We wanted to share a couple of rowhouse projects we have designed recently. One project was suspended, while the other one hasn’t yet been built. We have therefore represented our designs with renderings. All of these images were produced in house by our visualization team.
Capitol Hill Rowhouses
This rowhouse project for Niklas Group was designed for a corner site in Capitol Hill and comprised two buildings: a five unit building facing south and a two-unit building facing east. Being very close to the University of Calgary, each rowhouse had a basement suite. Both buildings backed on to a common courtyard area that was to be shared by all the residents.
The development was prompted by the City initiated land use redesignations of the properties along 24th Avenue NW following the previously approved local area policy changes that allowed for rowhouses on corner lots and along main roads in Capitol Hill. As this project spanned the corner parcel and the next lot to the north, we applied for a land use redesignation for the north lot so both parcels could support townhouses. Ultimately, council decided that this change was too ambitious, and denied the approval. The project was therefore discontinued.
Crescent Heights Rowhouses
It is our belief that row houses, like single detached and semi-detached homes, are all low density forms that provide a range of housing options in developed communities. We designed these five row houses for a parcel designated for low density by the Crescent Heights Area Redevelopment Plan. Applying for a land-use change to allow for row houses was a test to see how progressive the City of Calgary’s interpretation for low density would be, and in October 2018 Council agreed and supported our redesignation.
We’re hoping that the new Guidebook for Great Communities will set the stage for a new “Neighbourhood Housing Local” land use district that allows for all forms of low density development. This will save people the trouble and cost of applying for a redesigantion to go from houses to houses.
