Bow Valley Plan Client: City of Calgary
Calgary, Alberta, 2000
The City of Calgary commissioned a national design competition for this 30-acre site in central Calgary overlooking the Bow River. UFA was selected to lead one of three teams invited to participate in this high-profile project. The challenge was to integrate new housing, civic amenities and open spaces into a transit-oriented development, on a steeply sloping urban site.
Our proposal was based on restoring the site’s natural features, repairing the urban fabric, and proposing forms of development which sensitively fit into the existing neighbourhood context. We proposed reestablishing the original escarpment which ran across the site, and extending the existing historical street grid into the site. An innovative mix of housing types included predominantly ground-oriented housing at higher urban densities. Major public amenities included a 12-acre park, a new Community Centre and a Village Square. The plan also incorporated pedestrian access to an existing Light Rapid Transit station, the Bow River and downtown Calgary.
