American businessman Keith Warner may have just become Calgary's – and, specifically, Inglewood's – biggest cheerleader, as his multi-million-dollar video game development company will open a studio in the community in May.

The construction machinery sprawled across a whole city block in Calgary's East Village tells a retail success story.

The 5th and Third development (named for its location at Fifth Avenue and Third Street S.E.) is being constructed and leased by RioCan. The project is two-thirds of the way towards completion and on schedule to open in 2020, says Terri Andrianopoulos, RioCan's national vice-president of marketing and communications.

Nicole Butz - Mission
For Nicole, the day begins with a short stroll from her riverside, two-bedroom condo (she has a downtown view and awakens to the honking sounds of geese) to La Boulangerie Bakery Cafe on Fourth Street to grab a latte.

She calls herself an ardent inner-city junkie. "I don't really do the suburbs well, and Mission's vibrant but a little bit out of the core, so you get a different vibe. It just feels like home."

A long-awaited effort to revitalize east Victoria Park is underway, with the first projects taking shape under the Rivers District master plan (RDMP) that was passed by city council in December 2018.

Led by the Calgary Municipal Land Corp. (CMLC), the plan spells out a vision of east Victoria Park as a cultural and entertainment centre with a residential component, fitting within the larger Rivers District that also includes the East Village.

For over 30 years, Excel Homes has been crafting homes with extraordinary style and attention to detail, winning numerous awards for its innovative designs.

But company COO Dean Campbell says that what really sets this homebuilder apart is its commitment to sustainability and the Built Green program.

When Mark Evernden goes to list his own west-end home next month, it will be priced at less than what he bought it for a decade ago.

"I paid $1.3 million, and I know the replacement value if I was building today would be $1.8 million," said the private office advisor and licensed partner with Engel & Volkers Calgary, who has been selling in Calgary's luxury market for more than a decade.

The effects of Calgary's economic climate continue to create weak sales activity and elevated inventory in the city's housing market.

As a result, prices are being affected.

When Brian Taylor looks out the window of his home in EchoHaven, the view is a street lined with houses of varying architectural styles.

However, beneath the surface, many of those homes have similar characteristics designed to make them eco-friendly and highly energy efficient in a development purposefully built with no natural gas service.

Saving the planet is a good thing, but if you can put some green in your jeans at the same time, all the better. As interest in homes with environmentally friendly features grows among buyers and sellers, the popularity of green designations for REALTORS® is also on the rise.