Suburbs Satellites CALGARY & NEIGHBOURING COMMUNITIES& • MAY 2013 Bridging the gap The charm and benefits of small town living near Calgary. Also inside: Spotlight on Southeast Calgary WWW.CALGARYHERALD.COM/SUBS SUBURBSSUBURBS ++ SATELLITESSATELLITES JUNEMAY 20132012 1 everything WE BUILD, WE BUILD around you. Use the power of Baywest’s red pen to make custom changes to your floorplan that suit you. You know there’s a big distinction between “good enough” and “just We build homes from the $400s’ to $1M+ right” and in that gap, exists the opportunity for something better. You wouldn’t think twice about having a suit tailored to fit you, so why compromise on your most important and personal investment? You should expect more. It’s about floorplanning – and inviting you to be a part of that process. Our clients wouldn’t have it any other way. BUILDING IN THESE FINE COMMUNITIES AUBURN BAY SE • RIVERSTONE of CRANSTON SE • MAHOGANY SE • RANCHES OF SILVERADO SW Connect with us: DRESSAGE OF SILVERADO SW • RANCHERS’ RISE in OKOTOKS • NOLAN HILL NW READY-TO-GO | T AILORED | C U S T OM BAYWESTHOMES.COMBAYWESTHOMES.COM 2 SUBURBS + SATELLITES MAY 2013 WWW.CALGARYHERALD.COM/SUBS in this issue Suburbs 2A 21 Airdrie Family moves to Airdrie for house Satellites DIDSBURY CALGARY & NEIGHBOURING COMMUNITIES& • MAY 2013 prices, stays for the schools. 18 Cochrane 582 Historic Bridging the gap The charm and benefits of small downtown CARSTAIRS town living near Calgary. to play a key 4 Chestermere role in the Planners respond to town’s town’s 2 torrid population growth. Also inside: future plans. Spotlight on Southeast Calgary AIRDRIE WWW.CALGARYHERALD.COM/SUBS SUBURBS + SATELLITES JUNE 2012 1 COCHRANE 10 Strathmore SUBURBS + SATELLITES 1 1A CHESTERMERE STRATHMORE Residents take community spirit A special publication 1 to heart through volunteerism. of the Calgary Herald 560 22 LANGDON 22X Project Co-ordinator: 22 Jamie Zachary, 403-235-7552 12 Calgary OKOTOKS [email protected] 7 9 Langdon New communities create 2 BLACK Luck has nothing to do with new opportunities in DIAMOND Contributors: Wil Andruschak, booming southeast quadrant. HIGH RIVER tight-knit community’s growth. Barbara Balfour, Robyn Burnett, LONGVIEW CAYLEY Alex Frazer-Harrison, Michelle Hofer, NANTON Jessica Patterson, Carl Patzel, Kathleen Renne, Adrian Shellard, 24 High River 25 Okotoks STAVELY Gerald Vander Pyl and Gavin Young Local artists and performers take Popular Big Rock Singers continues control of town’s arts scene. CLARESHOLM to bring town’s crooners together Cover illustration: Charlene Kolesnik ADVERTISING FEATURE Baywest sparks buyers’ creativity with plethora of options hile some home builders claim to fits within a community’s architectural have creative home designs, one guidelines. WCalgary company has been built Hall says the company has built custom a reputation on it. homes in high-end estate communities Baywest Homes has been catering to such as Cranston and Mahogany, and Calgary’s most creative homeowners since expects to build more in emerging areas 1985. such as Riverstone of Cranston. “We are a unique builder in that sense,” Baywest also builds what it calls “ultra says vice-president of marketing Ryan Hall. custom homes” on acreages outside the city “We offer three unique ways of doing or large inner-city lots within communities business. From building one of our such as Mount Royal or Pump Hill. award-winning stock plans that are well Hall says homebuyers’ imaginations thought out and designed, to a tailored (and budgets) are the only limits for ultra- home where you invest a little time and custom designs. energy to alter an existing plan resulting “We call it your legacy home,” he says. in a home that is distinct and shows your With its three ways of doing business, style.” Baywest Homes is able to meet The third option is a custom home plan. homebuyers’ growing needs. Baywest has a variety of great stock Hall suggests anyone looking for a home plans that are “ready to go” in many new home can visit Baywest’s website at of Calgary and area’s top communities, baywesthomes.com for more information, including Auburn Bay, Mahogany, The or stop by one of the Baywest show homes Ranches of Silverado and Dressage in Red Pen literally means a homebuyer gets to fit better in a room, or adding a light in a available in several communities. Silverado, Ranchers’ Rise in Okotoks and to evaluate their floor plan with a Baywest certain area of the home. “You can get a good sense of what the Riverstone of Cranston. home panning specialist, red pen in-hand While a tailored home is ideal for many quality is like, the style of homes we build, For other buyers, a tailored home is and document the modifications he or she homebuyers, Baywest goes even further and chat with an area manager and learn the preferred choice, and makes use of needs. That can mean moving a wall a few with its full-custom homes. This can involve more about how this process works,” he Baywest’s trademark Red Pen program. feet to allow a treasured piece of furniture designing a home from scratch that still says. WWW.CALGARYHERALD.COM/SUBS SUBURBS + SATELLITES MAY 2013 3 CHESTERMERE 4 SUBURBS + SATELLITES MAY 2013 WWW.CALGARYHERALD.COM/SUBS >> Chestermere Water Festival. Calgary Herald photo Prairie oasis Chestermere continues its torrid population growth; town planners adjust to respond BY KATHLEEN RENNE hestermere is like a young teenager: A feeling of freshness permeates the com- It’s in the middle of a growth spurt. munity. For one thing, the commercial cen- C That surge has seen the town east tre is less than 10 years old. For another, of Calgary on the Trans-Canada Highway one third of the population is under 21. grow more than 300 per cent in the past While many of the town’s residents work 10 years. In fact, it’s the fastest growing in Calgary, Matthews hopes to see that municipality in Alberta, with a current change. population of nearly 16 000 people. “Commercial growth is our priority,” she “We’re a great place to live,” Mayor says, noting Chestermere does not charge a Patricia Matthews says of the reason why business licence tax. people are moving to her town. Currently, there are 289 registered busi- “We’re in close proximity to Calgary. We nesses in the town, primarily in the retail, have a laid-back, recreation-type lifestyle — restaurant and service-oriented sectors. we are striving to be Alberta’s oasis. Many of these businesses are arranged Matthews moved to Chestermere in 1997 around three commercial “clusters” in for the same reason as many of her neigh- Chestermere, each bearing a distinct theme bours: to raise a family in a non-city setting. (i.e. railway, nautical) that is reflected in Though Chestermere is only a proverbial building architecture. “hop, skip and a jump” from Calgary, the “One of the ways we are trying to appeal community prides itself on being distinct. to people is to expand home-based busi- >> Chestermere Chamber of Commerce president Robin Impey and “That is our No. 1 priority — not to be nesses,” Matthews says. Mayor Patricia Matthews outside town hall. Gavin Young photo like everyone else,’” says Matthews. // CONTINUED ON PAGE 6 WWW.CALGARYHERALD.COM/SUBS SUBURBS + SATELLITES MAY 2013 5 CHESTERMERE We’ll be in a position were we can sustain ourselves >> Chestermere. Gavin Young photo // CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 them to do their shopping there as well. He also admits, however, that employers in “We want to be able to provide unique com- Chestermere are faced with a relatively small pool mercial opportunities,” adds Matthews. of workers from which to draw to staff their The town recently hired an “enterprise facilita- businesses. tor,” a move praised by Chestermere Chamber of Matthews acknowledges it’s somewhat of Commerce president Robin Impey. a “chicken-and-egg” scenario when it comes “They want him to focus a bit more on the to finding a balance between customer base, businesses that are already here,” explains Impey, employee pool and new business. who owns an M&M Meat Shop in town. “There Meanwhile, the Town is also looking to is no point in bringing in new business until the expand its business profile into the light indus- CHESTERMERE existing ones are supported.” at a glance trial and manufacturing sectors. Impey admits the town’s business community In fact, after Chestermere annexed some more is not relevant to the population. land in 2009, an additional 890 hectares were “Because of Chestermere’s close proximity to set aside for future commercial and industrial including easy access to major highway systems Calgary, residential growth has outpaced business growth. and an international airport, little traffic growth significantly,” he adds. “We have created a municipal development congestion and low commercial taxes, adds “For kids just out of school, for example, we plan for the next 30 years that looks at a popula- Matthews. Population: 15,352 don’t have very much out here for first-time tion of 45,000 to 60 000,” says Matthews. “And we have a council that is anxious (2012, municipal census). jobs.” “We are prepared for that growth. We have for business,” she says. “I fully expect that Location: Trans-Canada Riz Jetha, who owns a liquor store in identified commercial in a way that is logical Chestermere will have enough of an employment Highway, about town, identifies with the town’s struggles. and makes economic and sustainable sense to the base within the next 20 years so people won’t 18 kilometres east of “We are constantly in a battle with what community.