Calgary (sales, homes, employment) - City-Data Forum

Mooseketeer · 06-12-2008, 06:19 AM

My fiance might be getting a chance of a job in Calgary for a while and I was wondering if anyone could fill me in with some info about the city.

I have been there as a tourist a few years back, Alberta is very beautiful and Calgary seemed very pleasant if maybe a tad staid , but I was wondering what posters think about it from personal experience.

What are the nicest parts of town to live in ( so I can look at real state prices) and if we wanted some older homes ( we prefer a bit more character) which areas for example would have the vast majority of those ( Victorian to mid 40s for example).

Is there a decent art/cultural scene, good museums, art galleries, what are the restaurants like, cost of living etc...

From online research it seems a young and fairly vibrant place but it's hard to really get an idea of the place.

Are the winters that fierce ? Living in England makes frozen winters a rather scary prospect.
How bad exactly is it ?

Are outdoors pursuits easily available ( for example how far is it to the nearest decent skiing , etc...)

Thanks .

mikeyyc · 06-12-2008, 09:12 AM

My fiance might be getting a chance of a job in Calgary for a while and I was wondering if anyone could fill me in with some info about the city.

I have been there as a tourist a few years back, Alberta is very beautiful and Calgary seemed very pleasant if maybe a tad staid , but I was wondering what posters think about it from personal experience.

Calgary is pretty conservative, and would easily be considered the most "American" city in Canada. Of course Canadian conservatism is more of a financial thing than a fundamentalist Christian thing, so in that way it is really not like the US.

What are the nicest parts of town to live in ( so I can look at real state prices) and if we wanted some older homes ( we prefer a bit more character) which areas for example would have the vast majority of those ( Victorian to mid 40s for example).

It all depends on your budget. For Character neigbourhoods you need to be close to downtown, to be close in a single family home you need $$. The "nicest" character neighbourhood would be Mount Royal, but Elbow Park, Crescent Heights, Sunnyside, Kensington, Inglewood would all fit that bill. Homes in these areas would be ranging from $600K and up. Way up. For a good idea go to mls.ca - Welcome for listings.

Is there a decent art/cultural scene, good museums, art galleries, what are the restaurants like, cost of living etc...

Calgary has fantastic restaurants and is a very multi-cultural city, there are a number of smaller galleries along 17 ave S, as well as Kensington, There is the Glenbow Museum which is more of a cultural heritage museum, along with a Philharmonic, the Alberta Ballet, Calgary Opera and several theatre groups such as Alberta Theatre Projects. Cost of living is much higher than it has been historically, but it is still much less than Vancouver or Toronto, and the tax burden in Alberta is less than anywhere else in Canada.

From online research it seems a young and fairly vibrant place but it's hard to really get an idea of the place.

Very young, very business oriented, very go go. Heavily into Oil & Gas.

Are the winters that fierce ? Living in England makes frozen winters a rather scary prospect.
How bad exactly is it ?

It's not that bad. Unlike the UK, winters in Calgary tend to be very sunny, even if it is cold. Long cold snaps are rare, and there are frequent "chinooks" that raise the temps dramatically throughout the winter.

Are outdoors pursuits easily available ( for example how far is it to the nearest decent skiing , etc...)

Some of the best skiing in the world is less than two hours away in Banff. The mountains are 40 min away, and the only city that would be close in outdoor pursuits would be Vancouver.
Thanks

Hope it helps.

Mike

Mooseketeer · 06-12-2008, 09:54 AM

Thanks so much Mike , very helpful !

To be honest we are considering it because it would be a foot on the ladder for us to live in Vancouver for a while. We have been to Vancouver many times before and just love BC but getting a job there is not that easy. And the cost of living is high though compared to Southern England still affordable !

We are not thinking of emigrating "proper" but we fancy a change of scenery and a few years abroad might be nice.

mikeyyc · 06-12-2008, 11:06 AM

Having family in Vancouver, it is very much a city that is wonderful if you can live in the right area and have lots of $$. Great place to visit, but for me, it's not somewhere I could live permanently. The grey winters would do me in for sure.

Mooseketeer · 06-12-2008, 09:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyyc

Having family in Vancouver, it is very much a city that is wonderful if you can live in the right area and have lots of $$. Great place to visit, but for me, it's not somewhere I could live permanently. The grey winters would do me in for sure.

Hey , when you've lived in Scotland, grey is a relative term !

I don't mind the rain actually , just as well...

sanspeur · 06-12-2008, 09:47 PM

You should have no problem getting work in Vancouver. The unemployment rate is at a historical low.

Vancouver, BC, Employment Resources

Mooseketeer · 06-13-2008, 06:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sanspeur

You should have no problem getting work in Vancouver. The unemployment rate is at a historical low.

Vancouver, BC, Employment Resources

Thanks. My fiance is a Town Planner and the jobs are pretty thin on the ground and getting a work permit is a nightmare unless you get a job offer first unfortunately.

barryplumber · 10-30-2008, 10:04 PM

Just remember something Vancouver BC well the BC stands for BRING CASH Calgary is a booming and fast growing city with a very high demand for skilled employment.

ZX14TJ · 11-02-2008, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by barryplumber

Calgary is a booming and fast growing city with a very high demand for skilled employment.

As a correction....

Calgary was a booming and fast growing city with a very high demand for skilled employment a couple of years ago.

ajau · 11-03-2008, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Is there a decent art/cultural scene, good museums, art galleries, what are the restaurants like, cost of living etc...

Calgary has fantastic restaurants and is a very multi-cultural city, there are a number of smaller galleries along 17 ave S, as well as Kensington, There is the Glenbow Museum which is more of a cultural heritage museum, along with a Philharmonic, the Alberta Ballet, Calgary Opera and several theatre groups such as Alberta Theatre Projects. Cost of living is much higher than it has been historically, but it is still much less than Vancouver or Toronto, and the tax burden in Alberta is less than anywhere else in Canada.

Multicultural? Compared to Saskatoon and St, John's perhaps, but compared to Vancouver, Toronto, New York or even Hamilton? Not a chance. Calgary is pretty white-bread both in skin tone and in attitude.

Culture? The joke goes, "what is the difference between yogurt and Calgary?" "Yogurt at least has some culture in it." Calgary is a sporty city, not artsy. That's in keeping with the rural/small town ethos, IMHO.

Cost of living, Calgary is higher than Toronto but lower than Vancouver. Housing, food, gasoline, etc. are all cheaper in Toronto. Restaurants in Calgary are more pricey in general with much worse service than either Toronto or Vancouver. Taxes in Alberta are much lower than the rest of Canada though. No sales tax and very low property tax (even compared to US rates) helps.

Quote:

From online research it seems a young and fairly vibrant place but it's hard to really get an idea of the place.

Very young, very business oriented, very go go. Heavily into Oil & Gas.

Calgary is very young but I will disagree with the "go go" attitude. Calgary is in essence a small town with a small town pace of life. Coming from Toronto, Montreal, Chicago, etc. slowness (easy going) of life here will be a culture shock for you. If you come from a small town or a rural area you will think Calgary has a fast pace of life. Offices are empty at 5:30pm usually as well as weekends. Service is very slow and bad compared to US standards (Even before the boom). People walk and drive much slower here than in major cities. People even stop for pedestrians in the middle of the street in heavy traffic here. Pedestrians are literally sacred in Calgary and will jump in front of traffic expecting heavy vehicles to stop. Darwinism hasn't made it to Calgary yet as far as pedestrian/vehicle relations are concerned.

The fact is that most newcomers to Calgary are not from London, Paris, New York and such. They are from small town Canada and they bring that pace of life and work ethic (work to live, not live to work) with them for better or for worse. People from Newfoundland and Saskatchewan are essentially "the Mexicans of Calgary" and influence the culture here.

Quote:

Are the winters that fierce ? Living in England makes frozen winters a rather scary prospect.
How bad exactly is it ?

It's not that bad. Unlike the UK, winters in Calgary tend to be very sunny, even if it is cold. Long cold snaps are rare, and there are frequent "chinooks" that raise the temps dramatically throughout the winter.

Don't forget to mention the -35C cold snaps that do occur every single year.