Calgary: A few photos

[niff]

I was just in Calgary a few days ago and thought I would share some photos. I’m only posting a few as most of the others didn’t turn out as well or focused more on the river. Overall, Calgary was a very impressive city. The river park was beautiful, and the river itself was an amazing bluish green color.

Personally, I liked the network of human hamster tubes that connected the downtown blocks into a large continuous mall; however, I’m curious how the Calgary forumers view this network. I know that many Atlanta forumers decry the skyways that connect Peachtree center in downtown Atlanta because they allow people to avoid the streets. But I found Calgary’s network to be an extremely fast means to traversing the city center without having to wait at every crosswalk. Do Calgarians (sp?) share this view?

http://home.mindspring.com/~peppere/cal1.jpg

http://home.mindspring.com/~peppere/cal2.jpg

http://home.mindspring.com/~peppere/cal3.jpg

http://home.mindspring.com/~peppere/cal4.jpg

http://home.mindspring.com/~peppere/cal5.jpg

[Jimby]

Nice pics, I'm glad you had a nice visit.
I think most Calgary forumers would deride the "human hamster tubes" as removing pedestrian vibrancy from the street, but most downtown office workers really appreciate them when it is -30 outside!
There are gaps in the Plus 15 system, but it is improving.

[Boris2k7]

but most downtown office workers really appreciate them when it is -30 outside!

Which is only, like, two weeks out of the whole year. And yeah, they are very damaging to the street life. No way of getting around that as things currently stand.

BTW, nice shots. I'm presuming that the last one was from the Westin?

[10101000]

Nice!

[niff]

Which is only, like, two weeks out of the whole year. And yeah, they are very damaging to the street life. No way of getting around that as things currently stand.

BTW, nice shots. I'm presuming that the last one was from the Westin?

Yep. The top floor pool level was really neat. Interesting too that there were towers under construction on either side (well, one was about a block west).

Thanks for the comments on the + 15 system. Just out of curiosity, how did it get its name? At first, I was thinking the skyways were about 15ft above the ground, but Canada uses the metric system, so I guess that wouldn't be right.

[flar]

The first shot is a beauty.

[Coldrsx]

nice shots...and those +15s dont ruin street life, people ruin street life.

[davefyvie]

As a resident I have issues with the downtown core being 15' above the street. I feel this city lacks any storefronts or neighbourhood(s).. downtown becomes a ghost-town after 7pm every night regardless of it being +30 or -30. It's a sprawling megapolis with little atmosphere and an inflated ego. The tunnels only inflate the problem. I've lived here for 20 years so I have a grasp of what I'm talking about.. I have a love/hate with this town.

Nice photos.. Calgary is beautiful this time of year.

[Coldrsx]

As a resident I have issues with the downtown core being 15' above the street. I feel this city lacks any storefronts or neighbourhood(s).. downtown becomes a ghost-town after 7pm every night regardless of it being +30 or -30. It's a sprawling megapolis with little atmosphere and an inflated ego. The tunnels only inflate the problem. I've lived here for 20 years so I have a grasp of what I'm talking about.. I have a love/hate with this town.

Nice photos.. Calgary is beautiful this time of year.

amen and amen

[Top Of The Park]

I love seeing pics of Calgary.....I always hope that one day Denver will get that kind of downtown density. The trouble is the Denver Tech Center has more office space than downtown.....

[The Chemist]

Thanks for the comments on the + 15 system. Just out of curiosity, how did it get its name? At first, I was thinking the skyways were about 15ft above the ground, but Canada uses the metric system, so I guess that wouldn't be right.

That's exactly where the name came from. The system started before Canada went metric in 1976, and the name stuck.

Dave, parts of downtown are certainly not dead after 7 - both Stephen Avenue and Eau Claire are lively well after the CBD is empty. People need to realize that any big city has the same problem - the CBD is a 9-5, Monday to Friday only kind of place. Doesn't matter if it's Calgary, Toronto, or London.

[skyline]

Way cool

[Surrealplaces]

Nice pictures niff!

Calgarians have mixed feelings about the +15 network. I myself wouldn't mind them, if there wasn't so much retail inside of the networks up on that level.

In the summer it really doesn't have that much affect. On a nice day, downtown Calgary is like Manhattan, bustling with thousands of people.

[Crazy4Calgary]

nice shots...and those +15s dont ruin street life, people ruin street life.

amen and amen

Oh yeah...and Edmonton's sprawl and Pedways really attract streetlife....:koko:

[Crazy4Calgary]

Nice pictures niff!

Calgarians have mixed feelings about the +15 network. I myself wouldn't mind them, if there wasn't so much retail inside of the networks up on that level.

In the summer it really doesn't have that much affect. On a nice day, downtown Calgary is like Manhattan, bustling with thousands of people.

Exactly Surreal! I was DT yesterday (Sunday) +31 and the streets were ALIVE...Stores were busy, pathways bustlling!!!

[Kilgore Trout]

People need to realize that any big city has the same problem - the CBD is a 9-5, Monday to Friday only kind of place. Doesn't matter if it's Calgary, Toronto, or London.

Yes, but many big cities have multifaceted downtowns that are alive at all hours. Bay Street might be dead after dark but Yonge and Queen certainly aren't.

Beyond that there are usually a bunch of urban neighbourhoods that are lively at all hours. That's true to an extent in Kensington and around 17th Avenue, but even these parts of town can be pretty sleepy. The population densities and flâneur culture just aren't there yet. (It's changing, though, and the improvements have been vast in just a few years.)

[ady26]

Calgary rocks!!!