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You hit the nail on the head re: Northmount Drive and Elbow Drive. IMO, the two most underutilized corridors with the greatest potential to organically grow into good "main streets". These won't be the same as 33rd in Marda Loop or Kensington Road for sure, but they have the potential to be a primarily residential corridor with commercial nodes every 400-600m. Lots of potential for gradual growth from their predominantly 50s/60s bungalow form now to rowhouses then mid rises and with the gradual expansion of commercial areas outwards. Or at least one could hope.

Surrealplaces said:
Just for the record, I don't live downtown either, but don't live to far away....just north of 16th. I've lived downtown before, and loved it, I plan to end up there again. Right now though, a wife, three kids, two dogs, and a father in law, make for tight quarters in a condo haha.

Thankfully, I live close enough to downtown to 'cheat' as @Oddball puts it, on a regular basis. :)

Seriously though, with some zoning changes, I could see streets like Northmount Drive or Elbow Drive past Glenmore as having some hope for a nice retail strip... Also maybe hope in some TOD style urban areas like Dalhousie Station, but once you get to the areas with designs like Citadel, Tuscany, Panormama Hills, etc... there's zero hope of ever getting those kinds of character retail streets. And hey nothing against those neighborhoods if that's the lifestyle you want to live (and many do), it's just that short of bulldozing the neighborhoods and starting over again, they are what they are forever.
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Agree 100% with you and SP. Centre street is right up there in the underutilized category too. The section of Center Street up to around 32nd Ave. even has the potential to be a Marda loop type area.
retrofiturbanism said:
You hit the nail on the head re: Northmount Drive and Elbow Drive. IMO, the two most underutilized corridors with the greatest potential to organically grow into good "main streets". These won't be the same as 33rd in Marda Loop or Kensington Road for sure, but they have the potential to be a primarily residential corridor with commercial nodes every 400-600m. Lots of potential for gradual growth from their predominantly 50s/60s bungalow form now to rowhouses then mid rises and with the gradual expansion of commercial areas outwards. Or at least one could hope.
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artvandelay said:
Hi all, refugee from SSP here. How refreshing to see a mature and intelligent discussion about urban development. Looking forward to some actual construction talk!
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Welcome @artvandelay ! If you have any questions of the site let know. Also if you come in on this link http://calgary.skyrisecities.com/forum/ you can click on 'new posts' and it show the latest posts that have been updated.
 
Just build it said:
Agree 100% with you and SP. Centre street is right up there in the underutilized category too. The section of Center Street up to around 32nd Ave. even has the potential to be a Marda loop type area.
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Agreed, and the Green Line will accelerate this process.
 
Things continue behind the scenes for the Triangle site (ContainR) in Sunnyside. A RFP went out for developers interested in purchasing the site, apparently there has been a lot of interest. As part of the development I do believe the city is requiring a certain amount of affordable housing/units put in. Really hoping we see a developer with the ability to get going almost right away purchase the site. Lots of potential and the ability to help tie 2nd avenue into the Kensington BRZ area.
 
Thanks for the update Nimbus. That parcel is a huge piece of the puzzle to the area, a mix use development with retail on 2nd would be a great fit. Great to hear that there is an affordable housing component.

Also would love to see a restaurant with a patio area (marked in red) on the SW corner. Some might find that an odd location, but my experience having been to some patios in Europe that are beside streetcar lines, it offers a unique feel.

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Nimbus said:
Things continue behind the scenes for the Triangle site (ContainR) in Sunnyside. A RFP went out for developers interested in purchasing the site, apparently there has been a lot of interest. As part of the development I do believe the city is requiring a certain amount of affordable housing/units put in. Really hoping we see a developer with the ability to get going almost right away purchase the site. Lots of potential and the ability to help tie 2nd avenue into the Kensington BRZ area.
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Thanks for the info. Sunnyside has a lot going for it. I high hopes for this development, I hope the development does not exceed 4-6 stories and the design is top notch! I like the mid-sized buildings that the community has.

Sunnyside:

+19 units at the Palfreyville(complete)
+104 units at the Minto proposal
+25-40 units at the Truman site https://www.engagememorial.com/
+79 Units 2nd Ave (future)
+Sunnyside Grocery store redevelopment (across from the school)(future)
+Triangle lot site(future)
+Minto Site #2(future)
 
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I imagine that redesignation of the triangle site is part of this RFP? Current M-CG land use would only allow for 25 units on a 37,000 sf site. That's like townhome density.
 
Social Justice said:
Thanks for the info. Sunnyside has a lot going for it. I high hopes for this development, I hope the development does not exceed 4-6 stories and is design is top notch! I like the mid-sized buildings that the community has.

Sunnyside:

+19 units at the Palfreyville(complete)
+104 units at the Minto proposal
+25-40 units at the Truman site https://www.engagememorial.com/
+79 Units 2nd Ave (future)
+Sunnyside Grocery store redevelopment (across from the school)(future)
+Triangle lot site(future)
+Minto Site #2(future)
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As the last major vacant site nearby, direct adjacency to the LRT station, and the demand for affordable housing on the site expect this one to be one of the tallest/densest in Hillhurst/Sunnyside. I would expect somewhere in the 8-10 stories range, however the site is large so likely with a few sections / set backs that are in the 4-6 height. I would strongly doubt it will be less than 6 stories given the context, developer interest and affordable housing requirement on it. I also have little doubt it won't be tastefully done and appropriate for the context though and that the neighbourhood will complain it's too high regardless.
 
CBBarnett said:
As the last major vacant site nearby, direct adjacency to the LRT station, and the demand for affordable housing on the site expect this one to be one of the tallest/densest in Hillhurst/Sunnyside. I would expect somewhere in the 8-10 stories range, however the site is large so likely with a few sections / set backs that are in the 4-6 height. I would strongly doubt it will be less than 6 stories given the context, developer interest and affordable housing requirement on it. I also have little doubt it won't be tastefully done and appropriate for the context though and that the neighbourhood will complain it's too high regardless.
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That'd be really cool if it could press for tallest in Kensington. Definitely one to keep an eye on. Thanks for all the great updates all.
 
CBBarnett said:
As the last major vacant site nearby, direct adjacency to the LRT station, and the demand for affordable housing on the site expect this one to be one of the tallest/densest in Hillhurst/Sunnyside. I would expect somewhere in the 8-10 stories range, however the site is large so likely with a few sections / set backs that are in the 4-6 height. I would strongly doubt it will be less than 6 stories given the context, developer interest and affordable housing requirement on it. I also have little doubt it won't be tastefully done and appropriate for the context though and that the neighbourhood will complain it's too high regardless.
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8-10 stories is perfect for that spot, so long as they have it terraced back somewhat, starting at 4-6 stories at the street level. My humble opinion.
 
Nimbus said:
Yup, I am ok with extra height at Triangle site. With the right design and setbacks it could be a real winner and standout.
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It's one of the places in Kensington where 10 stories would work well. Some of the lots along 14th street could even be taller, maybe 12 floors.
 
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