Glenbrook, Calgary
 

Hi there.

Bit of a long shot, but does anyone live in Glenbrook Calgary or surrounding area?

Looking to rent in the area when we arrive next month and wanted to get a gauge on how the area is for kids/schools in particular.

If Glenbrook isn't ideal, any recommendations around the SW area would be much appreciated. Going to be working in SunAlta, so walking distance to the LRT would be ideal.


Thanks!

Re: Glenbrook, Calgary
 

I live near Glenbrook - in Westgate, which is where 45 St LRT station is located. Be aware that there is a whole community (Glendale) between Glenbrook and the ctrain station, so not all parts of Glenbrook are walkable. A walk that may sound fine in summer, is less so on cold, dark winter evenings.

You might be interested in comparing community statistics on the city's website: http://www.calgary.ca/CSPS/CNS/Pages...rofiles.aspx#g

There's also the Fraser Institute school rankings: http://alberta.compareschoolrankings...ype=elementary although I notice that not all schools are listed.

Glenbrook is the heart of the area known as "Dutch Acres" due to the large Dutch, deeply Christian and often socially conservative population, who attend the local Dutch Reformed Church and associated Christian School in Glenbrook.

There is a large low cost housing area within Glenbrook, which is why such a high proportion are listed as low income households in the city's statistics. A lot of these residents speak poor English, and the city provides free after school English lessons for children in recognition of the challenges many local residents face in a community which they class as deprived. That does tend to drag down the performance of the public schools, as seen in the Fraser Institute rankings, with 43% of elementary children in Glenbrook on the ESL register and recent massive cuts to schools' ESL budgets. AE Cross Junior High School is not listed in the Fraser Institute Rankings, and I know little about it except that operates at 50% capacity due to shifting demographics, and that the school board is considering moving the Spanish program there (from Bishop Pinkham).

Overall, Glenbrook is generally very nice, but I would be concerned about access to the c-train and worry about the quality of the elementary school there, so would probably not choose to live there myself. I would consider Glendale, Westgate and Wildwood as better alternatives in the vicinity. All have higher house prices than Glenbrook, but I don't know how rental prices compare. Glendale has a good elementary and access to the c-train. Wildwood is lovely, but more expensive and further from the c-train station. Westgate has the c-train station and Vincent Massey Junior High School, but you would need to consider that Westgate Elementary only offers French Immersion and Spanish Biligual programs - for English lessons, children need to be taken to neighbouring Wildwood. Whether that is a good or bad thing depends on your exact situation.

One other thing to be aware of - there is a general shortage of rental housing in Calgary now, due to the June floods. Rental prices are said to be increasing and watch out for scams like this: http://calgary.ctvnews.ca/multiple-f...nant-1.1491213

Re: Glenbrook, Calgary
 

Thanks for the reply! Exactly what I was looking for.

Finding it really difficult to get a grip on what areas are good for kids and what aren't.

Re: Glenbrook, Calgary
 

Why pick Glenbrook?

There are many areas of Calgary that are much nicer and that have access to the c train. Rent prices are pretty much the same city wide, it's the property that dictates the price more than the area ( in most cases, although there will be exceptions)

If you are working in Sunalta, look at Hillhurst/ Sunnyside area in the NW, very close, nice areas. We are in Royal Oak in the far NW. C train station is opening in a few months, and about 15 mins by train to Sunalta.

We moved rental properties before the floods, and we came across dozens of properties that were scams.
Watch for properties that suddenly drop in price, usually the ad will be on multiple rental sites. If you inquire, you will get a reply saying the owner had to move to the US or somewhere, the keys are with them, and if you send them a deposit, they will send you the keys to look at the property.
One usual give a way is the spelling and grammar of the reply will be very bad. Some will email you a renters form asking for financial details. Be careful.
If the price is too good to be true, it usually is!

Just so you know, there is only a 1% rental availability in Calgary at present, the lowest ever. Expect to pay up to $1500 a month for a 2 bed apartment, and $2000 + for a 2 or 3 bed house.

Good luck with the move.

Re: Glenbrook, Calgary
 

Most, if not all, areas in Calgary are perfectly fine for kids. If you find a place relatively close to an LRT station, you will be able to get to any other LRT station relatively quickly and cheaply.

You will not really be able to get a feel for a place until you visit and, when you do, you will be able to quickly identify the areas you like and the areas you don't like.

Re: Glenbrook, Calgary
 

15 minutes is not at all realistic. Even a train from Crowfoot to 8 st SW takes 19 minutes. To that, you need to on the journey time from Tuscany station to Crowfoot, the transfer from line 201 at 8 St station to line 202 at 7 St Station and then the train ride out to Sunalta. About 30 minutes is the best case scenario, and it if you have to travel off peak that would increase dramatically due to the longer gaps between trains.

It's still a manageable commute, but much more than the 6 minutes from the area the OP is considering.

Re: Glenbrook, Calgary
 

Thanks everyone for the comments. Very much appreciated.

Going to keep looking whilst I'm over in the UK, but probably won't make a decision until I'm over in Calgary.