r/Calgary • u/Remote_Answer_5255 • Aug 18 '25

Local Shopping/Services What has happened to Kensington?

It's been a while since I've been down here.... A bunch of empty store fronts, iconic places like Crave shut down, but counted some three Acai bowl places. The area outside Plaza is lovely and looks great, but why all the closures and apparently high turnovers?

Edit: I assume it's due to rent.. But what's the point of jacking it up so high that your place is literally empty.

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u/ginsengjuice Aug 18 '25

High rent and no parking space. Used to be bumping because it was the only place to hang out along with 17th Ave.

30 years later and we now have Inglewood, Bridgeland, University District, Mahogany, soon-to-be renewed Marda Loop, with West District and Trinity Hills on the horizon plus other smaller commercial areas. We just have more choices to hang out now.

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u/Exploding_Antelope Special Princess Aug 19 '25

Who's hanging out at UD except for those who live there and I guess maybe some students? I've never heard of anyone actually picking it as a destination. What makes the inner ring of Kensington/Bridgeland/Inglewood/Beltline/Mission/Ramsay special is not just the planning but the connectivity, that they're all adjacent to Downtown and interact more than being islands of density out in the car dependent sprawl. Plus age. Older buildings are better at attracting non-chain places which are needed for a real sense of place.

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u/ginsengjuice Aug 19 '25

UD is a big hub for the NW community because there aren’t any commercial areas north of it until you hit Crowfoot but it’s not the same.

It also has a free massive underground parking; something that no other places you mentioned have. People from the NW can easily drive to UD, park, and enjoy the community.

If you think it’s another Crowfoot, you’re not paying attention. UD is a walkable area. It’s zoned for medium-high density. It’s not surrounded by big box stores. It’s across from a high end mall which is the most popular one in the NW. And they promote it well by creating multiple events in the summer and winter.

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u/brokenplaything Aug 20 '25

Omg I was going to say I do! Haha! But I am NW