Home ⁄ FFWD REW ⁄ History and nature in East Village
FFWD REW

History and nature in East Village

by Fast Forward Weekly staff

This post is sponsored by East Village/Calgary Municipal Land Corporation.

East Village is an open border a bridge between past and present as well as our urban and natural environments. Sitting directly on this border is the historic Simmons Building now morphing into a food and drink haven nestled on the banks of the Bow River and overlooking the soon-to-be refurbished St. Patrick’s Island.

Built in 1912 the Simmons Building has been painstakingly restored and updated by Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC) in order to house new tenants namely: Phil & Sebastian Coffee Roasters Sidewalk Citizen Bakery and charbar — a new restaurant from the chefs behind Charcut.

Maintaining the solid millwork floor and its 36 thick fir columns the space has been opened up with a cut allowing views between the main and upper floors with an elevator that will help guests travel from ground level all the way to the rooftop patio.

“In addition to connectivity to RiverWalk we were conscious of how to showcase the building to its full potential and knowing that we had very vibrant restaurants coming into this space we really wanted to make sure that anybody that was on the main floor really understood what this building was about and what was up on the second floor” says Kate Thompson architect and director of development for CMLC.

On the roof diners will be able to take in the expanse of East Village downtown the river the new St. Patrick’s Bridge and St. Patrick’s Island. “As you can see this becomes the historic and retail backdrop to everything else we’re building in East Village. It provides that great texture and grounding in Calgary” says Thompson.

Across the new bridge whose design was inspired by a stone skipping across the Bow River— connecting East Village St. Patrick’s Island and the community of Bridgeland — visitors will be able to escape into Calgary’s newest urban oasis.

Like so much of what Calgary Municipal Land Corporation does St Patrick’s Island is the result of extensive public consultations aimed at turning Calgary’s least used regional park into one of its most cherished. Just like the delicate balance of history and modernity demonstrated in the Simmons Building the park’s designers set out to restore historical elements of this island while creating something entirely new for urban Calgarians.

“The aim of this park is really not to be a manicured park” says Neil MacKimmie senior development manager with CMLC. “The feedback that we got from the public was that they wanted something very natural.”

To that end the park will recreate a channel called The Seasonal Breach that once ran through the island allowing visitors to dip their toes into the Bow during the summer and skate during the winter months. The park will also feature walkways that float above the vegetation and a wetland area with one long wide bench designed for lounging. The Transect a raised diagonal metal walkway will transport visitors through the island’s various natural areas from riparian zones over the wetlands and through the trees.

Of course there are also amenities that Mother Nature did not provide including The Rise a nine metre mound constructed in the middle of the island for climbing rolling tobogganing or just taking in the surrounding views. “Our designers will tell you that where there’s a hill kids are going to want to climb to the top of it” says MacKimmie adding there will be a fireplace at the top of the hill to encourage gathering.

At the far eastern end of the island an amphitheatre will sit next to covered areas ideal for markets picnics and gatherings. “We want to bring Calgarians back down to the park and we definitely want to provide space for programming” says MacKimmie. “But we also want the spaces themselves to be strong enough that people come down for recreation relaxation and respite time as well.”

Tags: