Downtown Calgary Office Space to Become 128 Affordable Homes With New Grant

The City of Calgary has unveiled plans to convert nearly 100,000 square feet of underused office space in the downtown core into 128 new non-market affordable housing units as part of a new grant initiative aimed at addressing both housing shortages and downtown revitalization.

The projects are the first to receive funding through the Downtown Non-Market Office Conversion Grant, financed by Calgary’s portion of the federal Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF). The total grant investment is about $10.3 million, with two non-profit partners tasked with delivering the new units.

The Trellis Society for Community Impact, in partnership with Bluevale Capital Group, will convert office space at 441 5 Avenue SW into 63 affordable units, supported by a $6.2 million city grant toward the project’s $27.8 million cost. The mix will include studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom units.

Meanwhile, HomeSpace Society will use a $4.1 million grant for the conversion at 1000 8 Avenue SW, creating 65 non-market units within a $27.5 million project featuring a mix of studio and one-bedroom homes.

Mayor Jeromy Farkas said the initiative moves Calgary closer to its housing goals, adding that the city approved development permits for 1,800 non-market homes last year — far exceeding the previous decade’s average — and aims for 3,000 units per year.

The grant funding comes with conditions tied to the larger HAF agreement, which includes requirements such as streamlined approvals and zoning changes to increase housing supply. City council is also considering changes to citywide rezoning policies that could affect future HAF funding if found out of compliance with federal requirements.

Supporters say converting vacant office buildings — a legacy of high vacancy rates in Calgary’s post-pandemic downtown — into housing helps address chronic affordability challenges while bringing new life and residents to the urban core.