Calgary

[GYMBRAT]

I have a few interviews on the S side of Calg and am curious what areas are family oriented, clean, quiet, safe to purchase a home?

 

[john s]

I live in okotoks nice town and everything you need there.

 

[GYMBRAT]

Ive always liked Okotoks as well, what is it, 15 mins from Calg?

 

[john s]

Yeah but deerfoot can be a knight mare at rush hour have to hit it before 7.

 

[GYMBRAT]

Yeah but deerfoot can be a knight mare at rush hour have to hit it before 7.

Yes cant stand that commute thats for sure! One thing i'll have to get used to once again about living in a bigger City :/

We are also looking in Airdrie as well....

 

[Cat_Girl]

Airdrie is really nice. Traffic can be bad during rush hour though. Same goes for Okotoks. Both really family orientated communities and a better bang for your buck housing wise.

Honestly the only two areas that have a bit of a bad rep in Calgary are Forest Lawn and Bowness.
Most of the South of Calgary is great!

 

[froggie]

I have lived in Bowness for the past 18 years and I sure would not compare it to Forest Lawn. It is a beautiful area with mature trees and close the the river and bike pathways.
If I was to work in the South side of Calgary I would not be looking for a place in Airdrie. Crossing the city on Deerfoot twice a day would not be my idea of a good time!

 

[Wilk INStheWEST]

It really depends exactly where in Calgary you are going to be working. Deerfoot is a nightmare to drive on, and I'm lucky enough to never really have to worry about it. Your house budget is another factor as the cost of homes can vary a lot in different areas of the city. For the most part, I would just avoid the NE.
I've lived in the SW (for the most part, Marda Loop and Westhills area), because I used to work downtown. Now I live in the NW (Capitol Hill), and it's even better for getting downtown. I've never had any issues with things not being clean, or noisy. My current home is 3 blocks north of 16th Ave and I have no issues with noise at all. The Police helicopter tends to do a lot of circling around our area in afternoons, but that is really the only noise I hear. As for families, I couldn't really comment. I've never felt unsafe anywhere in Calgary. Same as any big city, be smart about what you do and you won't have a problem (ie, stay away from the odd area downtown in the middle of night, etc...)

 

[GYMBRAT]

Its like when I lived in Vancouver, had the perfect area all within itself in the city. Only had to drive walk, ride 5 mins to everything a guy needed. Never had to venture too far into the mainstream of the city. Kinda what im looking for if im going to buy/build right in Calg

 

[Wilk INStheWEST]

MacKenzie Town, in the south of Calgary, is a really nice area that is basically a small city in a bigger city, it has pretty much everything you will need there. But that is only really if you will be working fairly south in the city, otherwise you will need to commute on Deerfoot.

 

[GYMBRAT]

MacKenzie Town, in the south of Calgary, is a really nice area that is basically a small city in a bigger city, it has pretty much everything you will need there. But that is only really if you will be working fairly south in the city, otherwise you will need to commute on Deerfoot.

Im a travelling salesman for a large trucking firm so basically only need my office the odd time, which is in the industrial area on the S side.

 

[JoHNI_T]

Yes cant stand that commute thats for sure! One thing i'll have to get used to once again about living in a bigger City :/

We are also looking in Airdrie as well....

did you say work in the south? I would not sugest Airdrie then,, only 1 road in and out so in winter you are about 45 minutes double if it snows....

I would sugest maybe okotoks like some have mentioned or just stay in the south near that new hospital has good access top everything.. its all new lots of young family's there's a few fake lake community's as well

I am in chestermere its bout 20 min to deerfoot and 22x... kinda tucked away great access with new ring road lots of family's pets and Toys' it seems and we actualy have a small lake you can power boat on,, key word small

good luck

 

[fnDan]

You might want to avoid some areas on the east side of Deerfoot in the very south part of Calgary (New Brighton). Some of these neighborhoods are way too close to the dump. If you stick to Calgary then I would think Cranston, Mahogany, Mackenzie Lake or Douglasdale. Chapparal and Sundance won't be too bad to access the industrial areas once the overpasses are completed on 22x. I live close to Okotoks and it's everything you described about your Vancouver experience. Everything you need is close and it limits unnecessary trips into Calgary. You can walk into the Costco on a weeknight and pick up a handful of items and not worry about line-ups. My wife drives around the city quite a bit and you just have to watch the traffic reports and adjust your route. The #2 highway from Okotoks to Calgary can be interesting to drive in the winter sometimes but sensible driving takes care of that most times. I'm lucky. I work in Sundance so my drive is about 15 - 30 minutes in the winter and 15 relaxing minutes on the bike the rest of the year.

 

[Staple_STI]

I know a few people that live out in Langdon. Nice little town that isn't to far from the city for the few days you need to get to the South

 

[dvst8r]

I live in Airdrie, and used to work in the industrial park. If you only need to go to the office occasionally and can leave at times other then rush hour living in Airdrie is great. There are most of the big box stores (homedepot, walmart, ect...) Costco is just in balzac (5min) and just about anything else you can think of. I rarely go into the city now, however my wife commutes in everyday most days for her (right in rush hour) it is about 30-40min but there are days where it is 90min+. We used to live in Okotoks, and it is very much the same as Airdrie as far as living and amenities, as well as the commute (within 5min for us). The reason we moved to Airdrie, is the airport is a 15min drive (vs almost an hour with no traffic), and Edmonton (most of my family is there) is an hour (with no traffic) closer.

I can't stand how busy the city is, I like how we rarely lock our doors, and have never had an issue. We know all of our neighbors for about 10 doors down on either side and have bbq's with most of them on a regular basis in the summer.

I have friends that live in Langdon and their biggest complaint is other then the little wildfire saloon and the gas station is that there is nothing in langdon and they have to drive all the way to Calgary for everything.

 

[teamgreen]

I live in Airdrie and work in Airdrie as well. I went in to the Peter Lougheed hospital at 830 this morning. There is no way I would live in Airdrie but work in Calgary just b/c the commute. Everything in Airdrie is 6 mins away.

 

[Teth-Air]

Are schools important? If so Lake Sundance has grade 1-12. It has been good for me.

 

[GYMBRAT]

Are schools important? If so Lake Sundance has grade 1-12. It has been good for me.

Yes schools are VERY important for my 7-5 yr old kids. Itd be awesome to have them go to the same school even haha

 

[Cat_Girl]

So I'm from Vancouver originally, so this comparison might help:

Airdrie/Okotoks - kind of like Aldergrove/Chilliwack/Maple Ridge/Langley

Northeast Calgary - kind of like Surrey

Northwest Calgary - kind of like New Westminster/ Burnaby

Southeast Calgary - kind of like Richmond/Surrey/East Vancouver (really not that bad though)

Southwest Calgary - Langley

Chestermere - Whiterock/ Delta/ Tswassen

There really isn't a horrible area in Calgary. I feel safe everywhere.....except on Deerfoot in a snow storm, haha.
Chestermere might be a good option for you with the new ring road coming in to play.

 

[GYMBRAT]

So I'm from Vancouver originally, so this comparison might help:

Airdrie/Okotoks - kind of like Aldergrove/Chilliwack/Maple Ridge/Langley

Northeast Calgary - kind of like Surrey

Northwest Calgary - kind of like New Westminster/ Burnaby

Southeast Calgary - kind of like Richmond/Surrey/East Vancouver (really not that bad though)

Southwest Calgary - Langley

Chestermere - Whiterock/ Delta/ Tswassen

There really isn't a horrible area in Calgary. I feel safe everywhere.....except on Deerfoot in a snow storm, haha.
Chestermere might be a good option for you with the new ring road coming in to play.

LOVE how you summed that up haha, I like it thx