The Parallel and the Perpendicular: Reconnecting Calgarians to the Bow River

Abstract

The rapid population growth in Calgary since the oil drilling boom of the 1970s has led to a diversification of Calgarians in terms of ethnicity. socio-economic status, and age. Without any unifying public spaces, the city has become fragmented into polarized pockets of young and old, wealthy and poor, and ethnic background. This thesis seeks to reconnect the fractured populations of the Calgary to the core of the city, as well as to each other. A number of design interventions along the parallel and perpendicular axes of the Bow River waterfront are proposed to resolve issues of public access and connectivity between the central core and outer communities of the city. A focus on the addition of both interactive public programming and public permeability to the existing waterfront will aid Calgary in achieving social unity.