Surrounded by skyscrapers and apartments, Calgary's Lougheed House was once separated from downtown by prairie grasslands in an area known simply as "South of the Tracks".

"At the time it was built in 1891, the population of Calgary was 4,000 people and this palace . . . was then out on the prairie, people thought (James Lougheed) was crazy," said Blane Hogue, executive director, Lougheed House.

When Bernt Thorpe built the family home in Calgary's Eau Claire district in 1886, it's highly unlikely he ever entertained the thought that 126 later, his home would rest in Heritage Park Historical Village visited by thousands every year.

"The Thorpe house was chosen to represent the lifestyle of a moderately well off early Calgary family," said Barb Munro, communications specialist, Heritage Park Historical Village. "It's important to have a building like the Thorpe house on display at Heritage park to provide a glimpse into our past.

Building permit values for Calgary are on par for the third best overall year in the city.

The estimated construction value of building permit applications in Calgary for the month of June 2012 was $355 million, a decrease of 15 per cent compared to June 2011, bringing the year-to-date total to $2.49 billion.

Located on scenic Highway 22, the communities of Redwood Meadows and Bragg Creek offer scenic living and adventures only 30 minutes away from Calgary.

Redwood Meadows is a planned community developed by the Tsuu T'ina Nation in the late 1970s. The area earned its name after a grass fire in the 1940s after which Elders of the Tsuu T'ina Nation, noticing regrowth of poplar and spruce trees had a reddish colour to them, dubbed the area Redwood Yard.

Located in Calgary's southeast and a quick 20-minute drive from downtown, the communities of McKenzie Towne and McKenzie Lake have a little something for everyone.

McKenzie Towne

The younger of the two communities and located east of Deerfoot Trail, development on McKenzie Lake began in 1995. Divided into four sub-communities:

Centre City gets a passing grade from Calgarians

In a perception survey undertaken by the City of Calgary, 86 per cent of Calgarians feel the Centre City has improved or stayed the same over the last 12 months.

Report tags Uptown 17th Avenue with highest retail rents in Calgary

Colliers International has dubbed Calgary's Uptown 17th Avenue the city's most expensive street to rent on.

The commercial real estate company took a look at top retail corridors around the world including New York's Fifth Avenue, Hong Kong's Queen's Road Central, London's Old Bond Street and the Champs-Elysées in Paris in a Global Retail Streets survey.

A spurt in Calgary's population growth, plus a strong economy and rising home prices is starting to make its mark on the city's rental vacancy and in turn could mean changes for the housing market.

The average apartment vacancy rate in Alberta's urban centres decreased from 4.7 per cent to three per cent between April 2011 and April 2012, according to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).