crebnow.com

First of their kind

Jun 23, 2017Jun 21, 2017 Barb Livingstone Leave a comment

Mix of young and old call Calgary’s established lake communities home

When D’Arcy Duquette and his family moved to Calgary from Montreal, a lake in their new community was a must-have for his son and daughter.

“I moved them from a home where we had a big in-ground pool in the backyard and were surrounded by lakes,” said the 60-year-old transportation industry retiree. “They were spoiled.”

After moving into McKenzie Lake, with its 17.5-hectare man-made lake, Duquette’s children happily spent summers “in their bathing suits.”

McKenzie Lake is one of the older lake communities in Calgary, established in the late 1980s. Like the other more mature lake communities in Calgary, including Lake Bonavista (the first man-made lake in Canada, completed in 1968), Midnapore, Chaparral, Sundance, McKenzie Lake, Arbour Lake and Coral Springs, the majority of homes in McKenzie Lake are single-family and the resale market is the only option for prospective buyers.

(more…)

30 Years of HOPE

Jun 23, 2017Jun 21, 2017 crebnow Leave a comment

CREB®’s Charitable Foundation celebrates 30th anniversary

Most will gift pearls to celebrate their 30-year anniversary, but CREB®’s Charitable Foundation is going the more practical route with a gift of $300,000 to support local non-profits through its Investing in HOPE program.

Since 1987, the Charitable Foundation has contributed more than $6 million to more than 150 non-profit organizations in the community.

“The Investing in HOPE program is so special for so many reasons,” said Aneve MacKay-Lyons, manager of CREB®‘s Charitable Foundation.

“Our 30-year legacy has helped numerous charities and with this being one of our biggest funding initiatives ever, we’re about to be a part of something incredibly impactful for local families and the community.”

(more…)

It’s always sunny

Jun 23, 2017Jun 21, 2017 Andrea Cox Leave a comment

Mature community of Sundance holds lasting appeal for new and longtime residents

It’s early morning and the sun has just crested the horizon, casting a trail of sparkling rays across the still water. The shimmering lake ripples as a brook trout breaks the surface momentarily, before plunging back down into the depths. High in the sky, a bald eagle soars, gliding gracefully, while 100-foot-tall fir trees sway in the soft summer breeze. In the distance, a kayak quietly slices through the water like a hot knife through butter.

It’s a typical day at Lake Sundance.

“I love it here,” said longtime Sundance resident Anne Radic. “I wouldn’t live anywhere else.”

She’s lived in the community for almost 40 years and watched it evolve from raw land into a mature and established neighbourhood with stately homes, excellent schools and mature trees that create a pretty canopy along the quiet streets. “We moved here in 1986 and basically bought a plot of earth,” she said, laughing.

(more…)

Lake living

Jun 23, 2017Jun 21, 2017 Kathleen Renne Leave a comment

Lake communities merge city and cottage life for an experience you can’t get anywhere else in Calgary

Greg Macdonald is a self-described “fishing fool.”

“I’m either fishing, or thinking about fishing,” he said, laughing.

This love of fishing is one of the reasons Macdonald and his wife are buying back in to the community of McKenzie Lake.

“We first bought a house in McKenzie Lake in 1999,” said Macdonald.

“We sold it a couple of years ago when the market started to turn, but we just bought back in the area, because we loved lake living so much.”

(more…)

Life on the water

Jun 23, 2017Jun 21, 2017 Geoff Geddes Leave a comment

Reservoir-community residents feel nurtured by nature

For most homeowners, the idea of stepping outside and being immersed in nature with peaceful walking trails, busy beavers and stunning sunsets is the stuff of dreams. For residents of communities around the Glenmore Reservoir, however, it’s just another day in paradise.

Perched on the Elbow River, the Glenmore Reservoir and Dam were constructed in 1933 to provide Calgarians a safe and sufficient supply of drinking water. While they certainly do that, they offer so much more.

“The reservoir has given residents a special connection to the environment,” said Geoffrey Vanderburg, president of the Lakeview Community Association.

(more…)