Calgary is the largest city in Alberta, Canada. In Calgary, the tallest building in the city is Brookfield Place, which is currently under construction and scheduled for completion in late 2017.[1][2] Standing at 56 stories, 247 m (810 ft), it is the tallest building in Canada outside of Toronto. The second-tallest building in the city is The Bow, standing at 58-storeys, 236 m (774 ft). The third-tallest building in the city is Suncor Energy Centre, standing at 215 m (705 ft) tall with 53 storeys.[3] The Calgary Tower is included for comparison purposes; however, it is not ranked since it is not considered a habitable building.
Calgary's history of towers began with the Grain Exchange Building (1910), the Fairmont Palliser Hotel (1914), and the Elveden Centre. Building construction remained slow in the city until the early 1970s. From 1970 to 1990, Calgary witnessed a major expansion of skyscraper and high-rise construction. Many of the city's office towers were completed during this period, such as the First Canadian Centre and the Canterra Tower office towers. A ten-year lull in building construction came after the expansion, though Calgary experienced a larger second building expansion beginning in the late 90s and continuing into the present.[4] Currently, the city has height restrictions that prevent any building from casting a shadow over the Bow River and the city hall, however, winter months are excluded from this limit. There is no other imposed limits elsewhere in the city, which could allow for some extremely tall buildings. The Bow Tower was originally rumored to be at least 1000 feet tall but reduced to comply with these rules.
As of March 2013[update], there are 16 skyscrapers over 100 m (328 ft) and 47 high-rises over 35 m (115 ft) under construction, approved for construction, and proposed for construction in the City of Calgary. After this skyscraper boom, Calgary's skyline will have dramatically changed, having added at least the new tallest and third tallest buildings in Western Canada in 2012, The Bow and Eighth Avenue Place respectively.[5]
As of March 2014, there are 32 completed buildings that stand at least 122 m (400 ft) in Calgary. An equal sign (=) following a rank indicates the same height between two or more buildings
(*) Although Calgary's two largest structures are actually CFCN-TV's twin communication towers, they are not self-supporting and are assisted by cables (guyed). This is not unlike most stand-alone communications antennae.
The taller of three ski jump towers built for the 1988 Winter Olympics; 90 meters is the distance a ski jumper travels from the terminus, not the height of the structure
This lists buildings that once held the title of tallest building in Calgary. Although it is not a building, the Calgary Tower was the city's tallest free standing structure from 1968 until 1983 when it was surpassed by the Suncor Energy Centre's West tower.