Christmas in Kensington celebrates opening of renovated plaza

The Annual Christmas in Kensington celebration took place Saturday afternoon in the northwest Calgary neighbourhood, with campfires, hot chocolate and, of course, Santa Claus. But this year, the celebration coincided with the recent completion of a months-long renovation project.

Kensington Plaza, just next to the Plaza Theatre and surrounded by a mix of businesses, has seen a $1.1 million makeover with funding from the city's Established Area Growth and Change Strategy program.

The process started with community engagement in 2019. Construction began in September.

Upgrades include sculptured benches, new trees, additional bike racks, and updated surfacing. Lighting was also enhanced, utilities were upgraded, and dedicated spaces were created for temporary features, like fire pits and movable furniture. 

Krista Renwick, the project manager with the city, said one of the biggest changes is the removal of long-standing, but dead trees. 

"We dug out the entire plaza and now we have a whole soil cell system underneath the plaza so the trees we planted here, their roots will be able to spread all the way underneath the plaza and we'll be able to bring healthy trees into this space," Renwick said.

Annie MacInnis, the executive director of the Kensington Business Improvement Area, says she "couldn't be more excited" with the renovations. Now, she says, they need to come up with a name for the space.

"I think we're going to have to do a social media contest to come up with a really good name for it. So stay tuned for a contest about what we're going to call this spot," MacInnis said.