In the vibrant heart of Calgary’s emerging Culture + Entertainment District, the event centre team moves forward with excitement and momentum as the design and planning phases progress. While the design of the Event Centre Block continues through development, efforts are underway to prepare the site for construction, and the public can expect to see activity occur on site this spring.

5A Street S.E.  – Making room for 10-acre Event Centre Block 

5 Street S.E. will be shifted to the east and become 5A Street S.E. This move is necessary to make the space and room necessary for the full 10-acre Event Centre Block. Throughout January and February, underground service work and a temporary roadway was constructed. In the coming months, crews will construct the new utilities and alignment of 5A Street S.E.

Project Timeline – An expedited process to save time and money

A total of three development permits will be submitted to facilitate construction of the Event Centre Block.

In February, the design team submitted two of the three development permit applications: a stripping and grading permit and a shoring and excavating permit. Following approval of these permits, it will allow crews to strip, grade, and excavate for the Event Centre Block. This work is targeted to begin later this year after the designs have been shared with the public.

A separate and third development permit application for the building (including building design components such as exterior façade and interior layouts) is scheduled to be submitted in the coming months.

By sequencing the permit applications in this way, we can schedule the work and trades required to begin the excavation process as soon as the design of the Event Centre Block is complete. This process creates efficiency and saves time and cost in the overall project schedule.

While it is a multi-year construction project, we are diligently working to accelerate the timeline without compromising quality. We expect to share the design and break ground in 2024.