: Calgary’s downtown skyline. Photo: Calgary Herald Archive
Calgary a head-office hub – second only to Toronto
By BRIAN BURTON
W
ith a relatively modest 1.1 million people, there’s a reason Calgary has the skyline of a much
bigger city.
Calgary Economic Development lists 123
companies headquartered in Calgary that
report annual revenues of $100 million or
more. Dozens have revenues in excess of $1
billion and, somewhat surprisingly, 12 of that
number are not oil and gas companies.
Susan Thompson, business development
manager with Calgary Economic Development says “over the past several years,
Calgary has emerged as a leading head office centre and Canada’s most concentrated
headquarters location. Among Canada’s six
most populated Census Metropolitan Areas
(CMAs), Calgary ranks first in head office
concentration and employment.”
At the end of 2011, there were 123 head
offices in Calgary, up from only 78 in 2000,
which represents a growth rate of nearly 58
per cent over the past 11 years.
“This increase means that Calgary is now
home to approximately one in seven of Canada’s major corporate headquarters and as
such is Western Canada’s head office capital,
says Thompson.
The latest edition to Calgary’s skyline is the
impressive Bow Tower with a massive 58-storeys and 1.7 million square feet of office space
coming onstream in 2012 with move-in starting to take place in April, notes Thompson.
“The Bow has caused little change in Calgary’s
rapidly tightening 3.3 per cent downtown office
vacancy rate (Q1, 2012, Avison Young). The
The number of Calgary head
offices increased over the past
decade, from 79 in 2001 to 123 in
2010. Symbolically, the presence
of head offices adds to a city’s
image — its heavy concentration
of key energy companies has
helped forge Calgary’s reputation
as an energy leader.
Bow is fully leased by EnCana and Cenovus
(two of Canada’s largest energy companies) and
the space they’re vacating is already fully backfilled by new tenants,” says Thompson.
“That’s a true sign of confidence in the
Calgary and Alberta economies,” adds Ben
Brunnen, chief economist with the Calgary
Chamber of Commerce, also noting Calgary’s
retail vacancy rate is 1.8 per cent.
The dynamics of the oil patch have a lot to
do with Calgary’s seemingly unquenchable
thirst for office space. Each time a medium to
large oil company is swallowed up by a multibillion-dollar merger, several teams of veteran
explorers are turned loose to do what comes
naturally. They create new start-up exploration companies, some of which go on to glory,
finding millions of barrels of reserves, producing tens of thousands of barrels of oil per day
and hiring dozens or hundreds of employees
to work in ever-expanding head offices.
At last count, the Chamber found that
more than 960 oil and gas companies of all
sizes called Calgary home.
The oil company head-office count is just
the tip of the iceberg.
In total, there are 4,300 petroleum, energy
and related service companies in the city and
their growth requirements fuel the activities
of some 1,300 financial service companies. In
2009, the oilsands sector alone spent $25.1
billion on capital projects and in 2008 Calgary
produced some $50 billion worth of mergers
and acquisitions activities, surpassing Toronto.
It was a moment that did not go unnoticed in
the corridors of Canada’s largest law firms. Since
then, several of Toronto’s leading law firms have
opened offices in Calgary, joining those who
migrated here during the 1980s. London-based
Norton Rose, one of the largest law firms in the
world, was motivated to merge with Calgary’s
home-grown Macleod Dixon to create one of the
world’s largest energy practices.
Few of these transplanted legal establishments are head offices, but many of them employ scores or hundreds of lawyers in the city
and add to its ability to do several multi-billion-dollar energy industry mergers and joint
ventures every year. And those deals further
fuel the growth of the oil sands, shale oil and
shale gas developments that have been driven
by the return to $100-a-barrel oil prices.
“It seems oil prices are going to be relatively
strong for the foreseeable future,” Brunnen says,
driven by rising demand from emerging markets
such as China and India and the ongoing depletion of some of the world’s largest oil fields.
Calgary’s established economic clout, combined with its location, have made it a natural logistics (transportation and distribution)
hub for western North America.
Most recently, Target, Walmart and Bayer
Crop Science have established major logistics
operations in Calgary to take advantage of
its location, rail connections and airfreight
infrastructure. The Calgary Airport Authority’s
latest expansion, Brunnen notes, is budgeted
for $500-million.
In total, more than 41,000 Calgarians
work in the logistics sector and generate $3.8
billion in annual gross domestic product.
Calgary is Canada’s fourth largest metro
area, after Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver — but it’s second only to Toronto as a
head office location, for reasons that go back
to the opening of the oil era. While much
of Alberta’s oil drilling activity was focused
around Edmonton after the Leduc discovery
of 1947, American oil companies set up offices in Calgary because of it’s warm Chinook
winds during winter, its proximity to Banff
and the Rocky Mountains and shorter commute back to the U.S.
Today, Calgary retains it’s head-office magnetism and advantages. It has the lowest
unemployment rate of any of Canada’s six
largest cities, averaging 4.9 per cent over the
past 10 years (and 4.9 per cent in January,
2012) and has the highest average salaries
and wages for the past 14 years, reaching
$63,332 in 2010, according to the Live in
Calgary (www.liveincalgary.com)website.
“You can not only make a living but you
can make a life here,” says Bruce Graham,
head of economic development for the City
of Calgary. He points out that Calgary has
been highly placed by several recent rankings
of the world’s most livable cities, including a
fifth-place rating in a quality-of-life study in
a survey by The Economist magazine.
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move to
Alberta is the youngest
province in Canada, and
Calgary is one of the country’s
youngest cities. The median
age in Calgary is 35.7 years,
significantly lower than the
national average of nearly 40.
Cassie Campbell-Pascall
came to Calgary in
1998 with the centralization of the
women’s Olympic
Name: Cassie Campbell-Pascall
hockey team, and
Age: 38
again in the sumOccupation: Broadcaster, twomer of 2000 to
time Olympic gold medallist,
train with world
motivational speaker
renowned sports
Place of Birth: Brampton, Ont.
trainer James Gattinger. It was the best
summer of training in her
career and she wanted to stay. However, she
felt she had to go back to Toronto and try to win a national championship with the Toronto Aeros women’s
hockey team which, it did in April 2001. Afterward,
Campbell-Pascall moved to Calgary. There were two
reasons for the move — one to continue her play with
the National Women’s hockey team and the biggest
reason — to be with her now-husband, Brad Pascall,
who worked for Hockey Canada.
MOVED TO
CALGARY
— Pictured: Calgary Chamber of Commerce chief economist Ben Brunnen.
Photo: Courtesy Calgary Chamber of Commerce
Calgary – young, diverse and prosperous
By JACQUELINE LOUIE
A
fter graduating from university in
Nova Scotia, Andrea Curry headed
to Calgary two years ago for an
internship, which quickly turned into a
full-time job.
Curry, 31, is one of many recent arrivals, who came to Calgary for the economic
opportunities.
“There is a lot of work in my field here,”
says Curry, a music therapist and former
professional singer-songwriter who appreciates Calgary’s vibrant arts and cultural
scene. “If you like variety and like hustle
and bustle, it’s a good place to be.”
In an expanding economy, like Calgary’s,
everything changes. “There are new opportunities for people at every hand,” says
University of Calgary sociology professor,
Harry H. Hiller, director of the Alberta
In-Migration Study and author of Second
Promised Land.
“That’s why Calgary is particularly attractive to young adults who have finished
their education.”
Calgary has undergone a fundamental
transformation from the hub of an agricultural hinterland, to a national magnet destination, Hiller says. The first phase of this
transformation occurred in the mid-’70s
to early ’80s, then tailed off in what some
people refer to as the ‘bust.’ The most recent phase started in the mid-’90s and has
Calgary is the third-most
ethnically diverse city in all
of Canada. According to the
most recent national census in
2006, the city has one of the
highest visible minority rates in
Canada, behind only Toronto
and Vancouver. Twenty-three
per cent of Calgarians identify
themselves as immigrants.
continued for the past 15 years.
“It has been a dramatic movement of
people here,” Hiller says. “It’s a multicultural city, but with a very strong base of
people born in Canada.
Thanks to its youthful demographics, Calgary has one of the country’s highest labour
force participation rates, which is also a reflection of the strong economy, says Calgary
Chamber of Commerce chief economist Ben
Brunnen, who is also the Chamber’s director
of policy and government affairs.
Alberta is the youngest province in
Canada, and Calgary is one of the country’s youngest cities. According to the latest
available Census figures, the median age in
Calgary is 35.7 years, significantly lower
than the national average of nearly 40.
Calgary has the country’s second fastest
growth rate in the number of children aged
14 or under (18.4 per cent, compared to
17.7 per cent nationally).
Calgary’s GDP per capita is among the
highest in the country, and Calgary is
consistently rated among the top Canadian cities internationally. On a global
scorecard for prosperity, Calgary ranked
No. 3 against 24 global cities, according to
a Conference Board of Canada report for
the Toronto Board of Trade. (Calgary outranked Toronto, which came in at No. 8).
Calgary is increasingly becoming a destination of choice for new immigrants, who represent an increasing proportion of net migration to the province over the past few years.
While Calgary has traditionally seen a higher
proportion of interprovincial migrants, particularly from Atlantic Canada and Ontario,
it’s now seeing a greater proportion of new
arrivals coming from other countries.
For new arrivals, affordability is one of
Calgary’s attractions, according to Brunnen. A recent report analyzing Canadian
housing markets found Calgary is now
more affordable than Saskatoon. “Affordability is a good metric of quality of life,”
Brunnen says, noting that another draw
is “access to great natural capital, such as
the mountains.”
“Overall, Calgary is a very young city
and it’s a very diverse city,” Brunnen says.
“We offer great quality of life. We consistently rank among the top cities globally
for quality of life and economy.”
Calgary is a big city with all the amenities and yet
it still has a small-town feel. People are still friendly
to each other and have the time to give back to
the community. There is also no other Canadian
city that supports its Olympic/amateur athletes
like Calgary does.
Is there one thing you think people elsewhere
should know about Calgary?
Calgary is more multicultural than people give it
credit for. We have great restaurants with foods
from all over the world and we have fun events
that celebrate so many different cultures.
My family from the east always talks to me about
how cold it is in Calgary. But I remind them that
we have a dry climate and lots of winter sunshine.
Calgary is a great winter city.
Do we have any hidden gems?
The people — they are so welcoming. What other
city has people waiting at the airport in white
cowboy hats welcoming you to town?
The Bow River doesn’t get credit for how nice it
is. I love how thousands of Calgarians find it the
perfect place to go for a run or a bike ride almost
year round. One of my favourite things to do with
friends is go tubing down the Bow.
— Richard White
move to
Brien first moved to Calgary in 1976 at the age
Flames) and now with Wayne and Liz Henuset
of 19 with his family. After graduating from
at WillowPark Wines and Spirits (Canada’s
the University of Calgary he reconnected with
largest wine and spirit store).
Peggy (they had gone to the same high
I (Brien) have been
school) who was living in P.E.I. and they
fortunate to be able
married in 1983. Shortly thereafter he
to successfully
became one of the Canadian women
transition my ski
ski team’s coaches and they travelled
coaching career,
extensively with the team in Europe.
into a business
During their European adventure,
performance
Name: Brien and
Peggy developed her passion and
coaching practice
Peggy Perry
knowledge for wine and food in
(thanks to an MBA
Ages: 54 and 52
France and Italy. In 1986, when it came
from the University
Occupations: VP
time to decide on a place to call home
of Calgary) and
Human Resources,
Calgary was the logical choice as it was
then into the Vice
Enerplus (Brien), Willow
hosting the 1988 Olympics and was
President, Human
Park Wine & Spirits
home base for the national ski team. At
Resources position
Buyer/Marketer (Peggy)
the same time, the Alberta government
at Enerplus. I also
was privatizing its liquor stores and
Places of Birth:
enjoy the fact I
Peggy was able to use her knowledge
can cycle to work
Shefferville, Que.
and contacts to help set up several
year round, as
(Brien); Alberton, P.E.I.
independent wine stores.
Calgary has an
(Peggy)
extensive bike
path system (over
We both enjoy Calgary’s remarkable
700 kilometres and
entrepreneurial environment that allows
counting).
individuals from all walks of life to pursue their
careers and dreams. Peggy was able to create
Is there one thing you think people
a career in wine working with Janet Webb
elsewhere should know about Calgary?
(one of the first private wine stores), Harley
If people are thinking of relocating to Calgary
Hotchkiss (recently deceased owner of Calgary
they should know it is a city with endless
MOVED TO
CALGARY
opportunities for professionals, trades people
or anyone who is willing to work hard, learn
and take some calculated risks.
Hidden gems? Brien’s hidden gem is
Canada Olympic Park (legacy of the 1988
Winter Olympics. It includes skiing and
snowboarding hills, mountain bike trails,
bobsleigh, luge and skeleton track, three
NHL-size ice rings and one Olympic-size
rink) which has one of the world’s great ski
schools. He also thinks the phenomenon
that sees thousands of Calgarians floating
down the Bow or Elbow rivers on hot
summer weekends is a surprising spectacle.
Both think Calgary’s restaurant scene is
under appreciated. Given they have travelled
extensively around the world visiting world
class wineries and restaurants, they know what
they are talking about. Peggy in particular
wants people to know Calgary has possibly the
best selection of wines and scotches at some
of the best prices in North America.
— Richard White
Small enough to feel like a family –
“ large
enough to build a destiny
”
- Devon employee
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Commitment Runs Deep
www.calgaryherald.com/movetocalgary | MOVE TO CALGARY | MAY 2012 | PAGE 9
move to
— Pictured: Jim Button, digital media marketing strategist. Photo: Calgary Herald Archive
Entrepreneurial spirit: rural attitudes wrapped in a big-boy city suit
By JOEL SCHLESINGER
I
t’s different out West. And it’s not just the
Stetsons, Stampede and the snow-capped
Rockies. Sure, those iconic images have
played a large part in making Calgary what it is
today. But so, too, has its entrepreneurial spirit.
The fact is business is done a little differently out here, says Jim Button, a strategist
with Evans Hunt Group, a Calgary-based
digital media marketing firm with about a
third of its clients in the U.S.
“It’s still got that Wild West, frontier attitude;
I hate to risk overusing that cowboy reference
— but it’s an attitude of getting things done,”
says Button, former vice-president with Big Rock
Brewery — another Calgary iconic business.
“It has that attitude of a small town city with
rural attitudes all wrapped in a big-boy city suit.”
Button, a former Torontonian, packed up
his car in the ’90s and drove across country. He had no set destination in mind, but
stopped in Calgary and stayed.
“I remember trying to set up interviews
with marketing agencies. I’d call up and ask
if they would give me 15 minutes. Almost
every person said ‘Sure,’” he says. “They’d all
recommend a couple of other people, and
they, too, took the time to talk to me.”
More than anything, Calgary’s entrepreneurial spirit is driven by a youthful demographic
— the median age is about 35 — and an
abundance of opportunity, says Gary Bugeaud, managing partner at BD&P law firm.
“As a business community, Calgary is also
relatively young,” he says. “And that attracts
an ambitious, educated work force.”
As one of the city’s largest law practices,
and a top securities law firm in Canada,
BD&P is always on the lookout for new talent to add to its staff of 140 lawyers.
While small compared to national firms with
staffs of more than 400, the Calgary firm holds
its own with Canada’s top practices. Bugeaud
says it often does more corporate transactions
than any other firm in the country.
“When we tell that story to people when
we’re recruiting, it’s easy to convince them that
there are wonderful career opportunities here.”
Of course, the oil and gas sector’s tremendous growth helps. It is the engine for Calgary’s economy, creating a unique abundance
of job opportunities.
“Young people know they can get ahead
on merit simply because there are so many
opportunities here,” he says.
But Calgary is becoming more than just the
sum of a booming energy economy. Because
it has a high number of young, urban and
highly-paid professionals, scads of disposable
cash is floating around town. And that leads
to several entrepreneurial opportunities in
arts, fashion and other areas.
Take burgeoning fashion media mogul
Kimberley Jev.
Jev’s parents are Nigerian geologists who
moved to Calgary in 2002. Jev took journalism at Mount Royal University and soon
found herself immersed in Calgary’s new media and fashion scenes.
An entrepreneur at heart, Jev saw opportunity to grow with these budding communities
Calgary small businesses account
for nearly 95 per cent of all
businesses – they are a driving
force within the city’s business
community. Small business
owners have the advantage over
larger corporations in that their
size gives them the flexibility
to adapt quickly in terms of
aligning resources.
so little more than five years ago, she started
an online magazine called Calgaryfashion.ca.
“When I first started the business people
said ‘This is never going to work. Calgary
fashion? There’s no such thing,’” she says.
“But it’s been really interesting. We’ve been
around for five years and our audience is 80
per cent Calgary and we haven’t run out of
anything to talk about.”
The website — which receives about 20,000
unique visitors a month — has not just provided a much-needed forum to talk about fashion
in Calgary. It’s brought national and international fashion to Calgarians as well.
“We’ve covered all the different fashion
weeks in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa to
London, New York and Nigeria.”
She says Calgary in the last decade has gained
its own rep as a breeding ground for style. It has
produced a number of Canada’s leading fashion
designers: Paul Hardy, Caitlin Power, Michelle
Watson and Travis Taddeo to name a few.
While they’re no longer based in the city,
Jev says many new boutiques have sprung
up in the city that feature their lines.
She adds the city overall is fertile ground
for small retail start-ups.
That said, Calgary is a good place to start
just about any kind of business, Button says.
He should know. Button is one of a handful of ‘beer barons’ who founded the city’s
newest brewery.
Village Brewery sent its first keg to a local
watering hole in late December, and Button
says the local support has been phenomenal.
Village Brewery epitomizes Calgary’s entrepreneurial community: ambitious, but it
doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Even its weekly board meetings exemplify
just how differently business is done in town.
“We call them ‘Hump Day Socials,” he says
about the Wednesday afternoon meetings
where founders and other community entrepreneurs stand around the bar, have a beer
and talk business.
“It’s 15 people coming together and having
conversation; cards are exchanged and deals
are struck,” he says.
And while the last decade has been great
for entrepreneurs — even during the bust of
2008/2009 — the future looks even better,
says Bugeaud.
“For the next couple generations, we’re situated by the lottery of birth here in one of the two
energy capitals of the world,” he says. “This is
where the world is looking so the opportunities
are here for people to have good careers because
capital and businesses are inflowing to the city.”
move to
Calgary climate fit for Goldilocks – one that’s just right
I
f you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes
and it’ll change. It’s a claim made by dozens
of cities, but in Calgary, it’s actually true.
Okay, maybe it’s a slight exaggeration. But
few would dispute the weather here can indeed change rapidly. On Jan.11, 1983, the
temperature rose 30 degrees, from –17C to
13C, in just a few hours, thanks to a Chinook. And on more than a few occasions in
April, a spring blizzard has dumped more
snow on the city in a single day than is typical for the entire month.
But while such abrupt incidents do happen, Environment Canada meteorologist
David Phillips says they mask the broader
statistical picture, which reveals a city that’s
neither overly hot nor extremely cold. Compared to some other Canadian cities, you
might say Calgary actually has a climate fit
for Goldilocks — one that’s just right.
But isn’t this the same city that was reported to
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be the second-coldest place on Earth one day in
November, 2010? That may have been true for
a brief period, Phillips allows, but he maintains
Calgary’s far from being the coldest city in Canada, let alone the world (a distinction that more
properly belongs to Yakutsk, Siberia).
“When I think of Calgary, I don’t think of
cold,” he says. “I mean, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Estevan, Red Deer, are colder
than Calgary.”
It can still get cool in Calgary, of course,
but there’s a bright side — literally. Even
when it’s -30C out, the sun can still be shining. In fact, Environment Canada statistics
show Calgary has the most sunny days of
any of the country’s 100 largest cities.
“There are not many bragging points,
whether it be the wettest, the driest, the
coldest, the warmest,” says Phillips. “But the
one thing that Calgary does have that’s probably worth bragging about is with regards to
its sunshine. And sunshine can be very uplifting psychologically.”
The sun shines an average of 2,300 hours every year, making
Calgary the sunniest major city in the country.
— www.liveincalgary.com
— Picture: August sunset over Calgary’s Glenmore Reservoir. Photo: Calgary Herald Archive
That might seem like cold comfort on
those days when it’s as frigid as Yakutsk.
Unlike Siberia, though — or Winnipeg, Edmonton, or Saskatoon — Calgary cold snaps
seldom last long before they’re interrupted by
one of the aforementioned Chinooks.
On encountering one of these warm, dry
winds that blows down the eastern slopes of
the Rockies and over the Prairies, Scottish explorer Alexander Mackenzie described it as “a
perfect hurricane.”
While a Chinook in winter is often welcome, it has it challenges, too, particularly
the dry skin that c omes with dry weather.
Fortunately, most of the negative aspects of
Calgary’s weather are fairly easily remedied. If
preserving a youthful appearance is important,
buy a humidifier or invest in a good moisturizer. If it’s cold outside, bundle up. If it’s too
bright, put on some sunglasses.
And remember: if you don’t like the weather, just wait five minutes.
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move to
We’re linked in – Calgary fits golf enthusiasts to a tee
LISA VLOOSWYK
I
am a rare breed. Not only am I a female
golfer who can hit the ball over the length
of 3 ½ NFL football fields, I am a born
and raised Calgarian. Yahoo!
I am the reigning seven-time Canadian
Long Drive Champion for women. I defended
my title recently in Ontario with a 323 yard
poke. I feel very fortunate, as part of my golf
career, to be able to travel extensively across
North America and in the UK. I have seen
some impressive sights and vibrant cities but
none compare to my hometown of Calgary.
Calgary has it all. We are a city of over a
million people with a busy downtown core
but have always maintained that “neighbourly” feel. Perhaps it stems from our world
famous Calgary Stampede where for 10 days
each year you can find a free pancake every
day and you will feel out of place without a
pair of cowboy boots, jeans and a plaid shirt.
I have fond memories growing up of going
to the Stampede and watching the thundering chuck wagon races, the Young Canadians
at the grandstand show and wild bucking
broncos and enraged bulls at the rodeo.
Another world class event, of course, was
the 1988 Olympics. The Olympics not only
put Calgary on the map but also provided
the city with incredible recitation facilities,
a reason why several national teams call
Calgary and area home (Hockey Canada
and Cross Country Canada, to name a few).
This makes Calgary a draw for sports and
recreation enthusiasts.
As for me, my passion is golf and Calgarians are golf crazy. There are times in mid
winter where I have to wait at the outdoor
driving range equipped with heated stalls, to
hit balls at 2 p.m. on a Tuesday afternoon.
Although we have a relatively short season
(April – October), Calgarians just can’t get
enough of the links. There are many fantastic
private courses in Calgary, several of which
are accepting new members. There are also
dozens of phenomenal semi-private and public courses open to all who want to tee it up.
Top-rated facilities open for general play include Heritage Pointe, a 27-hole track located
on the south end of the city. There are three
distinct nines that incorporate links style golf,
elevation changes and sculpted fairways. It is
truly breathtaking, especially in the fall.
Also not to be missed in the south is D’Arcy
Ranch. This is a fantastic course with a family
owned feel. It boasts fabulous views and challenging golf. Finally on the north end of the
city is The Links of GlenEagles. Once host to a
nationwide tour event, this is a test of golf that
you will not soon forget. The mountain views
are spectacular and it will make you want to
come back to make up the missed shots.
However, if you are really looking for
mountain views look no further than an
hour west of the city. There you will find golf
resorts that bring tourists in from around the
world just to say they have played there.
Perhaps the cornerstone of the mountain
courses has to be Stanley Thompson’s Banff
Springs. Opened in 1928, this course has
stood the test of time. It winds along the
picturesque Bow River and when you hit
your shot with the mountains looming in the
background you audibly gasp.
It is also a must to at least visit, and even
better yet stay at, the famed Banff Springs
Hotel (circa 1888) dubbed the Castle in the
Rockies. You will be treated to five-star services from dining and spa treatments to accommodation. Don’t miss the photo gallery
where there are pictures of Marilyn Monroe
teeing off the 1st hole when breaking from
— Pictured: Banff Springs Golf course and hotel in
background. Photo: Courtesy Fairmont Banff Springs
filming the River of No Return (1953).
Other courses nestled in the Rocky Mountains that need to be staples on your must-play
list, include Silver Tip and Stewart Creek. Both
courses are stunning.
If you are looking for value, nothing beats
Kananaskis. The two 18-hole courses, Mt. Lorette and Mt. Kidd, are stunning and rival some
of their big brothers for views without the high
price tag. There is a discounted rate for Alberta
residents, so what are you waiting for?
I am often asked, ‘Lisa, how can a world
glass golfer live in Calgary year round?’ Just
ask Stephen Ames, multiple PGA Tour winner and Calgary resident. Ames will practice
and hit balls under those same heated stalls
in February that Joe public uses.
As for me… I wouldn’t hang my cowboy
hat anywhere else!
Lisa Vlooswyk is the reigning seven-time Canadian Long Drive Champion for Women and is
ranked second in the world. She is a golf entertainer, golf/travel journalist and motivational
speaker. Lisa can be reached through her website
at www.lisalongball.com.
move to
Xavier Lacaze’s wife Chelsie brought
today if I was in another city. Calgarhim to Calgary four years ago. They
ians gave me incredible support and
met working together in Bermuda,
recognition right from the start that
decided to travel through Europe for
it made me want to work harder to
a year until she got homesick and
access to my dreams.
suggested that they head to Calgary
As much as I miss France, I could not
so he could see where she grew up.
be in a better place than Calgary
Lacaze was very excited by the opfrom a career or family perspecportunity to come to Canada.
tive. I think Calgary has
He quickly got a one
the same potential as
year working holiday
Toronto or Vancouvisa. Since then he
ver to be an urban
has risen from “new
playground – it
guy in the kitchen”
is just few years
to chef at Muse
away.
Name: Xavier Lacaze
Restaurant and
For that reaAge: 31
Lounge, one of
son, I feel
Occupation: Executive chef,
Calgary’s top resreally lucky
Muse Restaurant
taurants. He repto be part of
Place of Birth:
resented Calgary in
Calgary’s growAuch, France
the 2012 Top Chef
ing energy to
Canada competicreate a
tion on Food Network
hip city.
Canada.
Is there one thing you
What is the best thing about
think people elsewhere should
Calgary?
know about Calgary?
Calgary is an amazing growing city
Calgary is the new “place to be”
with tons of opportunities. I don’t
in Canada, maybe North America.
think my career would be where it is
There is so much potential. New
MOVED TO
CALGARY
people are moving here every day
from elsewhere in Canada and the
world. Calgary is more than cowboys, ranching (Alberta Beef) and
Stampede. I find Calgary a very
modern and fun place to live. The
restaurant industry has changed
significantly over the past four
years. I feel we now compete with
other big Canadian cities both in
quality and
diversity of food and dining experiences.
I am a huge fan of Fish Creek
Park which runs east to west
through the south end of the city
(19km), probably because I am
from Europe where our city parks
are the size of a Calgary neighbourhood playground. Fish Creek
is the size of the village I grew up
in (it is about three times as large
as Stanley Park in Vancouver)!
I just love how the city spreads
out; instead of rising up, it is a
wonderfully open city with big
blue skies.”
— Richard White
JOB OPPORTUNITIES
New job, new facilities, new friends, new opportunities. Deciding to move to
Alberta was not only a great career decision – it was a great life decision too.
Alberta Health Services (AHS) is one of the leading healthcare systems in Canada,
responsible for the delivery of healthcare to more than 3.7 million Albertans.We
operate more than 400 facilities, including acute care hospitals, cancer treatment centres,
community health centres, and mental health & addiction facilities. AHS values the diversity
of the people and communities we serve and is committed to attracting, engaging and
developing a diverse and inclusive workforce.
We are looking for both clinical and non-clinical healthcare professionals to join our
growing workforce.With a strong commitment to work/life balance, competitive benefits
and a collaborative work environment we know we have a career that will fit you.
Working at AHS enables a better quality of life, not only for our staff, but for their families
– there’s no shortage of reasons to join our team.
www.albertahealthservices.ca
For more information email [email protected] or search and apply for jobs on our website
move to
— Pictured: Mount Royal University. Photo: Wil Andruschak
Case for studies – opportunities boundless
By BARBARA BALFOUR
F
rom early childhood to beyond
retirement and all that lies in between, there’s something for everyone within Calgary’s education scene.
Whether you’re looking to enrol
your child in a faith-based school,
build a foundation for a new career,
or upgrade the education you already have, there are a multitude of
courses.
“If you were thinking of relocating
for work and you had a family and
you knew post-secondary education
was in your future, you’d be very
excited about coming to Calgary because of all the things we have to offer,” says David Docherty, president of
Mount Royal University.
“In a city of a million-plus folks,
we’ve got an incredible research university that’s doing cutting-edge work in a
number of areas, professional programs
offered by Bow Valley College and SAIT,
private religious institutions such as
St Mary’s University College, and then
we’ve got Mount Royal University.”
Mount Royal provides diploma and
certificate programs as well as baccalaureate degrees, and will remain doing
so for the long-term foreseeable future,
says Docherty.
From the only Bachelor of Midwifery program in Alberta to a strong
communications faculty and a nursing
program that “fights above its weight
class,” Docherty says a combination of
innovative programs and an emphasis
Nearly 200,000 students are
enrolled in Calgary schools
from kindergarten to Grade
12. The city has the highest
rate of post-secondary
attendance (73 per cent) in
Canada.
— www.liveincalgary.com
on teaching help them prepare the
students employers are looking for.
Fast approaching its 50th anniversary,
is the University of Calgary, which aims
to become one of Canada’s top five
research universities by 2016. It has a
solid alumni base — 145,000 strong in
147 countries worldwide, among them
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Calgary
mayor Naheed Nenshi, and Mozilla
Corporation CEO Gary Kovacs.
“This is an exciting time for the
growth of our university,” says
Elizabeth Cannon, president and vicechancellor of the U of C.
“We’re a young and dynamic university in a fast-growing city. More than twothirds of our graduates end up staying
here because this is where the jobs are.”
As a comprehensive research institution, the university has more than
50 Royal Society of Canada Fellows,
houses 73 Canada Research Chairs
and has more than 80 research institutes and centres in areas from health,
social sciences and business, to energy
and the environment.
Another significant post-secondary
institution in Calgary offers hands-on,
experience-oriented training to more
than 71,000 students each year.
SAIT Polytechnic is known as a trailblazer in applied research and innovation, offering a range of credentials from
apprenticeship trades to applied degrees
in diverse program areas. A new $400
million trades and technology centre
opening in September is part of the
largest expansion in its 94-year history.
It will add more than 3,600 full-time
student spaces in the areas of energy,
manufacturing and construction.
SAIT was recognized as one of Alberta’s top 50 employers in both 2010
and 2011 and boasts a 93 per cent
employment rate for its graduates.
Just as the post-secondary institutions offer a plethora of choice, so too
does the system of schooling for students under the age of 18.
The Calgary area is home to a wider
spectrum of school choices than in
any other area of the province, says
Duane Plantinga, executive director
of the Association of Independent
Schools and Colleges in Alberta.
In addition to the public and separate school systems, and a number
of charter schools, all of which offer
programs ranging from home schooling to athletics and faith-oriented
education, there are also 40 independent schools and 30 plus private ECS
(kindergarten) programs.
Some emphasize university preparation, while others offer multiple languages or specific developmental approaches
and learning strategies, he says.
Growing up in a small town in Saskatchewan, Sheldon Lachambre had always envisioned living in a larger city with all
the hustle and bustle and excitement that it brings. His studies first took him to the University of Regina where he completed a bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology, majoring in sports
marketing. A requirement of the program was to undertake
an internship. He landed an internship and subsequent marketing job with the NHL’s Nashville Predators. After his work
visa expired he had a decision to make, in terms of which
city he would live in. He had heard many great things about
Calgary from friends, family, athletes and sports associates.
Being an avid skier, the proximity to the
mountains was also a lure.
The opportunities were abundant to continue his marketing career in Calgary and
by August 2003 he had
Name: Sheldon
secured a his first position
Lachambre
in
marketing and sales.
Age: 32
MOVED TO
CALGARY
Occupation: Marketing
and advertising executive,
at WAX Partnership
Place of Birth:
Wynyard, Sask.
What is the best thing
about Calgary for you?
I enjoy Calgary’s feeling of
“small town” within the city.
Both my wife and I work
downtown, but live in the suburbs, where it really feels like an
escape once you get home after work. We began to experience
this feeling soon after we settled down in Calgary and developed
many close friendships. The work/life balance and family-first approach is embraced here. We also love the city’s many entertainment options from sporting events, live concerts to the expanding and impressive array of new restaurants.
Is there one thing you think people elsewhere should
know about Calgary?
Calgary is more than just the Stampede city. There is a perception in Canada and the United States that Calgary is just a city
of cowboys and oil and gas companies with nothing else to offer. The city offers so much more, and was recognized for that,
being named the 2012 Culture Capital of Canada. The arts and
culture this city has to offer is impressive and creates a vibrancy
that has to be experienced to appreciate.
Calgary’s hidden gems would have to be the Calgary International Film Festival and the Sled Island Music Festival, named
one of Canada’s top 10 music festivals. The array of live music
and festivals the city creates an excitement and animation yearround that is fun to be part of.
— Richard White
move to
I also love that you can be in the middle
Jonathan Sagi and his wife Dawna moved
of nature in the city. The combination
to Calgary in January of 2007 from South
of foothills, mountains, parks, valleys
Carolina. They are both Canadian —
and rivers is incredible. We are also very
Jonathan from Ontario, Dawna from Alberta,
fortunate to live in the southeast quadrant
but they met while working in the United
of the city, where the trees grow big.
States. When their thoughts turned to
Dawna and I spend as much time as
family, they decided it best to move back to
possible outdoors, walking
Canada. Jonathan had no interest
the dog, playing golf and
in moving back to Ontario,
soccer. Where else
so in October 2006, they
would I get to work
decided to check out
on billion dollar
Alberta. Jonathan
projects like the
was quickly seduced
landscaping
by the mountains,
for the West
aspen stands and
Name: Jonathan Sagi
LRT (Light Rail
the long views.
Age: 35
Transit) or find
While visiting
Occupation: Principal, Ground3
great partners
Dawna’s friends
Landscape Architecture
to form my own
in Calgary they
Place of Birth: Kitchener, Ont.
landscaping firm
quickly discovered a
after four years?
city alive with energy
Calgary’s “can-do”
and opportunity. Three
attitude is infectious.
months later, Calgary
became their home.
elsewhere should know about Calgary?
What is the best thing about Calgary
This city embraces people, passion
for you?
and ambition. We have met so many
It is hard to pick just one thing. I love
great folks (in similar circumstances to
culture, community and opportunities, but
MOVED TO
CALGARY
us — newcomers) in Calgary. Our social
network is amazing; this is probably the
main reason we have decided after only
a couple of years to make Calgary our
permanent home.There are probably two
major misconceptions about Calgary.
One is that winters are cold — they’re
not. I find January and February so
sunny it is exhilarating not freezing. The
other misconception is Calgary isn’t
cosmopolitan and progressive. Though the
city has definite western roots (which it
embraces as it should) it has more music,
theatre, arts and recreation than any city
its size that I have visited.
My first thought is the spectacular vista
from Scotsman’s Hill with the Saddledome,
Stampede Grounds and the ever-changing
skyscraper skyline of downtown and the
majestic Bow and Elbow River valley. But
I also think the old world charm of The
Bay’s (iconic downtown department store)
arcade is a subtle gem. We love Calgary’s
restaurant scene. Our gem is Alloy hidden
away in an inner city industrial area —
great ambience and food.
— Richard White
When Waiting
For A New Home
Isn’t An Option.
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move to
Cowtown to Nowtown – North America’s newest urban playground
RICHARD WHITE
C
algary’s 20th century nickname,
Cowtown, fits with the commonly
held perception that the city is more
like Houston and Dallas, than “hip cities”
like Austin, Portland, Frankfurt (Germany)
or Lyon (France). Nothing could be further
from the truth.
Over the past 25 years, Calgary has
evolved from a pastoral prairie city into a
colourful cosmopolitan centre.
Calgary’s arts sector generates
more than $106 million in
annual revenues. The city
boasts over 5,000 artists and
21,000 volunteers.
Calgary boasts one of the best theatre
scenes of any city its size. Did you know
Lunchbox Theatre is the longest running
noon-hour theatre program in the world?
Or that the Centre has over 3,200 seats in
five performance spaces making it one of the
largest performing arts complexes in North
America?
Calgary also has the “hottest 10 weeks of
winter” when you combine January’s High
Performance Rodeo and February/March’s
Enbridge playRites festivals. Recently, Calgarian Mark Lawes, Theatre Junction’s artistic director, was named one of six artistic
laureates for the City of Paris for the coming
year. Need I go on?
If music is your thing, we have everything
from the Calgary Philharmonic at the Jack
Singer Concert Hall to opera and broadway
musicals at the Jubilee Theatre.
Calgary has a long blues history, having
Canada’s oldest blues bar at the King Eddy
Hotel. While it closed in 2004, plans are to
incorporate it into the iconic new National
Music Centre which will include one of
the world’s largest collection of keyboard
instruments — including Elton John’s first
piano.
Blues, roots and folk music continue to
thrive at Mikey’s Juke Joint, Blues Can and
Ironwood. Every June, the Sled Island Music
Festival takes over 30 downtown venues to
celebrate emerging music, film and visual art.
Each July, the Calgary Folk Music Festival
converts downtown’s Prince’s Island into one
the world’s most intimate downtown folk
venues. Calgary is a music city.
Speaking of festivals, Calgary hosts more
than 20 major festivals each year. In May, the
Lilac Festival along Fourth Street in Calgary’s
tony Mission District attracts more than
100,000 Calgarians to celebrate the beginning of spring.
In the summer, there is a festival every
weekend from the iconic Calgary Stampede,
to Afrikadey, Taste of Calgary, Calgary International Children’s Festival, BBQ on the
Bow, Calgary International Film Festival
and Wordfest. Calgary is a work hard, party
harder city.
One of the biggest changes in Calgary over
the past 25 years has been the maturation
of its urban villages surrounding our downtown.
Inglewood, Calgary’s original settlement still has its early 20th century Main
Street, which is now full of funky shops
like Recordland (rumoured to have more
than one million used records), a HarleyDavidson dealership/restaurant and
Crown Surplus store (Cher shops here
when in town). In 2004, Air Canada’s
EnRoute magazine identified Inglewood
as one of Canada’s top 10 “coolest neighbourhoods.”
Kensington is Calgary’s bohemian village
where SAIT and ACAD college students hang
out with oil patch execs in Calgary’s oldest café
culture (it predates Starbucks). Kensington is
— Pictured: The Bow. Photo: Calgary Herald Archive
home to The Plaza, Calgary’s oldest art house
cinema and where Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie
hung out when he was in Calgary filming The
Assassination of Jesse James.
Uptown 17th (aka The Red Mile) cap-
tured the world’s imagination in 2004 when
30,000 Calgarians converged on it every
night after each Calgary Flames playoff
game. It offers an eclectic collection of
shops and restaurants, including Calgary’s
best sports bar, Melrose Cafe & Bar, and the
yoga crowd loves to hang out at the Ship &
Anchor pub. Bet you didn’t know there are
more than 50 yoga studios in Calgary’s city
centre.
The Beltline is Calgary’s highrise, multicultural condo village. Here you can find a
pickup game of soccer at Haultain Park or
see couples sharing a romantic meal at Boxwood in Central Memorial Park.
On 11th Avenue, you can still find remnants of Electric Avenue made famous during the 1988 Winter Olympics for its vibrant bar scene. Elsewhere on 11th Avenue
is our Design District with its abundance of
furniture and home accessory boutiques, as
well as art galleries.
Downtown’s Eau Claire neighbourhood
is where the rich and famous live and play.
It lies next to the Bow River Promenade
where thousands of walkers, cyclists and
skaters play year round. In the summer,
the sights, sounds and smells of festivals
and events every weekend on Prince’s Island and Eau Claire’s Festival Plaza flood
the area.
Calgary has also emerged as a design
city with new iconic architecture by world
famous architects including Norman Foster’s The Bow, a 58-storey office tower and
Santiago Calatrava’s controversial pedestrian
Peace Bridge.
But the most uniquely Calgarian buildings are the locally designed saddleshaped Scotiabank Saddledome (Graham
Edmonds Architecture) and the Legoinspired Alberta Children’s Hospital (Kasian Architecture) which had children acting as “advisers.”
Indeed, Calgary is one of North America’s
newest urban playgrounds.
Cowtown has transformed into Nowtown,
as one of the world’s best places to work, live
and play.
Richard White has written on art, architecture
and urban culture for more than 20 years.
move to
In 1993, after graduating from the University of collaborated with. Last year alone, Glenbow
collaborated with 11 other Calgary-based
British Columbia with a masters in Art History,
arts organizations to present diverse artistic
Kirstin Evenden pursued work in museums
programming, including the recent partnership
and galleries because she was interested in the
between Glenbow and performance
role of public collections in creating
theatre group One Yellow
meaningful experiences for
Rabbit, to bring Laurie
audiences. She researched
Anderson and Brian Eno
across Canada to see
to Calgary for feature
what internships were
exhibitions at Glenbow
available. Calgary’s
and performances at
Glenbow Museum
Name: Kirstin Evenden
the High Performance
was one of her top
Age: 45
Rodeo. On a more
choices because of
Occupation: President and
personal note, I love
its rich collections.
CEO, Glenbow Museum
the fact I can bring my
She was successful
Place of Birth: Edinburgh,
seven-year-old son to
in getting a three
Scotland
school just two minutes
month internship at
away from Glenbow at
Glenbow and in late 1995
the W.H. Cushing Workplace
she was offered a permanent
School. It is great having my son
Art Curator position. Like lots
so close by that I can meet him for lunch or
of Calgarians, she was able to advance
attend field trips to downtown attractions with
her career without leaving the city and was
him. Calgarians enjoy a great work/live balance.
appointed the President and CEO in 2010.
MOVED
TO CALGARY
I enjoy the collaboration that exists across the
arts community. Calgary boasts a number
of public and commercial galleries and artist
run centres, many of whom Glenbow has
elsewhere should know about Calgary? I
find Calgary has evolved significantly since I
first moved here. Not only is the arts scene
thriving, but the social and political landscape
Our people work for a respected and dynamic Albertabased company with a solid track record of growth, a
focus on safety and significant potential for the future.
With ATCO, you will join our unique and diverse world
seems to be shifting. Calgary is far more
cosmopolitan than people give it credit for.
The growing Exposure Photo Festival is an
annual showcase of the best in photography
in Calgary, Banff and Canmore. It is another
good example of how the entire arts
community works together. Calgarians are
which includes a healthy and safe work environment,
a commitment to the communities where we live and
work, and an opportunity to grow your career across
our various companies. ATCO employs more than 8,800
always amazed when I tell them the Glenbow
has more than one million pieces in its
collections. It is one of the largest museum
and gallery collections in Western Canada.
We have one of the most substantial Asian Art
collections in North America. We have some
amazing artifacts including Captain Cook’s
sword.
— Richard White
people worldwide in nine companies engaged in
structures & logistics, utilities, energy, and technology;
we offer great opportunities for great people.
For more information on ATCO, visit: www.atco.com
8,800 PEOPLE. NINE COMPANIES. ONE TEAM.
COUNTLESS OPPORTUNITIES.
For more information on hundreds of career opportunities with ATCO or to apply, visit us at www.atcocareers.com
move to
When Chris Jennings and his wife Julie graduated from Kansas State University, they got out a map and drew a 500 mile
radius around Kansas and declared “anything outside of that
is fair game!” Their first move was to Phoenix and a position with Stantec, a global design firm. After 11 years there
and on the cusp of their first son starting kindergarten, they
thought it was “a good time to relocate.” Chris researched
internal postings with Stantec and found one in Calgary that
appealed. They decided to be adventurous and move to Calgary for what they expected would be a two-year period.
What is the best thing about
Calgary for you?
We love Calgary’s abundant
green spaces, the mountain views
and the great character of its many
Name: Chris
different neighbourhoods. Calgary
Jennings
is made up of over 100 communiAge: 44
ties, each with its own name and
Occupation:
charm and with its own commuPrincipal, Stantec,
nity centres, schools, parks and
landscape architect
playgrounds. Living in Calgary
and land planner
is like living in a small town or
Place of Birth:
village with all the benefits of a
Wichita, Kansas
big city.
My wife and I also admire Calgary’s school system that offers
public, Catholic and charter schools,
all tax supported, as well as numerous private schools. Parents
have lots of choices for their children’s education; the public
school system offers French, Spanish, German and Chinese
schools, as well as ones focused on science, music and the arts.
MOVED TO
CALGARY
— Pictured: River Walk area in Calgary’s East Village: Calgary Herald Archive
Housing options numerous, affordable
By MARTY HOPE
K
yle Burt and his partner Shilo
Davis saw Calgary as an opportunity to move on with their
lives together. So about a year ago, the
couple pulled up stakes and waved so
long to the Greater Toronto Area (GTA)
and struck out for Calgary, joining the
more than 19,000 who found their way
here in 2011. This year, the forecast is
for another 21,000 newcomers.
“We did a lot of research before coming out here,” says Davis. “We checked
out the cost of living compared to the
GTA, job opportunities, and housing
options, and we were amazed.”
On the jobs front, Canada Mortgage
and Housing Corporation is forecasting
18,900 new positions this year and another 18,600 in 2013.
Along with rising migration and
healthier job creation, comes a growing
demand for housing in Calgary and surrounding communities.
CMHC is calling for 29,100 housing
starts of all kinds this year in the Calgary
region, up from 25,704 in 2011. As well,
projections are for 23,000 resale homes
to change hands — a slight increase
from last year — and for the average
price to reach $409,000 compared with
just under $403,000 last year.
Prices in Calgary continue to be affordable in comparison with other major
Canadian cities.
“The amount of house we could get
for the money here, compared to GTA,
was a shock to us,” says Davis. “It’s just
so much less expensive here.”
Calgary has a very diverse new and
resale housing selection in a wide array of neighbourhoods from inner-city
high-rises to single-family detached
homes in the suburbs, to estate homes
on acreages, lakes or golf courses.
The downtown core and the abutting
Beltline district are seeing a rebirth in
construction with towers like Keynote
by Keynote Development Corp. beginning construction of a second residential tower of 250 units, and Grosvenor
Americas breaking ground on its
17-storey, 135-unit Drake development.
The East Village redevelopment program by Calgary Municipal Land Corporation on the east side of the downtown area will be a unique urban village
of apartments and townhouses. The
20-hectare mixed-use neighbourhood
on the site of historic Calgary could
be home to about 11,500 Calgarians
who want to live, play and work in the
downtown. Embassy Bosa of Vancouver and Fram+Slokker of Toronto have
signed on as the first developers in the
redevelopment, each of them sinking
$300 million into mixed-use projects.
Live-work projects are also attracting purchasers. One by Avi Urban in
The Bridges area sold out rapidly. On
that success, the company has started
a second one, The Block, located off
trendy 17th Avenue S.W.
Calgary has older communities on
the shoulder of the core that are gaining
renewed interest from people looking for
neighbourhoods with existing amenities
like parks, retail, good access and plenty
of character. Further out, communities
like McKenzie Towne in the southeast
and Garrison Wood in the southwest
offer all the benefits for those who prefer
to use their feet for transportation.
Transit-oriented development is being promoted by municipal officials
as a way of increasing density through
the creation of residential/retail hubs
along the light-rail transit system.
The first one to be announced and
approved is University City in northwest
Brentwood — a mix of five residential
towers along with retail elements.
Bush and Davis bought a detached
home in SkyView Ranch by Walton
Management and Development in northeast Calgary because they consider the
access to their jobs better than elsewhere
in the suburbs — and see the potential
of this still-developing community.
If a more rural lifestyle holds certain
appeal, the golf course estate community of Heritage Pointe south of the
city limits, or centres like Okotoks,
Airdrie, Chestermere, or Cochrane
might be the answer.
Is there one thing you think people elsewhere should
know about Calgary?
Calgary really is a world-class metropolitan city, with lots of diversity and access to arts, culture and recreation. The dynamic
downtown skyline rivals that of any city I’ve visited. There is a
great vibe in the downtown, be that along Stephen Avenue Walk
at lunch in the summer as over 30,000 workers parade down
the historic street, or the thousands of people who run, walk and
cycle along the adjacent Bow River pathway at lunch and on
weekends year-round. Calgary is not as cold and wintry as outsiders think — you can enjoy the outdoors year-round.
I adore the Los Mariachis restaurant where the mole enchiladas
remind me of Arizona. I also enjoy shopping at Calgary’s farmers markets and the fact that even though it is snowing outside, you can get fresh organic produce any time of the year.
— Richard White
a
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Explore now
g
a
a
g
g
global energy
There’s an energy in Calgary that exhilarates, invigorates
and motivates. There’s opportunity here – to break traditions,
leap barriers, discover new frontiers. And everyone is welcome.
To explore the possibilities, visit our website, meet the business
leaders who help Calgary take on the world and find out how you
can be part of the energy.
Follow us on :
@partoftheenergy
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and the
the TERVI
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ERVITA logo are the trad
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of Tervit
Tervit
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Corporation. All rights reserved.
NO MATTER WHO HIRES US,WE WORK FOR HER.
It could be an oil company that needs help squeezing the last few hundred barrels from a well. Or a municipality that needs to de-commission an illegal
meth lab. Either way, we will do the job professionally, safely and with an eye to the future. We are the 4,100 men and women of Hazco, Concord, Beck
and nine other afﬁliated companies – formerly known collectively as CCS, now as Tervita. We apply knowledge, skill, technology and hard work to provide
environmental and energy services that are best-in-class. Our goal is sustainability, both for the client companies who hire us and for the planet as a
whole. Because it’s not just you counting on us. It’s everyone. To learn more about Tervita and our current job openings, visit tervita.com today.
A N O R T H A M E R I C A N L E A D E R I N E N V I R O N M E N TA L A N D E N E R G Y S E R V I C E S

move to - Calgary Herald

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