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Stories Tagged - Surrounding Areas
July 12, 2017 | Andrea Cox
Rocky Mountain high
Ian MacGregor has always loved the mountains. So when the oil and gas executive decided to develop close to 700 acres of his personal land halfway between Cochrane and Canmore, he utilized his entrepreneurial expertise to parlay that love into an innovative plan – one that would protect the environment and offer a leading-edge, sustainable model of estate-style rural living.
July 12, 2017 | Andrea Cox
The great outdoors
Jeff Taylor is a vibrant outdoor enthusiast who loves to ski, hike, bike and race cars. He's lived in Canmore for close to 20 years and can't say enough about the mountain lifestyle.
When he began his home finding mission, he knew that he would confine his search to the Bow Valley. He was looking to purchase a one-bedroom plus den condominium with a great view, one that was big enough to store all of his sporting toys and within walking distance of the quaint stores, pubs and restaurants on Canmore's lively main street. He found exactly what he was looking for at Creekstone Mountain Lodge in the master-planned community of Spring Creek.
July 14, 2017 | Tyler Difley
Wild West
While the Calgary Stampede is the "Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth," Alberta's western heritage runs deep across the province – where a number of small-town and community rodeos, both professional and amateur, are being held throughout the summer.
June 29, 2017 | Andrea Cox
City-limits bliss
Amy Shafer grew up on a farm, so when it came to building her dream home, being immersed in nature on the doorstep of wide-open park space was a top priority. She and her husband, and their three children, had been living in Valley Ridge, but just didn't feel connected. Their search for the perfect lot brought them to Watermark in Bearspaw, where they purchased a 1.33-acre home site that backs on to an Aspen grove, a freshwater pond and walking trails. The community features 46 acres of parkland and 16 ponds, and brushes up against the Haskayne Legacy Park, with trails connecting to Calgary and Cochrane.
June 21, 2017 | Joel Schlesinger
Driving development
It's been a long time coming, but the southwest section of Calgary's ring road is finally being built, and the city's developer community is among those most thrilled to see construction going ahead.
"It's really going to open up growth in the area, and provide not just opportunities for new communities, but also existing ones," said Steve LePan, director of sales and marketing with Anthem United.
"We're certainly happy to see it moving forward, because it would have had a negative impact (on our development in the area) if it had not been approved."
June 15, 2017 | Gerald Vander Pyl
Swimming upstream
For more than 100 years, Bragg Creek has existed in the shadow of the ever-expanding city of Calgary.
Yet the hamlet, located a 45-kilometre drive west of the city, has managed to maintain its enviable lifestyle in a beautiful location along the edge of the Rocky Mountains.
Resident and local business owner Mark Kamachi says he and his wife moved to Alberta from Vancouver 20 years ago to work at a Calgary advertising agency, and they chose to live in the city at first.
However, they found themselves spending many weekends hiking and biking in the mountains near Bragg Creek. Fifteen years ago, they decided to make it their new home.
June 08, 2017 | Karen Durrie
Cochrane poised for further growth
The explosive growth that Cochrane continues to enjoy is evident when Mayor Ivan Brooker reels off the names of more than a dozen new communities either under development or in the planning stages in the scenic town west of Calgary.
"We've had huge growth – we were the second-fastest growing community in all of Canada from 2011 to 2016," said Brooker.
"People love the location. We're a beautiful community, you're on your way to the mountains, and we're not a small town necessarily, in the aspects of not having services. We have everything you would expect in a big city. The amenities are there for anything you might want to entertain as a family."
June 15, 2017 | Gerald Vander Pyl
Family fun
A new farmers market set to open just south of Calgary city limits is reimagining the traditional market as a family entertainment venue.
Granary Road will have a variety of shops in its public market, but also an active learning park that is a mash-up of a children's playground and an interpretive centre.
"Parents are always looking for something to do with their children and while we have some amazing attractions in Calgary, there aren't enough," said Jane Walter-Lockwood, director of business development for Granary Road.
June 08, 2017 | Geoff Geddes
The long road ahead
Calgary roads during rush hour can be a frustrating place to be on the best of days. This is especially true for commuters that choose to live outside city limits – either in communities on the fringes or in towns a stone's throw away.
However, for many of these commuters the additional time spent driving from home to work and back every day is worth it for a lifestyle and other opportunities the city can't quite offer.
"I can't say I love the drive," said Bruce McCartney.
Since moving to Springbank – a rural community west of Calgary – from Beddington two decades ago for a bigger house and lot, the database consultant has been braving the 25-kilometre drive every weekday.
May 04, 2017 | Kathleen Renne
Memory Lane
Lined with charming, independent businesses and loads of historic treasures, small towns are trying to revitalize their main streets
Kelly Warrack describes the movement of businesses out of Strathmore's downtown core to the edge of town as "a fairly typical story for towns like us."
Warrack, who grew up on a farm near Strathmore, says Strathmore's Second Avenue (Main Street) was always the focal point of the town in decades past. "Main Street was the place to go," recalled Warrack, citing the presence of the feed mill, banks, the hardware store, the local Co-op and the King Edward Hotel as among the street's popular destinations. In recent times, however, Warrack says businesses have moved from downtown and have opened along the highway.