Calgary’s first carless condo approved; will target first-time buyers

Watch above: Doug Vaessen has the details on the first carless condo in Calgary (May 11)

CALGARY – A local builder has gained unanimous support from city council to build Calgary’s first carless condo—with no underground parking offered for residents.

Council voted to give $420,000 the developer has to pay in lieu of no visitor parking to the Calgary Parking Authority on Wednesday.

The N3 is located beside the historic St. Louis Hotel in the East Village, and will have 167 units. N3 stands for “New attitude, New Vision and New Lifestyle,” according to the website.

“We do feel the time is right; we have done extensive research with the Y generation,” said president of Knightsbridge Homes Joe Starkman.

“We find that cars are not a necessity for all of them.”

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Starkman said the building is meant for young first-time buyers and that adding a parking garage would add $75,000 to the price of a unit. Prices will start at $200,000 and the developer plans to start selling condos immediately.

“If this community is to be truly inclusive, it needs to have something for everybody and if you are 25 and you’re just entering home ownership you need this type of product to get into the market,” said Calgary Municipal Land Corporation’s Susan Veres.

There were some concerns from council Monday related to visitor parking, but strict parking enforcement in the area will prevent condo owners from flooding nearby streets.

“It’s paid for parking, so the residents in N3…certainly couldn’t apply for on-street parking permits, as an example,” said Ward 7 Councillor Druh Farrell. “They wouldn’t be able to qualify.”

Starkman hopes to prove that car-crazy Calgary is ready for a change.

“I don’t like to get too cocky but I would be confident that we would sell out in 30 to 60 days,” he said. “Some of my staff think we would sell out in a weekend but, you know, I don’t like to put the cart before the horse.”

With files from Erika Tucker and Reid Fiest

Editor’s note: This article was first published May 11, but has been updated to include city council’s approval.