Live in Sundance
A 33-acre private lake, Fish Creek Park on two sides, and Calgary's confident 1980s at their best.
Sundance is what Calgary built once it had a decade of lake-community practice: planned by Genstar from 1982 around a lake that was dug before most of the houses existed, with Fish Creek Provincial Park wrapping its north and east edges. This is what living here is actually like — the community, the water, the park, the amenities, and the full year.
A lake suburb planned from day one
Bounded north and east by Fish Creek Provincial Park, west by Macleod Trail — with Midnapore directly across it — and south by Marquis of Lorne Trail (Stoney Trail). All of it inside the City of Calgary, Alberta.
Where Midnapore across Macleod Trail grew out of a pioneer hamlet, Sundance was master-planned. Genstar Development began the community in 1982 and dug the 33-acre lake before most of the houses existed — the lake is the organising idea, not an afterthought, and every street curves back toward it.
That origin shows in the fabric: consistent 1980s and 1990s housing stock, generous lots, mature trees that have had four decades to grow, and a community that filled out in orderly phases from the water outward.
Housing mix. Sundance is overwhelmingly owner-occupied single-family — about 3% of dwellings are condominiums or apartments and roughly 6.5% of housing is rental in the last long-form census. Buyers here are buying a thirty-to-forty-year-old detached house, almost always freehold.
Transit. The Fish Creek–Lacombe CTrain station sits directly across Macleod Trail, with bus routes feeding the community from Fish Creek, Shawnessy and Somerset–Bridlewood stations. Drivers get Macleod Trail on the west edge and Stoney Trail on the south.
- Poly-B plumbing was widely used in Alberta in exactly this era and is an insurance flag
- Original roofs and windows from the first phases are now at or past their design life
- The lake encumbrance is registered on every title — all homes pay the annual fee
- Electrical service size in early phases can be below modern expectations
- Homes backing the park or creek: ask about the flood fringe and overland water coverage
How Sundance got here
- 30 December 1961Calgary's great southward annexation absorbs the lands south of Fish Creek, including the hamlet of Midnapore next door. The future Sundance is still open prairie.
- 1975Fish Creek Provincial Park is established along the community's future northern and eastern edges — the park predates every house in Sundance.
- 1982Genstar Development begins Sundance, planned from day one around a 33-acre man-made lake.
- 1980s–1990sBuild-out proceeds in phases outward from the lake; schools open as the phases fill with families.
- 2001The CTrain's south leg reaches the area — Fish Creek–Lacombe station opens directly across Macleod Trail.
- 2004Centennial High School opens on Sun Valley Boulevard, giving the community its own senior high.
- 2021The federal census counts 9,590 residents — a fully built-out, stable community, not a growth area.
The thing you cannot get anywhere else at this price
Private and resident-only, run by the Sundance Lake Residents Association. Every home in the community carries the encumbrance — and with it, year-round access to the water.
- Due 1 July each year, payable to the Sundance Lake Residents Association
- Funded through encumbrances registered on owners' titles — every home in the community pays
- Lake-access and lakefront properties pay the higher tier: $451.65
- A year-round facility: beach and boating in summer, skating and ice fishing in winter
- Contact: lakesundance.org
| The lake at a glance | Figure |
|---|---|
| Lake surface | 13 ha / 33 acres |
| Built | 1982, dug with the first phases |
| Regular-home fee (2026) | $333.24 |
| Lake-access / lakefront fee | $451.65 |
| Fees due | 1 July each year |
The second-largest urban park in Canada, at the end of the street
13.5 km², over 100 km of trails, wrapping Sundance's north and east edges — and the park was here first, established in 1975, seven years before the community. Larger than every urban park in Canada except Rouge in Toronto, and more than three times the size of Stanley Park.
The resident's angle: parkland on two boundaries is the most durable amenity in the community. Shops close, gyms relocate and fees rise, but a provincial park cannot be rezoned into townhouses. Flood note: Fish Creek has flooded — 2005 and 2013 both damaged park infrastructure. Ask any insurer about overland water coverage and check where a specific address sits relative to the flood fringe.
56 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 56 places, nearest first.
Method: straight-line distance between geocoded coordinates multiplied by 1.32 to approximate Calgary's road grid, then divided by a speed model that accounts for short trips being slower and highway runs faster. Times are measured from the Midnapore–Sundance area centre — Sundance sits directly east across Macleod Trail, so allow a minute or two either way. Macleod Trail and Deerfoot Trail at 7–9am and 3:30–6pm will push the longer trips 5–15 minutes higher.
Every gym within reach
Eight trading facilities and two that have closed. Directory sites still list the closed ones, so check before you count on either.
- Mon–Thu 5am–11pm, Fri 5am–9pm, Sat–Sun 7am–7pm. Listings claiming 24/7 for this club are wrong.
- Budget-tier pricing; the upper membership tier adds guest privileges and access to other clubs.
- Shares the 240 Midpark Way plaza with the former GYMVMT Midnapore, which has closed.
- For true 24-hour access the nearest option is Anytime Fitness Sunpark, minutes up Sun Valley Boulevard.
| Facility | What it is | Drive |
|---|---|---|
| Planet Fitness — Midnapore open | 240 Midpark Way SE, Unit 1 · 587-430-3558. Mon–Thu 5am–11pm, Fri 5am–9pm, Sat–Sun 7am–7pm. Budget-tier national chain; upper membership tiers add guest privileges and other clubs. | 1–2 min |
| Mid-Sun Community Centre gym open | Full-size gymnasium plus community rec programming, run by the Midnapore–Sundance community association. | 1–2 min |
| Anytime Fitness Sunpark open | 4.8★ (277). Open 24 hours with fob access — the only true 24/7 option in range. Reciprocal access to other Anytime clubs. | 2–4 min |
| YMCA Shawnessy open | 4.2★ (1,079). Pool, gym, courts, classes; opens 5:30am. Shares a building with the Shawnessy library and Bishop O'Byrne High School. | 3–6 min |
| Cardel Rec South open | 4.4★ (827). Four ice rinks, fitness floor, indoor track, pub and skate sharpening. The winter hub for organised sport. | 4–6 min |
| F45 Training Shawnessy open | 5.0★ (119). Group HIIT studio on a class-pack or membership model. | 4–7 min |
| Southland Leisure Centre open | 4.4★ (3,884). City-run: wave pool, waterslides, rink, climbing wall, fitness centre. | 11–17 min |
| Trico Centre for Family Wellness open | 11150 Bonaventure Dr SE. Non-profit community centre: 90+ drop-in fitness classes a week, indoor track, pool and arena. | 12–18 min |
| GYMVMT Midnapore closed | Was at 21-240 Midpark Way SE — the same plaza as Planet Fitness. Reported closed as of 2026. | — |
| Orangetheory Fitness Shawnessy closed | Was at 70 Shawville Blvd SE. Reported closed. | — |
The free option is the best one. 100+ km of trails on two sides of the community, 60+ km of it paved. For running and cycling that beats any membership within 20 km — and the lake fee already includes tennis courts, swimming, boating, skating and shinny.
Kindergarten to Grade 12 without leaving the community
Two public elementaries, a junior high, a Catholic K–9 — and Centennial High School, which makes Sundance one of the few Calgary suburbs with its own senior high.
| School | Board | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Sundance Elementary | Calgary Board of Education | Public elementary inside the community. |
| Fish Creek Elementary | Calgary Board of Education | Public elementary serving Sundance and Midnapore. |
| Midsun Junior High | Calgary Board of Education | Public junior high serving Sundance and Midnapore. |
| Centennial High School | Calgary Board of Education | Public senior high inside the community — a rarity for a Calgary suburb. |
| Father James Whelihan | Calgary Catholic | Catholic K–9 inside the community. |
Alberta funds Catholic education the same way it funds public education, so there is no tuition for a resident student at either board. School and activity fees, optional course fees and transportation are billed separately — confirm the current schedule with the school office.
Month by month, what living here looks like
Not a highlights reel — the actual annual rhythm, including the dates residents have to remember.
- Lake frozen — skating, shinny hockey and ice fishing on your resident card
- Chinook arches over the Rockies can swing temperatures 20°C in a day
- Cardel Rec South (4 indoor rinks) 4–6 min away for organised hockey
- Fish Creek's wooded trails at their quietest — coyote and deer tracks everywhere
- Skating season continues on the lake
- Family Day long weekend — lake house events and rink time
- Watch for poplar-shadowed ice near shore as sun strength returns
- Centennial and MidSun winter sports seasons in full swing
- Ice off the lake late in the month in a warm year
- First bare pavement — road cyclists reappear on the Fish Creek paths
- Spring break — Sikome and the park trails fill with kids
- Meltwater makes the creek loud for the first time since November
- Lake thaws fully; docks and boats go back in as weather allows
- Aspens leaf out along the park edge paths
- Goslings and ducklings appear on the creek and stormponds
- Street sweeping — winter gravel finally disappears
- Beach area readied for the season; tennis courts busy
- May long weekend — first firepit and picnic evenings at the lake
- Fish Creek in full leaf; 100+ km of trails dry out
- Watch for deer with fawns along the wooded edges
- Swimming season opens as the lake warms
- Sikome Lake (public) opens late June, 6–9 min away
- Longest evenings of the year — light past 10pm
- June rains: the creek's high-water month — flood awareness season
- Lake fees due 1 July — the annual encumbrance invoice lands
- Calgary Stampede — ten days, 20–25 min up Macleod Trail
- Beach, boating and fishing at full tilt
- Evening thunderstorms roll off the foothills
- Warmest water of the year in the lake
- Spruce Meadows Masters tournament, 10 min west
- Saskatoon and chokecherry picking along Fish Creek
- Back-to-school supply runs — Shawnessy 5 min away
- Aspens turn — the park's best colour weeks
- School year starts at all five community schools
- Boats out of the water by month end
- Elk bugling season in Kananaskis, 45–60 min west
- Last reliable dry-trail weeks in Fish Creek
- First hard frosts; furnace season begins
- Halloween — one of the biggest family nights of the year here
- Watch for the season's first snowfall — often before month end
- Lake begins to freeze; ice is not yet safe — stay off until flagged
- Winter tires on — Macleod and Deerfoot both ice up in cold snaps
- Christmas lights go up early — dark by 5pm
- Indoor season: Cardel Rec South and the library pick up
- Lake typically freezes mid-to-late December — skating season opens
- Shortest days: sunrise 8:38am, sunset 4:30pm at solstice
- Chinooks can strip the snow overnight — and bring it right back
- New Year's Day skate on the lake to close the year
91 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 91 photographs.
Honesty note. The photo library is shared across this site's south-Calgary communities — Sundance and Midnapore face each other across Macleod Trail and share Fish Creek Park, Sikome Lake and the same skyline. Midnapore-specific shots are labelled as such, species shots taken elsewhere in Alberta are labelled too, and the mountain and Okotoks images are regional context, not local amenities.