I would argue they are more similar than we give them credit for. It's like that principle, the more two things have in common, the more we inflate their differences.
Some guy from Frankfurt could come to both and treat them the same - because they pretty much are.
A lot of the stuff mentioned is speculative or difficult to compare; worse, it's entirely subjective.
The one thing Calgary does have that many people in Edmonton envy is the Downtown/inner-city. People may argue that Calgary DT is s ghost town after 5 pm (name a business core that isn't?), but Edmonton's is absolutely non-existant. It's a ghost town at 10AM in comparison!
This extends to the other facets of the inner city. 17 ave is a 5 minute walk from Stephen ave. The after-work/late night area is concentrated within 15-20 blocks. In Edmonton, you have Whyte Ave and downtown. and you have to take a cab. It's spread apart by a river and highways.
Why is this so? Well, Calgary is definitely more of a corporate/DT city. Edmonton's DT is very government. This effects how long people stay DT and what they do after.
Very similar to Minneapolis and St. Paul Minnesota.
Why is this relevant to the discussion of CalgaryNext?
It's simple. Edmonton's problem has always been its DT core. Its useless from 9 to 5 and an afterthought anytime before or after. It lacks housing, commercial, and retail amenities. It lacks the live/work/play element that Ken King likes to speak to.
Ice District was sold to change that. To finally add to that missing puzzle.
But Calgary doesn't necessarily need that. Downtown is busy. people live all around it and the density is only increasing. We arent fighting suburban flight. So CalgaryNext cannot be sold the same way. Yes we want that area developed in the future but we know that WV doesn't need an arena like Edmonton's DT did.
We are all merely fighting about where we can fit an arena in the steadily growing inner-city.
So yes, Calgary surely beats Edmonton in terms of its inner-city lifestyle. I don't think anyone can deny that and would discuss with anyone who thinks the opposite. Edmonton needed Ice District to bring the DT into the present. Calgary doesnt/
tl;dr: Calgary DT > Edmonton DT = Ice District more desirable than CalgaryNext
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