To compete in the hybrid work era, a 1980s office center needs to provide a collaborative experience that can’t be easily replicated elsewhere. Great West Life Realty Advisors called on our team to design amenities that would enhance connection and make a former Bank of Montreal building a downtown destination.
Bringing in several specialty consultants, including fitness, lighting, and audiovisual specialists, we repositioned underused areas into a suite of shared tenant amenities that enhance collaboration, wellness, and operational value. Inside the former banking hall, we found natural light, city views, exposed structure, and dramatic volume. Using these elements as a backdrop for a curated mix of fitness, conference, and social spaces shifts the building from a place of individual work to a destination for collective activity and community.
Refurbished spaces support a fitness center, a tenant lounge, and a conference center. The fitness facility spans the main and second levels along the Third Street edge, leveraging daylight, city views, and generous ceiling heights. Formerly an office suite beneath a massive glass ceiling, the tenant lounge has become a grand central social hub, complete with a fireplace. Anchored by a media wall and framed by timber pergolas, it supports informal meetings, town halls, and social gatherings. The third level conference center includes large and small meeting spaces that support scalable, hybrid collaboration through integrated audiovisual systems, power, and data.
We incorporated sustainability strategies focused on adaptive reuse, material responsibility, and occupant well-being. Additionally, we retained and celebrated the existing structural volumes and daylight-rich atrium spaces, reducing the need for new materials. Durable, low-maintenance materials and flexible planning extend support long-term building performance.
The result of this refurbishment project is a timeless renewal that will help attract a full slate of tenants and bring new life to a downtown Calgary landmark.
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