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A new grandstand building that could also accommodate field sports. A live events zone where the to-be-demolished Scotiabank Saddledome currently sits. A multipurpose venue to replace the aging Big Four Roadhouse.
Those are some of the ideas included in the new 20-year master plan for Stampede Park, announced on Wednesday by Calgary Stampede and Calgary Municipal Land Corporation officials.
They say the goal is to turn Stampede Park into a year-round gathering place for Calgarians and visitors alike.
“There’s no reason Calgary can’t be the Nashville of the north,” said Joel Cowley, CEO of the Calgary Stampede.
“When I think of success for the Culture + Entertainment District, if I walk down Stampede Trail and walk along Scotia Place and I come across five different bachelorette parties, we’ll know we’ve made it.”
The plan has seven different zones: agriculture and animals, discovery and heritage, live events, multipurpose venue, Stampede gateway, outdoor flex space, and stadium and track.
A rendering that shows the seven zones in the Calgary Stampede’s 20-year master plan for Stampede Park. (Calgary Stampede/Calgary Municipal Land Corporation)
Cowley said the master plan explores the possibility of creating a new home for the Calgary Stampeders at Stampede Park, as its current home, McMahon Stadium, is “beyond its expiration date.”
The vision is to build a new infield grandstand building to the east of GMC Stadium, with track facilities. But Cowley said that comes with a caveat.
“We have to figure out a way — and this is the work to be done — for a field to coexist with the rodeo arena and track without either compromising the other,” said Cowley.
One of those possibilities could be a layered stadium as seen in other parts of the world.
“I have a napkin drawing in my office that envisions this,” said Cowley. “Engineers will have to prove to me it won’t work.”
Robert Hayes, CEO of the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation, said that space would have to be “city-led.”
“If you build it, maybe they will come. I think we would have a keen interest in that,” said Hayes.
A rendering of the 20-year master plan for Calgary’s Stampede Park. (Calgary Stampede/Calgary Municipal Land Corporation)Live events zone on Saddledome land
The plan also answers a frequently asked question, said Cowley: what happens to the land the Scotiabank Saddledome currently sits on?
That building is set to be demolished in 2029 or 2030, and Cowley said the land will be converted into a year-round live events zone. People could watch hockey playoff games there on the big screen if they can’t score tickets to Scotia Place, for example.
The idea is modelled after similar event spaces across North America, said Cowley: “Think of the ICE District in Edmonton, but much, much better.”
The Coca-Cola Stage, which has been the centre of concerns around overcrowding during its free Stampede shows in recent years, will also be moved to the live events zone.
The plan also envisions replacements for some aging buildings on Stampede Park, including the Big Four Roadhouse and current agriculture building. Cowley said a new agriculture building could have space for post-secondary programs, including a vet clinic for the University of Calgary, a research and test kitchen for SAIT, and a classroom space for Olds College.
Kate Thompson, CEO of the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation, calls the plan ambitious and aspirational.
“And to any great plan, it takes a ton of work,” said Thompson. “Twenty years is a realistic timeline for something this ambitious to come to fruition.”
With no dollar figure attached to the plan, Cowley said they will approach each development “as the opportunity presents itself.”