Images and video give Calgarians glimpse of redesigned Olympic Plaza

Calgarians now have a much better idea of what Olympic Plaza will look like following a $70-million reconstruction project. The facility was built to host medal presentations for the 1988 Calgary Olympics.

The Calgary Municipal Land Corporation, City of Calgary and Arts Commons provided photos and videos showing artist renderings of the redesign at a Monday morning press conference.

Located across Macleod Trail from Calgary city hall, much of Olympic Plaza has fallen into disrepair. It’s earned a reputation as a centre of public disorder in downtown Calgary in recent years — especially at night.

Despite its unfortunate reputation, its history and amenities – including a large outdoor skating rink in the winter —  mean it is still one of the most popular public spaces in the city for residents and tourists alike, prompting the city to embark on the multi-million dollar, multi-year makeover.

“I think the old plaza had an excellent run, but it wasn’t built to last — it was built specifically for the Olympics, gold medal, or the medal ceremonies — and it served that role really, really well,” said Marc Halle of CCxA Landscape Architecture, who is on the project’s design team.

Following a public engagement process, construction began in late 2024 with the removal of the Olympic bricks followed by demolition work this past January.

Details of the reconstruction project, scheduled to be completed in 2028, were unveiled Monday and include additional green space, patios and a pavilion to support year round activities including gatherings of up to 5,000 people.

Plans also call for one of Calgary’s 1988 Olympic cauldrons and a portion of the plaza’s arches bearing the Latin phrase “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (“Faster, Higher, Stronger”) to be incorporated into the new design.

A new 12-metre tall structure will serve as a fountain at the centre of a splash park in the summer and the centrepiece of a new outdoor skating rink in the winter.

“This is gonna be a gathering place for everybody in the city — a gathering place for all communities, all ages and all sorts of opportunities of recreation as well as sports and entertainment and culture,” said Coun. Terry Wong who represents Ward 7, in which Olympic Plaza is located.

“I think most Calgarians will say this is amazing compared to where it was.”

“I mean, you want to take something that works and build on it — and I think that’s what the team’s done here — the skating really works, it’s a gathering place,” said Kate Thompson, president of the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation.  “It’s it’s a programming piece that people can depend on. What are you going to do on a cold night? Let’s go down to the Olympic Plaza and skate. So I think it was important to integrate the pieces of the Plaza that worked, and also build off making it more flexible, more adaptable for pieces in the future.”

The reconstruction of Olympic Plaza is taking place alongside the redevelopment of the Arts Commons campus — home to the Jack Singer Concert Hall, Max Bell, Martha Cohen and Engineered theatres — the centre of the city’s arts and culture sector in downtown Calgary.

The combined cost of the two projects is projected at $660 million.

Arts Commons will be renamed the Werklund Centre, following a $75-million endowment by Calgary Energy Executive Dave Werklund and his family.