Anthem Properties Group Ltd., has secured a 146-acre parcel of land in north-central Calgary, completing its first land position in the fast-growing area of the city.

The Vancouver-based company said the parcel is envisioned as a stand-alone community complementary to several of Calgary’s existing, top-selling master-planned communities in the North Central corridor, including Livingston, Carrington and Lewisburg.

“We are excited to be establishing our presence in the area and welcome the opportunity to collaborate with existing builders and developers with surrounding land holdings,” Bob Faktor, senior vice-president, land development at Anthem Properties, told RENX.

He said the area benefits from strong access from Stoney Trail via interchanges at Centre and 11th St. NE and the existing interchange at QEII and Hwy. 566.

“This will be a master-planned residential community. It will be a complete community with the typical residential, commercial and amenity green space uses,” Faktor said. “The residential component will be approximately 1,600 residential units. About 800 of those single family and about 800 multifamily units when the community is complete.

"It’s currently going through area structure planning and we expect that to be about two years. So then there will be some market elements and we are expecting that the community will start in approximately 2033. It’s a bit of a medium-term hold period for us.”

North-central region is a growth corridor

Faktor said that area of the city is a recognized growth corridor. This site is well situated to leverage off the existing communities developing out, which he described as “highly desirable” communities in the Calgary region.

He said Anthem has also recently broken ground on a multifamily project in the Currie neighbourhood called The Arthur, with 250-unit rental residences. 

“We have nine active land development projects in the Calgary region,” Faktor said. “A couple of our flagship projects are Glacier Ridge and Cornerstone. Both continue to be top-selling communities and highly desirable in the new home market.”

He said those communities are halfway through their life cycles.

“Alberta’s relative economic strength across Canada is still appealing, albeit immigration has slowed down. We are still seeing positive interprovincial migration and Calgary is still a highly desirable destination for folks looking to grow and raise a family here,” Faktor explained.

Anthem an active developer

Founded in 1991, Anthem is a real estate development, investment and management company. Anthem has invested in, developed or managed – alone or in partnership – more than 400 residential and commercial projects across North America.

Its growing residential portfolio includes 44,000 homes that are complete, in design or under construction, from mixed-use residential to townhome, rental and single-family homes. It also owns, co-owns, manages or has previously owned 12 million square feet of retail, industrial and office space, and its land portfolio includes more than 60 communities, spanning 9,100 acres across Canada and the United States. 

In an overview statement about Anthem in Calgary, the company said: “For more than two decades, Anthem has helped shape many of the communities where Calgarians live, work and visit. From master-planned communities to multifamily complexes and single-family homes to retail, office and industrial space, we develop and manage space for all facets of life.

"In Calgary, we are one of the area’s largest land developers with eight active communities, as well as thousands of square feet of commercial and industrial leased space.”

Updates on other Anthem projects

Anthem received received approval for its first development permit at a multi-phased project at its Erlton site in Calgary, situated across the street from an LRT station and the Calgary Stampede. The first phase is a six-storey building offering 115 purpose-built rental homes. The construction start target for Phase I is summer 2026, with leasing to start in early 2028.

The master plan for the overall site envisions a mixed-use community with approximately 1,000 residential units over six buildings, supported by local commercial retail and services.

Anthem said it has also received a development permit for a three-building plan, comprising 275 purpose-built rental homes, on the former site of CBC in Calgary, along Memorial Drive across from the Bow River. Construction start is expected this summer with leasing to start in spring 2028.

The company also provided an update on the Carlingwood Shopping Centre in Ottawa. In June 2024, it was announced that Streamliner Properties and Anthem had acquired the 632,700-square-foot enclosed mall, which is home to the largest Canadian Tire location in Canada.

The 30-acre property has potential for future development and intensification.

“Development plans for Carlingwood are on hold, pending an improvement to market conditions," Anthem wrote in a statement provided to RENX. "In the meantime, we continue to be a part of the community through our existing space and tenants and are actively marketing any remaining leasable space on the property."