New downtown Calgary development program looks to incentivise investors to repurpose vacant office space
A development project is set to begin repurposing vacant office space in Calgary’s downtown.
The downtown development incentive program will convert vacant office space into reimagined spaces like residential housing as part of the city's downtown strategy.
"By reducing the vacancy rate, our long-term goal is to stabilize and increase property values," said Thom Mahler, program lead for the city’s downtown strategy.
"It restores the vibrancy of our downtown which will help attract additional business and new development."
An initial $45 million in funding is available to downtown building owners who are interested in converting their office space into residential housing.
"Conversions of office buildings to residential are not that common, so there’s always a risk in doing those types of projects," said Mahler. "By having the city be more of a partner in investing, it gives confidence to other lenders and investors that the city has a plan, and that we have confidence in our plan."
The initial phase of the program will run until December and will focus on office to residential conversion.
"Our hope with this first phase of the project is to get some construction projects going. Our hope is that we’ll start to generate interest in many of the other pieces."
Property owners within the developing downtown area can apply for funding between Aug. 16 and Sept. 15.
The grant will be capped at $10 million per property unless city council approves a greater amount for a particular application.
The program is offering a grant for office to residential conversions of $75 per square foot, based on the original gross building area of existing office space that will be converted.
The city hopes this incentive project creates a diverse range of cultural industries within the downtown core in the future.
"We have had a lot of conversations about how to readapt some of the office space into uses that are more supportive and integrated with say the cultural economy."
The Calgary Board of Real Estate's Q2 report for 2021 estimated downtown office vacancy at 14 million square feet or just above 32 per cent.
"There’s lots of opportunities, that’s one of the advantages to the high vacancy rate. There is opportunity for investors to come to Calgary and make their mark. That’s really what we’re hoping."
Downtown office property values have declined by 60 per cent since 2015, resulting in a tax shift that affects City finances as well as residential, commercial, and industrial property taxes throughout the city.
"The industrial properties in Calgary are doing very well so vacancy rates are low within industrial properties," says Mahler. "If we are taxing industrial lands more than other jurisdiction it makes it less competitive."
The city says six million square feet of office space needs to be removed from the market by leasing, conversion, or demolition over the next decade to manage with vacancy.
"I think there’s a chance to change perspectives amongst outsiders particularly about what Calgary is."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trudeau's 2024: Did the PM become less popular this year?
Justin Trudeau’s numbers have been relatively steady this calendar year, but they've also been at their worst, according to tracking data from CTV News pollster Nik Nanos.
Manhunt underway after woman, 23, allegedly kidnapped, found alive in river
A woman in her 20s who was possibly abducted by her ex is in hospital after the car she was in plunged into the Richelieu River.
Toronto firefighters rescue man who fell into sinkhole in Yorkville
A man who fell into a sinkhole in Yorkville on a snowy Friday night in Toronto has been rescued after being stuck in the ground for roughly half an hour.
Overheated immigration system needed 'discipline' infusion: minister
An 'overheated' immigration system that admitted record numbers of newcomers to the country has harmed Canada's decades-old consensus on the benefits of immigration, Immigration Minister Marc Miller said, as he reflected on the changes in his department in a year-end interview.
Death toll in attack on Christmas market in Germany rises to 5 and more than 200 injured
Germans on Saturday mourned both the victims and their shaken sense of security after a Saudi doctor intentionally drove into a Christmas market teeming with holiday shoppers, killing at least five people, including a small child, and wounding at least 200 others.
Wild boar hybrid identified near Fort Macleod, Alta.
Acting on information, an investigation by the Municipal District of Willow Creek's Agricultural Services Board (ASB) found a small population of wild boar hybrids being farmed near Fort Macleod.
Summer McIntosh makes guest appearance in 'The Nutcracker'
Summer McIntosh made a splash during her guest appearance in The National Ballet of Canada’s production of 'The Nutcracker.'
22 people die in a crash between a passenger bus and a truck in Brazil
A crash between a passenger bus and a truck early Saturday killed 22 people on a highway in Minas Gerais, a state in southeastern Brazil, officials said.
Back on air: John Vennavally-Rao on reclaiming his career while living with cancer
'In February, there was a time when I thought my career as a TV reporter was over,' CTV News reporter and anchor John Vennavally-Rao writes.