A place to spend a Saturday The BMO Convention Centre expansion helps shape the Culture & Entertainment District

A PLACE TO SPEND A SATURDAY

The BMO Convention Centre expansion helps shape the Culture & Entertainment District

Revitalizing neighbourhoods and creating exciting experiences while altering the landscape of the city. The Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC) is breaking ground on the next component of the Rivers District Community Revitalization Plan.

Since 2007, the CMLC has transformed the East Village from an underutilized former industrial zone into one of the most energetic neighbourhoods and destinations in Calgary. In partnership with the Calgary Stampede, the CMLC is now focusing on East Victoria Park, and the BMO Convention Centre expansion is the next major project that will transform Calgary’s downtown east end into the Culture & Entertainment District.

The $500million project will more than double its current space, increasing the total floor space to nearly one million square feet. And rather than creating a convention space that consumes entire city blocks, the CMLC saw the importance of making a space that integrated the structure with outdoor useable festival streets and urban plazas that are walkable and accessible.

“The challenge with a project of this scale

is to consider how to build an expansion that is over 500,000 square feet that both interacts and engages with its environment,” says Kate Thompson, president of CMLC. “Convention centres are typically very inward focused. You enter the exhibit hall, go through the doors, and are lost in the building. We wanted to create an interactive space that pulls people out and through the building.”

The CMLC and Calgary Stampede assembled Stantec, Populous, and S2 Architecture to design and deliver the project. The expansion design features three floors of tradeshow and convention space, including new exhibition halls, two ballrooms, and a central hub and atrium. The exterior will provide space for retail and cafés, an outdoor plaza and pavilion, public art installations, and motor coach parking.

“The architects and designers did an excellent job reaching out the form and creating plaza space previous not in the program,” says Thompson. “They really rose to the challenge, pushing the envelope with the creation.”

The new facility will incorporate the latest in conference design with adaptable meeting spaces, meeting rooms wired for connectivity, flexible breakout areas, and outdoor spaces. It will also provide 118,500 square feet of backofhouse service areas such as loading zones and food preparation space.

CMLC and the Calgary Stampede have enlisted convention venue operations specialist HLT Advisory Inc., project management firm M3 Development, and construction management by PCL Construction.

For the year leading up to this spring’s groundbreaking, crews have been busy prepping the site below the surface which included utility relocates, demolition of the muchbeloved Coral, and capturing all the historic significance of that structure for generations to come.

Thompson says that while conference activity has been paused due to the global pandemic, construction teams saw the silver lining and took advantage of this situation, performing much of the work while patrons were not around. “We’ve been under construction for a while, but now we will be building up so construction will be more visible,” she says.

The BMO Convention Centre has been Calgary’s primary consumer and trade show venue since it was built in 1982. When the expansion is complete in 2024, the convention centre will be the largest facility in Western Canada. And when all restrictions are removed and people return to everyday activity, the building will remain fully operational and activated throughout construction.

Thompson says that the CMLC has received inquiries from other municipalities and organizations wanting to know more about how they developed their district plans. “It’s a great indicator that we are on the right track. I think the best thing we can do is share,” she says. However, their mission is to create experiences that are unique to Calgary, “We are expected to be innovative, and this is a privilege that we take very seriously. People are drawn to great design and functional spaces that are worthy of making it a destination. Our goal is to make the Culture & Entertainment District a place where people want to spend their Saturday.” n

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