A District That Will Drive Growth

The Culture + Entertainment District will be Calgary’s next great city neighbourhood, the next chapter in downtown life, and an engine of development and tourism in a dynamic, evolving city.

The C+E will become – and has always been – a place of inspiring people and big ideas. As the Master Plan continues to evolve from a vision on paper to a multi-dimensional reality, The C+E Blog will periodically feature guest writers and thought-leaders— experts in the fields of placemaking, community-building and development to highlight how The C+E is shaping Calgary’s future.

In the second in a series of articles from Tourism Calgary, Kelly Bowman, Vice President of Strategy, Research & Communications shares some thoughts on how The C+E and the expanded BMO Centre -- which at time of writing is entering its final year of construction -- will amplify Calgary’s already growing visitor economy.

By Kelly Bowman, Vice President, Strategy, Research & Communications, Tourism Calgary

Calgary’s tourism industry is at a pivotal time as it recovers from two plus years of challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and as significant new opportunities within our community and industry begin to evolve and take shape.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Calgary’s tourism industry contributed more than $2.1 billion annually to Calgary’s economy from approximately 8 million annual visitors.

Looking ahead at forecasted growth rates in both visitation and spend across Canada, Calgary is far surpassing initial expectations coming out of the pandemic, and is currently estimated to outpace Canada as a whole in terms of the speed of its recovery, possibly reaching $3.5 billion annually in visitor spend and an additional million annual visitors within two short years.

What’s causing such growth?

While there are many factors that contribute to this potential growth, the underlying message is that there is immense confidence in Calgary now and into the future. And rightly so. Over the past several years, through the collective efforts of many partners, Calgary has begun to see tremendous change across its landscape – from the development of The Culture + Entertainment District, the enhancement of venues and infrastructure, our ability to host many large sporting events, the continued revitalization of downtown, growth of the film and television industry, and the work to promote air access to our destination – a lot has been accomplished that will help promote Calgary as a destination of choice globally for many years to come.

At Tourism Calgary, our mission is to inspire more people to visit Calgary for memorable experiences that celebrate our community, culture, and people. Community building projects within The C + E District like the BMO Centre expansion, the new Event Centre and the Green Line LRT, along with a suite of public amenities planned in the district, will help do just that, providing infrastructure that will not only support the attraction and hosting of cultural and sporting events year-round, but will also create a central, accessible and walkable hub for both visitors and Calgarians, enhancing the vibrancy of our city and quality of life for locals.

A Generational Opportunity to Grow the Visitor Economy

One of most significant opportunities for growth of the visitor economy will be the opening of the expanded BMO Centre for Stampede 2024, which will more than double Calgary’s capacity to host meetings and conventions and make our city the largest convention destination in Western Canada. The numbers on this new facility are impressive, over 1 million square feet of total floor space, 38 new meeting rooms, 2 new ballrooms all in a modernized facility that celebrates Calgary and energizes the city. As part of Tourism Calgary’s mandate to attract and host meetings and conventions to our destination together with our convention partners, this is a generational opportunity to attract a greater volume of visitors to Calgary – including a larger number of new delegates from outside of Canada who may never come to Calgary otherwise. It also provides us with a captive convention audience who we can connect with to possibly extend stay in our city, further supporting the local economy and driving demand to our many tourism partners, including hotels, restaurants, and attractions.

A Vibrant, Year-Round Eventful City for Years to Come

If we look back just five years ago, Tourism Calgary unveiled its first Destination Strategy for Calgary. This long-term, partner-led and endorsed framework presented recommendations to help ensure our city continues to develop and remain relevant for visitors and residents alike. Today, much of what was listed in that strategy has been accomplished or is underway thanks to the work of many partners who have aligned their collective goals to support the development of the city and investment in its future.

As we continue the momentum that currently exists in Calgary, Tourism Calgary is about to embark on Destination Strategy 2.0, which will allow us to collectively consider how we best harness the many opportunities before us to help further grow the visitor economy long-term. Ensuring we have the right mix of experiences to enliven our destination year-round, the transportation links that will make it easier to navigate easily around the city once visitors arrive, and are collectively sharing Calgary’s diverse culture and heritage through our brand will be crucial.

Working collaboratively with partners such as CMLC, The City of Calgary, Calgary Stampede, our convention partners, the tourism industry, and broader community will be key to supporting the continued growth of the visitor economy, and our collective goal of continuing to make Calgary a great place to live, work and visit. Calgary is in a position today that any city would feel lucky to be in.