Calgary’s Eau Claire Market to close for new Green Line LRT station

Calgary’s iconic Eau Claire Market Shopping Centre will be closing next year to make way for a new Green Line LRT station.

The City of Calgary said it has reached an agreement with Harvard Developments to acquire the land for a future underground station at 2 Avenue S.W., according to a Wednesday morning release.

The city said the agreement with Harvard Developments includes both purchases of the land for the station and the lease of additional land for use during the construction period.

Harvard Developments is a real estate company that owns the Eau Claire Market Shopping Centre.

“The Green Line was designed as a city-shaping project and there is no greater example of that than the opportunities for future transit-oriented development at this site,” said Darshpreet Bhatti, chief executive officer of Green Line LRT.

“This is a critically important station along the 46-km future alignment and will bridge the Eau Claire and Chinatown communities and connect Calgarians to a treasured part of the city.”

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The mall will remain open until mid-Q2 next year. After that, the building will be turned over to the city for demolition to start station construction and future development.

Two restaurants in the area, JOEY Eau Claire and LOCAL Public Eatery, will be unaffected by the demolition.

Harvard Developments president and chief executive officer Rosanne Hill Blaisdell said the company advised tenants of the project at an information session earlier this week.

“While we view this as a time of optimism and revitalization, we also understand this infrastructure initiative will require closure and relocation of the 50+ businesses who have called Eau Claire Market home,” Blaisdell said in a statement.

“We value our relationship with our tenants, so it was important to give them as much lead time as possible to ensure a smooth transition for their business.

“It is our intent to support our retailers over the remainder of 2023 and early 2024 to encourage continued customer traffic at Eau Claire Market.”

Harvard Developments said the next phase of the project will include planning applications to reflect the new station. An updated land use redesignation plan, area redevelopment plan and a subdivision application have already been submitted to the city for review.

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