Calgary and Alberta seemed to have missed the memo on declining house starts in Canada.

Starts decreased across the country in March and April, but not in the Calgary area, where starts increased both months.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) reported 11,323 starts in the Calgary Census Metropolitan Area in April compared to 11,242 in March, a trend of sixmonth moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of total housing starts.

A central arts hub in the community of South Calgary was given a financial boost of $3.5 million thanks to the Province of Alberta.

King Edward School is to be the centerpiece of a 45,000 sq. ft. facility dedicated to creations, productions, exhibitions and rehearsals and will include tenants such as the Alberta Craft Council, Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers and the Fairy Tales Presentation Society. The project is headed by the non-profit enterprise cSPACE.

Cover Photo is from RBC 20th Annual Home Ownership Poll Report

Nearly nine-in-10 Albertans surveyed said buying a house or condo is a good investment, according to a poll released by RBC.

As outlined in the bank's 20th Annual RBC Home Ownership Poll, 89 per cent of Albertans said buying a home was a good investment, compared to the national average of 84 per cent. The poll showed homebuying intentions in the province have dropped to 22 per cent from 31 per cent a year ago.