Live in Currie Barracks
A 1934 militia base rebuilt since 2010 as a dense new community, with ten heritage buildings and Mount Royal University on its doorstep.
Currie Barracks began construction in 1934 as a Depression-era militia base and only became a residential community after single-family building started in 2010: 1.0 km², 1,275 residents in 570 dwellings at the 2021 census, with 32% rental. Ten former barrack buildings survive as a Provincial Historic Resource, Mount Royal University sits on the western edge, and Crowchild Trail carries everything east. The honest tension is that this is still an active construction site in places — over half the housing here went up after 2016, and some lots remain unbuilt. This is what living here is actually like.
A 1934 militia base, rebuilt in place since 2010
Bounded by 33 Avenue SW to the north, Crowchild Trail to the east, the Lincoln Park community to the south, and Sarcee Road SW to the west. Ward 8.
Currie Barracks began construction in 1934 as a Depression-era militia base, named for General Sir Arthur Currie. It stayed a working Canadian Forces base until 1997, and only became a residential community after Canada Lands Company bought the land in 1998 and single-family building began in 2010. At the 2021 census it held 1,275 residents in 570 dwellings, on a land area of 1.0 km².
The two halves. Ten of the original barrack buildings survive as a Provincial Historic Resource, designated in 1999 — the Officers' Mess, the 1936 Stables and the hangars among them, now home to Wild Rose Brewery's taproom and Veranda at The Stables. Around them sit streets of new construction, more than half of it built since 2016.
What it costs. Median household income was $133,000 in 2020, and 32% rental sits in the middle of the three former base communities — well below Garrison Green's, well above Garrison Woods'.
This is still a community finishing itself. Framing crews and unbuilt lots are part of the deal here in a way they are not in Garrison Woods, which completed its build-out two decades ago.
- Several blocks are still under construction — expect noise, dust and changing sightlines for a few more years
- Condo and townhouse fees apply to most of the newer stock; confirm the amount and reserve fund before buying
- Mount Royal University's event days bring real parking pressure to the streets nearest campus
- Tiny resale inventory for the newest phases — few directly comparable sales exist yet
- The heritage buildings carry designation rules that limit what an owner nearby can change
How Currie Barracks got here
- 1934Construction begins on Currie Barracks as a Depression-era Public Works Construction Act project, named for General Sir Arthur Currie.
- 1997CFB Calgary is decommissioned and personnel relocate to CFB Edmonton.
- 1998Canada Lands Company purchases the former base lands.
- 1999Currie Barracks is designated a Provincial Historic Resource.
- 2007The Currie Barracks Community Plan is approved.
- 2010Residential construction begins and the community launches.
- 2021Federal census records 1,275 residents in 570 dwellings.
The reservoir and the natural area, a short drive south
Currie Barracks has no park of its own scale inside its boundaries — Weaselhead Natural Area and the Glenmore Reservoir pathway network sit a few minutes south via Glenmore Trail, with sailing, rowing and off-leash trails.
The resident's angle: the community's own green space is small and formal — Parade Square, Valour Park, Victoria Cross Park — built for a parade ground, not a ravine. The reservoir is the real outdoor amenity, and it is a drive, not a walk.
15 places, with real drive times
Road-adjusted distance and drive time from the centre of the community to each destination, nearest first. Filter by category.
Showing 1–12 of 15 places, nearest first.
Method: distances and drive times are estimated from the centre of the community to each destination using Calgary's road grid, and are rounded to honest ranges rather than presented as precise figures. Several of the closest destinations here are on the old base site itself, inside the community's own boundary.
Every gym within reach
The old hangars carry their own gym, Mount Royal University's recreation centre is close, and the community's own pathways are the free option.
- Mount Royal University Recreation adds a triple gymnasium, pool and public memberships
- Parade Square and Valour Park are the free option, on the community's own streets
- Marda Loop and Rockyview-area clubs cover everything else within ten minutes
- Confirm hours directly — several of these facilities keep university-term schedules
| Facility | What it is | Drive |
|---|---|---|
| Barracks Fitness open | Gym inside the old hangars on the Currie Barracks site, next to Wild Rose Brewery. | 2–3 min |
| Mount Royal University Recreation open | Triple gymnasium, pool and fitness centre, with public memberships available. | 2–4 min |
| Currie Barracks parks and pathways open | Free option: Parade Square, Valour Park and the community's own pathway network. | 1–2 min |
| Marda Loop and Rockyview area clubs open | Commercial gyms near Rockyview General Hospital and the Marda Loop district. | 5–7 min |
The base did double duty. The same hangars that trained aircrews now house a gym and a brewery — confirm what is actually open before you count on either.
One private school inside, everything else designated
Clear Water Academy runs pre-kindergarten through grade 12 inside a heritage building on the former base. No CBE or Catholic school sits inside Currie Barracks itself.
| School | Board | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Clear Water Academy | Private | Pre-kindergarten to grade 12, inside a heritage building on the former base. |
| Designated schools | Both boards | No CBE or Catholic school sits inside Currie Barracks; designates into the Altadore/Rutland Park/Richmond cluster — confirm for a specific address. |
| Mount Royal University | Post-secondary | Full university campus on the community's western edge, with a public recreation centre. |
Alberta funds Catholic education the same way it funds public education, so there is no tuition for a resident student at either board. Confirm the designation for a specific address before you buy — a new community's catchment can shift as it finishes building out.
Month by month, what living here looks like
Not a highlights reel — the actual annual rhythm, including the dates residents have to remember.
- Wild Rose Brewery's taproom in the old hangar is the warm stop on a Parade Square walk
- The 1930s barrack blocks' thick masonry walls hold heat through the coldest snaps
- Mount Royal's winter-term traffic fills Sarcee Road by 8am
- Valour Park's paths get their first real ice of the season
- A chinook can clear the Parade Square gravel of snow in an afternoon
- The Stables' patio at Veranda stays shuttered until the thaw
- Framing on the still-vacant lots pauses through the coldest stretch
- Mount Royal's reading week empties the streets around campus for a week
- Meltwater pools on the unfinished lots before the storm drains catch up
- Cleats are the right footwear on Alexandria Park's shaded paths
- Framing crews are back on the active building sites by mid-month
- The Officers' Mess grounds dry out last, on the north-facing side
- Wild Rose Brewery's patio reopens for the season
- Construction noise picks up across the still-building blocks
- Mount Royal's spring convocation brings a week of campus traffic
- The Military Museums' outdoor displays come out of winter storage
- The street trees planted since 2010 are still young enough to need staking
- Veranda's patio at The Stables fills on the first warm evenings
- Sod goes down on the newest lots as builders finish for the season
- Long evenings turn Valour Park into an after-work gathering spot
- Mount Royal's spring session crowds fade before summer classes begin
- Wild Rose Brewery's taproom patio runs full most evenings
- New-build possession dates cluster before the school year starts
- Thunderstorms roll off the foothills, visible from the open Parade Square
- Stampede parade traffic backs up Crowchild Trail along the community's eastern edge
- The Stables' patio at Veranda is the hottest ticket on a Currie Barracks evening
- Construction crews work the long light on the remaining building lots
- The hangar taproom at Wild Rose is at its busiest of the year
- Kananaskis and Bragg Creek are a straight run west on Glenmore Trail
- The Military Museums draws its heaviest tourist traffic of the year
- Framing on the year's last lots wraps up before the weather turns
- A quiet week around Mount Royal before the fall semester returns
- Mount Royal's fall semester restarts and Sarcee Road traffic thickens by 8am
- The Stables' garden beds usually catch first frost before the rest of the block
- The Stables' patio closes for the season by month's end
- Construction sites wind down toward their fall handover dates
- Peak colour runs through the mature trees around the Officers' Mess
- Wild Rose Brewery's taproom shifts to its indoor winter hours
- First snow is normal, and usually melts within the week
- The last of the year's new-build possessions close before the freeze
- Dark by 5pm turns Parade Square into an evening dog-walk loop
- Freeze sets into the unfinished lots for the winter
- Mount Royal's exam season fills the campus lots through early December
- Construction on the active sites goes quiet until spring
- A chinook can flip a −20 morning at the Parade Square into a +5 afternoon
- Wild Rose Brewery's taproom is the warm stop on the shortest days
- The Stables' heritage windows frost over on the coldest nights
- Quiet streets between the holidays, with construction fully stopped
36 photographs of the community and its surroundings
All freely licensed and served from this app — nothing loads from a third party. Filter by category.
Showing 1–12 of 36 photographs.
Honesty note. This page uses only the general Calgary, seasonal, Alberta-wildlife and day-trip photography from the site's shared library. Nothing here is presented as a photograph of Currie Barracks itself.