BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE
Green Line LRT 9 Avenue N. rendering.
Event Centre, LRT will play key roles in transforming Calgary By Jim Timlick Between the struggles faced by the oil and gas sector and the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 could ultimately go down as one of the most difficult years ever in the history of Calgary. While neither situation is likely to be re solved in the short term, there is a growing sense of optimism building about the city’s future. Perhaps one of the most tangible bits of evidence of that growing optimism is the fact that the city is about to embark on two of the most ambitious building projects in its 146-year history. Preliminary work recently began on the Green Line light rail transit (LRT) project, which at a projected cost of $4.9 billion
makes it the largest infrastructure project in Calgary’s history. Later this year, construc tion is expected to begin on a new $550 mil lion, state-of-the-art Event Centre to replace the aging Scotiabank Saddledome. The Green Line LRT is being funded by the three levels of government and is ex pected to create 12,000 direct new jobs and another 8,000 spinoff jobs as part of the first
GREEN LIGHT FOR GREEN LINE The first phase of the Green Line LRT will run 20 kilometres and will connect 16th Av enue in north Calgary with 126th Avenue in the south end of the city. It will complement the existing Red Line and Blue Line LRT lines already in place. Preliminary work has already begun on relocating some utilities and landfills as well as separating the Green
phase of construction. The cost of the Event
Line from a nearby CN Rail spur line. Con
Centre is being split by the City of Calgary
struction is currently expected to begin later
and the Calgary Sports and Entertainment
this year pending the conclusion of discus
Corp. (CSEC) and is likewise expected to
sions with the province on due diligence.
create thousands of new employment op portunities.
Michael Thompson, Green Line general manager for the City of Calgary, says the
Event Centre concept renderings.
48
Calgary Construction Association
