Scotia Place construction focus shifts to steel structure

A new home for the Calgary Flames is coming together. The 'big dig' took up most of the first year’s work, but now the structure itself is the main focus.

The future home of the Calgary Flames is beginning to rise above street level as the Scotia Place Event Centre project prepares for a pivotal year of construction.

After spending much of the first year focused on the “big dig,” crews have pivoted from excavation to erecting the massive steel structure that will define the new event centre.

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Bob Hunter, a member of the Scotia Place project team, said workers have already poured more than 1,100 foundational elements and established the exterior walls. In recent months, the focus has shifted to pouring the various concourse levels.

While progress is visible from the street, the true scale of the project is most apparent from the air. The outline of the arena is now clearly defined within the downtown landscape.

The initial phase of the project required crews to dig a hole roughly 10 metres deep, which involved the removal of more than 300,000 cubic metres of soil and other material.

The goal for 2026 is to complete the steel structure and the roof.

Hunter noted that the project is currently on schedule and on budget with no major red flags. Up to 200 workers are on the site daily.

“We’ll start also to enclose the building,” Hunter said. “The exterior cladding will follow on the south side where we can actually start to get more control over our environment, which will be key to our schedule.”

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Work will continue through the winter months, despite the cold.

Once the building is enclosed, interior work will begin on the facility’s three restaurants, a food hall and various public gathering spaces.

The project is expected to use 9,000 metric tonnes of steel by the time it is finished.

Scotia Place remains on track to open by fall 2027.