Calgary Overview

• Calgary is a city of just over 1 million people.

• A curious feature of Calgary is the "Plus Fifteen" system in the downtown core (city centre).

• It is a system of overhead glass tunnels that connect the highrise buildings to each other.

• These heated, glass-enclosed walkways enable you to walk from one end of the downtown core to the other without a coat or boots in winter.

• The tunnels are called "Plus Fifteens" because regulations mandate that they be built 15 feet above ground level.

• The Plus Fifteens effectively have turned the very centre of the downtown core into a shopping mall.

• In fact, visitors are surprised that, except for the pedestrianized part of 8th Avenue, which is known as Stephen Avenue Walk and which has sidewalk cafes and the like in summer, many of the stores in the downtown core face inwards, towards the indoor pedestrian walkways on the second and third North American floors (first and second European floors).

• This arrangement, which may seem odd to the summer visitor, is more easily understood if you visit Calgary during the winter.

• There are several other British Expats Wiki articles about Calgary.

Related information

Live In Calgary - Related articles for Calgary

Calgary, Alberta - Detailed City Profile - Good source of information for Calgary (weather, demographics, employments, etc.)