Calgary's collection of decades-old malls are getting much-needed facelifts

Consumer demand is driving a wave of commercial real estate development in the city with several major shopping centres poised to get major makeovers this year and next.

Deerfoot Mall in the city's northeast, as well as Northland Village Mall and Stadium Shopping Centre in the northwest, are all in the planning or development stages of redevelopment.

Michael Kehoe, an Alberta-based retail specialist with Fairfield Commercial Real Estate Inc., said the collective changes reflect landlords' attempts to breathe new life into decades-old retail hubs, of which there are plenty in the city.

Homeowners to benefit from redevelopment, says company behind initiative

An ambitious multi-year plan to breathe new life into Deerfoot Mall in north Calgary stands to benefit nearby homeowners in a big way, says the company behind the massive redevelopment.

In early 2016, Vancouver-based Shape Properties announced it would be transforming the decades-old property at Deerfoot Trail and 64th Avenue N.E. from a traditional closed mall into a state-of-the-art open shopping centre dubbed Deerfoot City, complete with everything from a restaurant campus to style district.

"For local property owners, Deerfoot City is nothing but a good story," said Shape Properties executive vice-president Darren Kwiatkowski, whose company purchased the site from Ivanhoe Cambridge in 2011 for a reported $78 million.

Developer Shape Properties has released renderings and a video on Deerfoot Mall's transformation to Deerfoot City.

"Deerfoot City will be unique to suburban Calgary, and will meet the growing demand from leading retailers and restaurants looking for creative new places with a vibrant, rich social experience and urban feel that differentiates them from traditional malls," said Darren Kwiatkowski, executive vice-president of Shape Properties.

Shopping communities within communities popping up all over Calgary

All over Calgary, a trend has begun.

Communities that once would've used a simple strip mall to provide residents with amenities are increasingly turning retail offerings into miniature town centres, plazas and High Streets, creating communities within communities.

Brookfield Residential recently announced its southeast community of Seton would be throwing their hat in the power strip pile, with plans for more than 800,000 square feet of retail space.