Saddledome demolition sign of Calgary’s fading Olympic legacy, advocates say

Calgary’s most iconic fixture of the city’s skyline — the Saddledome, is set for demolition in 2027, and with other changes coming to other notable locales, some feel the city’s Olympic legacy is starting to fade.

The Olympic Plaza is set to undergo a major facelift, and in 2018, the ski jumps at Canada Olympic Park were decommissioned due to a lack of funding.

A group called Save Our Saddledome says the saddle-shaped building is a “symbol of Calgary’s heritage, culture, and western spirit.” Founder and director Cory Lanterman wants to keep the Olympic spirit alive, and has started a petition to to save the Dome.

“That building is known around the world for Calgary,” he told CityNews.

“That is our culture. I’m a fifth-generation Albertan, and that is our heritage, and when that’s off the landscape, we’re going to hurt our image worldwide.”

Since 1983, the Saddledome has hosted many Stampede events, the Calgary Flames Stanley Cup winning run in 1989, and several events during the 1988 Winter Olympics 36 years ago. It was built for those games.

The City of Calgary, the Government of Alberta, Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation (CSEC), and Calgary Stampede sealed the deal on the $1.22B project first agreed to in principle back in April near the end of 2023.

The new event centre is the most expensive part of the redevelopment, coming in at $800 million. Calgary will pay $537.3 million of the project (44 per cent of the total project cost) while the province will pay $330 million (27 per cent) and CSEC paying $356 million (29 per cent).

Some people feel Calgary is slowly losing its Olympic legacy that helped shape the city into what it is today.

“It’s very sad actually, I’m shocked that they’re even doing things like that, especially the Saddledome,” Calgarian Kathy Hayashi told CityNews.

“Calgary is progressively changing the infrastructure all the time. Let’s not forget our history, let’s keep it raw and there for people to see and understand,” another Calgarian, Garry Shapira, explained.

“I think it’s really sad, actually, that we are losing this and replacing it with something else.”

The Calgary Municipal Land Corporation has launched an online survey, giving Calgarians a chance to have their say on what the revamped Olympic Plaza should look like.

As for the Saddledome’s replacement, the groundwork for the new arena has already begun.

The final design has yet to be released, but one member of Save Our Saddledome says he hopes the new building will feature some Saddledome charm.

“With the new design, some way to honour the Saddledome, and have pieces of it in there. It’s such an important part of Calgary. I’m an original Calgarian, so really love that building — we’ve all been there, right?” David Vasas, a volunteer with Save our Saddledome, explained.

The new event centre is expected to be completed by 2027, while the new-look Olympic Plaza is set to open in 2028.

With files from Lauryn Heintz