Design team announced for Stephen Avenue redesign
Stephen Avenue is getting a makeover.
The city announced Wednesday that it has enlisted Gehl Studio and Stantec as design partners to help reimagine the downtown pedestrian hub.
The design partners will work with the city to develop a new design that stretches from 11 Street S.W. to Olympic Plaza.
The design will come from ideas generated by the Stephen Avenue Public Realm Study with the goal of providing a clear blueprint for a reimagined Stephen Avenue that's vibrant and creates connections with other parts of downtown, activates public spaces and opens up buildings and businesses to the avenue.
"Stephen Avenue is a key cultural and economic hub for downtown Calgary and we have the opportunity to create a street experience that is more people focused, embraces all modes of transportation and helps support businesses in our downtown," said Thom Mahler, director of the city’s downtown strategy.
"Gehl Studio and Stantec Calgary have been shaping the plan for the future of Stephen Avenue for the past several years and will be tasked with working with Calgary’s downtown community to advance a design for our downtown main street that brings vibrancy, economic opportunities and community-building approaches to the heart of our city."
Gehl Studio is an urban design and research firm in architecture, urban design, landscape architecture and city planning. Their design philosophy is to analyze how people use public space and find ways to help generate flourishing public spaces.
Calgary's Stephen Avenue is shown.
Stantec, a leader in sustainable design and engineering, will provide local design support and technical expertise in Stephen Avenue's makeover.
"We are incredibly excited for this next phase of the future of Stephen Avenue. In the first phase of this project, we set the stage for delivering a high-quality concept design rooted in the needs and desires of Calgarians and visitors alike, through extensive community and stakeholder engagement," said Sofie Kvist, project lead with Gehl. "Now it is time to develop design for the entirety of Stephen Avenue, and with that make sure this important downtown Calgary public space continue to thrive in the future."
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