09/16/2025
I view these images below from 𝟗 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐠𝐨 and I am reminded 3 key items
1. How great the property manager was who dealt with this building for almost 30 years.
2. How ignorant of a comment our previous Mayor made towards this audacious venture, but most importantly...
3. How dynamic this project has been over the continuum of time.
One of the things that most people don’t connect with in development, is regardless of how talented you might be and/or think you are, every single project can be likened to a start-up company. As all entrepreneurs know, every great business is initiated by a thoughtful and confident business plan which identifies the key elements of the product and or offering, and its positioning, along with the challenges that must be overcome and your strategy to do so, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐢𝐬𝐤𝐬.
And then, like most start-ups, you go into the universe and almost immediately need to pivot, reassess, reevaluate and deal with the new inputs. You know, such as the things you can’t control, and in our case the worst down cycle in Calgary’s energy complex, 9 interest rate hikes, a no-fly zone for investment into the Calgary marketplace, and insurmountable price escalations to name a few. On the very worst days “some” even ask, is it worth all the risk, human capital, and sacrifice?
Yes, every entrepreneur goes through this exact cycle over and over again throughout their arc as an entrepreneur. So there really is no “ultimate success” as a businessperson. The way I think of it is, it’s the continuum of relentless challenges that one must identify, face, and ultimately overcome to create who You as an individual will ultimately be.
𝐒𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐥, located on one of the most vital intersections in Calgary’s urban beltline is a story unto itself. This project is the largest assembled site in the history of the 17th Ave corridor. Sentinel will transform this intersection, this Main Street, which has languished for years in the Sunalta/Bankview communities. We will introduce over 250,000 SF of development, $100M in construction, create hundreds more jobs and continue to activate our ASI 17th Avenue Master Plan Project 6/8
