Calgarians have a love-hate relationship with downtown’s +15 system – the public loves them, the planners and politicians hate them. The public (downtown workers) loves them as it means on poor weather days, they don’t have to put on a coat to attend a business meeting, meet a friend for coffee, lunch or a happy hour drink, or find a quiet place to get away from the hustle and bustle of the office.

The +15 is also a popular route for those who work in one building but workout in another, be that in the morning, noon or after work. Another thing downtown workers love about the +15 is you are almost always guaranteed to run into someone you haven’t seen for years and have been meaning to catch up with. It is a great place for impromptu networking.

**The +15 walkway creates a unique urban design experience especially in the cathedral-like lobbies of the office buildings.**

**Photo credit: City of Calgary, online +15 brochure**

Planners and politicians generally hate them because they think they destroy downtown street life. Funny thing, both Toronto and Montreal have underground pathway systems and nobody talks about how they have destroyed the street life in those cities. The unique reality is Calgary’s downtown is almost exclusively made up of office buildings, which simply don’t generate street life, be that Calgary or New York City’s Wall St. district or Bay St. in Toronto.

The City of Calgary conducted +15 pedestrian counts in January 2011 and again July 2011. They found use of the +15 drops about 70% in the summer. This proves that when the weather is nice, downtown workers love to walk outside but when it isn’t, they are happy to use the +15 as their indoor sidewalk. We have the best of both worlds.

**Pedestrian Counts July 2001. The City of Calgary website**

**Pedestrian Counts January 2012. The City of Calgary website**

Wayfinding

Wandering the +15 walkway is bit like negotiating your way through a maze. However there is an elaborate map and signage program to help new explorers. At each bridge is an illuminated map with the details of the immediate area are highlighted. You can also look for a man in “white hat and stairs” to direct you to a staircase that will get you to the street.

Above the bridges, horizontal signage gives you the name of the building and tells you if you are headed North, South, East or West.

North signs have a fish background which means you are heading to the Bow River, which runs along the northern edge of the downtown on its way from the Bow Glacier to Hudson’s Bay.
South signs have a train that represents the Canadian Pacific Railway tracks, which form the southern boundary of downtown.
East signs have a fort motif paying tribute to the 1875 Northwest Mounted Police’s Fort Calgary on the eastern edge of downtown.
West signs have a mountain motif in the background reflecting the majestic Canadian Rockies dominate the downtown skyline to the west.

Still, it is easy to get lost in the +15 system, but that is half of the fun. Newbies should not be afraid to admit they are lost and ask for directions - Calgarians are more than willing to point you in the right direction.

**Photo credit: City of Calgary, +15 online brochure**

Design

Most of the bridges are designed to connect buildings mid-block, but that is not always possible when you are connecting an older building to new building. Older buildings have to be retrofitted on the 2nd floor to create a pedestrian walk through building and sometime two or three smaller buildings have to connect to one large new building; this is what results in the maze-like routes, rather than a linear grid like the streets below.

The idea of creating an elevated walkway system was not only based on climate but also on public health and safety. The thinking was that by removing pedestrians from the street, the City would reduce the number of pedestrian/vehicle interactions, resulting in fewer accidents. From a health perspective, the enclosed walkway also meant downtown workers and visitors not only wouldn’t have to breathe in the pollution of cars, but can also enjoy a healthy brisk 10-km walk at lunch even when it is -30C, snowing or raining.

The early bridges were simple rectangles without much thought into creating an urban design statement. However, that began to change with the Bankers Hall double decker bridges over Stephen Avenue, which makes its own architectural design statement.

Since then, many bridges make their own unique design statement. For example, the +15 bridge connecting Eighth Avenue Place and Centennial Parkade and looking out to the CPR’s main rail line uses a traditional trestle bridge design popular for early prairie railway bridges.

**Walking the +15 system early in the morning as downtown workers arrive is a surreal experience.**

+15 Highlights

The +15 level of the Centennial Parkade is home to the Udderly Art Pasture, a celebration of the very popular Colourful Cows for Calgary art project that saw over 100 fun cow created by artists installed around the downtown in 2000. Today, over 10 cows have found a permanent pasture in the +15.

Devonian Gardens, a 2.5-acre indoor park/garden created in 1977 and underwent a $37 million renovation in 2012, is integrated with The Core shopping center. It is an ideal place to meet a friend, have some alone time or take young children to run and play in the playground area.

The Core Shopping Center is perhaps the epicenter of the +15, especially for shoppers. It links the historic Hudson Bay’s department store with the contemporary Holt Renfrew store with four floors of shops. Its claim to fame is the German-engineered skylight the size of three football fields, making it the largest in the world.

The Jamieson Place Winter Garden wins hands down as the most tranquil spot in downtown, with its infinity ponds, living plant walls and its spectacular hanging David Chihuly glass sculptures, each weighing 500 pounds.

The Suncor Place’s +15 lobby is home to an authentic Noorduyn Norseman Plane hanging from the ceiling. Used extensively in early oil and gas exploration as it could land on snow, water or land - very fitting given downtown Calgary is home to most of Canada’s oil & gas companies.

DAYDREAM Derek Besant’s public artwork in the +15 connecting West Alberta Place with Petro Fina is a hidden gem. It consists of 24 etchings on the +15 windows accompanied by thought-provoking text like “WHERE DOES HE FIT INTO MY LIFE?“

If travelling along the +15 walkway in the Arts Commons building (formerly the EPCOR Centre) be sure to look in the window where, down below, you can watch the designers working on the next set design for a Theatre Calgary or Alberta Theatre Projects play.

**The Core retail complex connects directly with three office towers, +15 walkways on two levels and Devonian Gardens.**

**The +15 walkway functions like outdoor pedestrian street with buskers, patios, cafes, shops and services.**

Footnote

Exploring Calgary’s +15 system is our city’s most unique urban experience. While New York City is famous for its High Line (an elevated linear park on abandoned railway line that meanders through Manhattan), Calgary’s +15 walkway preceded it by 40 years. Calgarians should be proud of their +15 walkway.

In fact I am so proud of our +15 I will be wearing my Frontier Metropolis.com +15 shirt when I host a Jane's Walk through the +15 at 10am on May 2, 2015. If you want to join us we are meeting on the +15 level of the Centennial Parkade. — **In fact I am so proud of our +15 I will be wearing my** **Frontier Metropolis.com** **+15 shirt when I host a Jane's Walk through the +15 at 10am on May 2, 2015. If you want to join us we are meeting on the +15 level of the Centennial Parkade.**

Fun Factoids

Harold Hanen a Calgary urban planner championed the +15 system in ‘60s.
Named +15 because the bridges are 15 feet above ground.
First +15 bridge connected Calgary Place to Westin Hotel in 1973.
62 bridges create 18 km of walkways – the longest elevated enclosed walkway in the world.
22,000 people cross the +15 bridge between Centrum Place and Energy Plaza over 6th Ave every weekday making it the busiest bridge in the system.
150+ buildings are connected by +15 bridges.
Eighth Avenue Place is home several masterpieces of Canadian art including two Jean-Paul Riopelle paintings.
Calgary will never have double decker buses, as they won’t fit under the bridges.
Calgary’s +15 was the focus of Calgary filmmaker Gary Burns’ movie “waydowntown” in 2000.
The +15 is home to seven shoe shine chairs.