CALGARY - Canadian Rockies: Including Banff and Jasper National Parks - page 445

SW is the Alberta Hotel, one of the city's most popular meeting places until Prohibition
in 1916.
MM Calgary Tower
Ninth Avenue, south of the mall, has banks, some of Calgary's best hotels, parking stations,
the Telus Convention Centre, the Glenbow Museum, and one of the city's most famous
landmarks, the Calgary Tower (101 9th Ave., at the corner of Centre St., 403/266-7171,
9am-9pm daily, until 10pm in summer, adult $16, senior $14, child $11). Built in 1968
(and known then as the Husky Tower), this 190-meter (620-foot) tower dominated the sky-
line until 1985, when the nearby Petro-Canada towers went up. Although it's now only
Calgary's fourth-tallest building, the ride to the top is a worthwhile introduction to the city.
The Observation Terrace affords a bird'seye view of the Canadian Rockies and the ski-
jump towers at Canada Olympic Park to the west; the Olympic Saddledome (in Stampede
Park) to the south; and the city below, literally—a glass floor allows visitors to stand right
over the top of 9th Avenue. The nonreflective window glass is perfect for photography;
binoculars are available for guest use; and audiovisual terminals describe the sights below.
The tower also houses two restaurants, a snack bar, and a gift shop.
Olympic Plaza and Vicinity
This downtown park at the east end of Stephen Avenue Walk (on the corner of 2nd St.
SE), which is filled with office workers each lunch hour, was used during the 1988 Winter
Olympic Games for the nightly medal-presentation ceremonies. Plaques here commemor-
ate medal winners, and the bricks on the ground are inscribed by members of the public
who helped sponsor the Olympics by “purchasing” individual bricks before the Games. In
summer, outdoor concerts are held here, and in winter, the shallow wading pool freezes
over and is used as an ice-skating rink. Across 2nd Street SE from the plaza is City Hall,
built in 1911. It still houses some city offices, although most have moved next door to the
modern Civic Complex.
Back across 2nd Street SE is the Epcor Centre for the Performing Arts, incorporat-
ing two of Calgary's historic sandstone buildings. The complex houses three theaters and
the 2,000-seat Jack Singer Concert Hall, home to the city's orchestra.
In front of the Education Building on 1st Street SE (between 5th and 6th Avenues) are
the Armengol Structures —expressionless, raceless, humanlike forms with outstretched
arms.