Stephen Avenue spent the past year torn open. As of this week, that first block is finished, and reopened just in time for the city's busiest event of the year.
The City of Calgary confirmed Monday that the first phase of the Stephen Avenue Revitalization Project is substantially complete. The renewed block runs from 1 Street SE to Centre Street, and it will be fully open for patios, foot traffic, and public space use through the 2026 Calgary Stampede.
The above-ground changes are what most Calgarians will actually notice: new trees, new benches, granite pavers, and a curbless street surface designed to support both everyday foot traffic and the festivals Stephen Avenue regularly hosts. But the real reason this project happened was underground.
What was actually wrong with the street
"Some of the utilities beneath this block of Stephen Avenue were more than 100 years old and required replacement to ensure the avenue can continue serving Calgarians in the coming years," the City said in its release.
Water, stormwater, power, and lighting infrastructure beneath Stephen Avenue were all upgraded as part of Phase 1. Pipes and electrical systems that are a century old usually only make headlines when they fail, and fixing them under a busy street is far harder than building new.
Above ground, the upgrades include granite pavers, enhanced lighting, and power outlets built into the streetscape specifically to support outdoor dining and events without temporary cabling running across the pavement.
The tree controversy, and what replaces them
Thirty trees were removed to safely replace the underground utilities and complete the streetscape work. Eight of those had already been removed before Phase 1 began, and three were dead. Once construction wraps up in 2026, 18 new trees will be planted using advanced soil cell technology. Those soil cells are designed to give the new trees more room to grow under the pavement and help manage stormwater at the same time.
How close this came to not happening on schedule
The project almost did not make it to Stampede 2026 at all. A group of 25 businesses along Stephen Avenue threatened legal action last year, citing a $75 million class-action lawsuit filed by Marda Loop business owners over a separate City of Calgary main streets project as part of their reasoning. They argued construction disruption would cause irreparable damage to their operations during the city's busiest season.
The City delayed the original July 14, 2025 start date in response. Construction ultimately began July 21, 2025, with a revised approach developed alongside business owners, including a scheduled pause in July and August 2026 specifically to limit disruption during peak summer business.
"We are grateful to the businesses, property owners and community partners who worked with us throughout construction," said Amy Stansky, project manager for the City of Calgary. "Their feedback helped us maintain access, respond to challenges and successfully deliver critical infrastructure upgrades that will support Stephen Avenue and downtown Calgary for decades."
What businesses on the street are saying now
The disruption was real while it lasted. Property owners and businesses dealt with reduced foot traffic, construction noise, and limited access for most of a year. The Marda Loop lawsuit was a direct warning sign of what could happen if Calgary mishandled a similar project on Stephen Avenue.
Foot traffic returning to normal ahead of Stampede is the test that matters most. A revitalized streetscape with new trees and granite pavers means little to a retailer or restaurant if customers stopped showing up during construction and have not come back.
The City says it is investing in a promotional campaign specifically to welcome people back to a refreshed Stephen Avenue ahead of the Stampede crowds. Whether that campaign, combined with the finished construction, brings business back to pre-2025 levels will become clear over the next several weeks as Stampede traffic tests the street for the first time since the work began.
This is one block of a much bigger project
Phase 1 covers only the stretch between 1 Street SE and Centre Street. The Stephen Avenue Revitalization project, first launched with public engagement in 2019, is ultimately intended to cover the full corridor from 1 Street SE all the way to 11 Street SW.
Work on the Centre Street intersection itself continues through the rest of 2026, with the pause for Stampede season built into that schedule. Future phases covering the blocks west of Centre Street have not been funded and are not yet scheduled. They will require further public engagement, City Council direction, and budget approval before construction can begin.
Phase 1 carried a budget of $36.2 million.
Why the timing matters
The completion lines up with several other major downtown Calgary investments happening at roughly the same time, including the Glenbow Museum renovation and the Arts Commons Transformation. The City has framed Stephen Avenue's revitalization as part of a broader push to strengthen downtown Calgary's appeal as a destination, not just for Stampede visitors but for the everyday foot traffic that keeps small businesses on the street viable year-round.
As a pedestrian mall, public vehicle parking has never been permitted on this stretch of Stephen Avenue and that does not change with the upgrades. Parking remains available on surrounding streets and in nearby public and private lots.
Sources:
City of Calgary, Stephen Avenue Revitalization Project page (calgary.ca/planning/projects/stephen-avenue.html)
City of Calgary, Amy Stansky project manager statement, June 29, 2026
Alberta Major Projects Registry, Stephen Avenue Renovation Phase 1 (majorprojects.alberta.ca)
