The Ultimate Guide to Living in Southeast Calgary

Looking for a new palace to call home in Calgary? The city’s southeast quadrant features an exciting blend of convenient amenities, breathtaking natural beauty, and a deeply rooted sense of community living. Whether you’re a first-time homebuyer, a growing family looking for more space, or living alone and craving a more balanced lifestyle, this expansive and evolving area offers plenty of options to suit your lifestyle.

In this comprehensive guide to living in southeast Calgary, you’ll learn what makes living in this part of the city so appealing, including the area’s many services, schools, and amenities.

The Lifestyle: Urban Convenience Meets Natural Beauty

One of the most compelling reasons to choose Southeast Calgary is the area’s blend of big city amenities with abundant outdoor spaces. This part of the city is designed with an intentional emphasis on green infrastructure and the preservation of natural landscapes. In Southeast Calgary, you’ll discover beautifully maintained parks, interconnected walking and cycling trails, and plenty of recreational facilities that encourage a more active lifestyle. Southeast Calgary is also home to the expansive Fish Creek Provincial Park, one of North America’s largest urban parks, offering plenty of space and opportunities for hiking, cycling, fishing, and bird-watching.

Some of Calgary’s most beautiful southeast communities include Legacy, Heartwood, Wolf Willow, and Seton, each designed with plenty of green spaces, walking trails, and ponds to incorporate nature alongside existing and planned shopping centres, schools, and other amenities. This unique balance allows you to truly appreciate the beauty of nature without compromising on the many benefits that come with vibrant city living. 

Amenities: Everything You Need is At Your Doorstep

Calgary’s southeast has more to offer than just natural beauty; it’s also exceptionally well-equipped with amenities, ensuring that residents have everything they need for daily living conveniently within reach. This makes for a truly self-sufficient and comfortable lifestyle, cutting down on those long commutes for everyday services or retail therapy. 

Healthcare Facilities

The South Health Campus is a cornerstone of Southeast Calgary’s infrastructure. This hospital is a widely renowned, state-of-the-art medical facility that serves as a major regional hub. It offers comprehensive medical services, including a fully equipped emergency department with specialized pediatric care, a wide range of clinics, advanced diagnostic imaging, surgical services, and specialized care. Its proximity to Calgary’s southeast communities offers residents peace of mind, with world-class medical care available just minutes from home. 

Beyond South Health Campus, plenty of medical clinics, family practices, pharmacies, and dental offices are scattered throughout the area’s various communities. Residents will also find a wide variety of alternative care options, including massage therapists, chiropractors, and naturopath clinics. 

Shopping Destinations

Southeast Calgary proudly showcases a wide array of shopping opportunities, catering to every need and desire you could imagine. From expansive retail districts to charming local boutiques, you’ll find it all: 

• Southcentre Mall: Conveniently situated along Macleod Trail, Southcentre Mall is one of the city’s premier indoor shopping centres. It houses a large selection of national and international stores and designer name brands, including Winners, H&M, Lululemon, Miniso, and Decathlon. The mall also features a diverse food court and several inviting sit-down restaurants, such as Craft, Earls, and Milestone’s.

• Chinook Centre: While technically located in the city’s southwest quadrant, Chinook Centre is a popular shopping and entertainment destination for southeast residents. It features an array of designer shops and chain stores, including big retailers such as Sport Chek, Zara, and Sephora, as well as various restaurants and a movie theatre.

• Deerfoot Meadows: Just across the Bow River with easy accessibility from many southeast communities, Deerfoot Meadows is a truly massive outdoor shopping centre. This powerhouse is home to retail giants like IKEA, Costco, Walmart, Best Buy, and The Brick. You’ll also find a variety of quick-service and sit-down restaurants, as well as grocery chains such as The Real Canadian Superstore and T&T Supermarket.

• The Avenidas: This well-established shopping centre is located along Macleod Trail just south of Southcentre Mall. It features a wide range of retailers and services, including Fresh & Local Markets + Kitchens, a popular food hall that’s home to a diverse mix of international and local food vendors. 

• Township & Legacy Village: Located in the community of Legacy, at the intersection of Macleod Trail and 210 Avenue, Township and Legacy Village comprise a vast outdoor retail complex featuring an exciting variety of shops, services, and restaurants. Residents of Legacy and its surrounding areas can conveniently access the complex’s many merchants, including Sobey’s, Big Sky Fitness, Winners, Canadian Brewhouse, Dollarama, and Smitty’s Test Kitchen.

Education

Families considering a move to Southeast Calgary can breathe easy knowing the educational infrastructure is exceptionally robust. This quadrant boasts a comprehensive selection of schools, ensuring quality education options for children of all ages. 

• Public Schools (Calgary Board of Education): The Calgary Board of Education maintains a strong presence in Southeast Calgary, with numerous elementary, junior high, and high schools. While newer communities, such as Heartwood, Legacy, and Wolf Willow, don’t currently have schools available for students of all ages, the Calgary Board of Education ensures nearby placement for children. It offers reliable busing to and from schools that are not within walking distance. 
• Catholic Schools (Calgary Catholic School District): The Calgary Catholic School District also has a significant footprint in Calgary’s southeast communities, offering faith-based education for students from kindergarten through grade 12. Catholic schooling is offered to students in all southeast Calgary communities, with busing available for those who don’t live within walking distance. 

• Private and Charter Schools: For families seeking specific educational philosophies or specialized education for their children, private and charter school options are available within and in close proximity to the city’s southeast. 

• Post-Secondary Education: While you won’t find a sprawling university campus directly within the southeast itself, the area is home to St. Mary’s University, a private Catholic university that offers degrees in liberal arts, science, and education. Additional post-secondary options can be easily accessed via public transportation and major roadways. 

The Daily Commute

Getting around Calgary from the southeast is very convenient thanks to its strategic location and well-developed transportation infrastructure. It means you’ll spend less time stuck in traffic and more time doing what you love. 

• Major Roadways: The city’s southeast is crisscrossed by several arterial roads that connect you to other quadrants of the city. This includes Deerfoot Trail (Highway 2), which connects residents with downtown Calgary and the Trans-Canada Highway, Stoney Trail, the city’s ever-evolving ring road, and Macleod Trail, another major roadway with direct access to downtown.

• Calgary Transit: Calgary Transit is the city’s public transit system, featuring an extensive network of bus routes and light-rail transit options that provide access to nearly all areas of the city. 

Southeast Calgary’s Best Communities

Southeast Calgary is home to plenty of beautiful communities, each with its own unique character, amenities, and distinct housing styles. This variety ensures that prospective homebuyers can find a neighbourhood that perfectly aligns with their lifestyle preferences, family needs, and, of course, budget. 

Legacy

A master-planned community universally recognized for its distinctive heritage-inspired designs and an abundance of carefully preserved natural spaces, Legacy offers extensive walking trails, thoughtful playgrounds, and an impressive public art program, all designed to foster a rich living experience, It’s thoughtfully planned for self-sufficiency with commercial and retail developments, a desirable blend of single-family homes, townhomes, and ulti-family units, and an immediate proximity to the Pine Creek Valley natural reserve.

Seton

Touted as Calgary’s South Urban District, Seton is a rapidly developing, modern, and highly walkable community that buzzes with energy. It features a fantastic mix of residential options, from sleek modern homes to convenient townhomes and condos, as well as commercial spaces, anchored by the South Health Campus alongside vibrant retail shops and diverse restaurants. In Seton, you’ll also find Brookfield Residential YMCA at Seton, featuring multiple swimming pools and recreational facilities, as well as a large public library.

Colours of Seton

Located directly within the energetic heart of the Seton urban district, Colours of Seton focuses on contemporary townhomes with wonderfully vibrant designs. These homes offer a low-maintenance lifestyle, making them ideal for young professionals, active couples, and small families desiring to be at the heart of Seton’s energetic atmosphere.

Wolf Willow

Nestled beautifully along the scenic Fish Creek Provincial Park and the majestic Bow River, Wolf Willow offers unparalleled direct access to nature’s playground. This community is undeniably designed for outdoor enthusiasts, with pathways connecting directly to the park’s extensive trail system. It’s a community where natural beauty seamlessly blends with modern family living, featuring a variety of housing types and a strong emphasis on outdoor recreation. Imagine fishing, kayaking, or simply having riverside picnics just steps from home.

Heartwood

A serene, family-friendly community that emphasizes a connection to nature and communal gathering, Heartwood proudly boasts over 5 km. of multi-use trails, numerous thoughtfully designed parks, and a future-planned school site, making it an ideal community for young families. Hearwood is designed for tranquillity and effortless outdoor enjoyment, providing a peaceful retreat while offering convenient access to major roadways and necessary amenities. 

Southeast Calgary’s Established Communities

While not as new as those mentioned above, Southeast Calgary is home to an array of more established communities that feature just as many exciting amenities and natural spaces. Each of these communities boasts retail shops, schools, playgrounds, and services, ensuring residents can enjoy the same convenient access to amenities as those in the area’s newer neighbourhoods. Some of these more established Southeast Calgary communities include Lake Bonavista, Cranston, McKenzie Lake, Auburn Bay, Lake Chaparral, and Copperfield. 

Ongoing Growth in Southeast Calgary

Calgary’s southeast quadrant is experiencing significant growth, making it an exciting area for those looking to build a brand-new home. This isn’t just about adding more houses; it encompasses infrastructure projects, dynamic new commercial spaces, and enhanced public facilities, all meticulously designed to accommodate the area’s increasing population and significantly improve the overall quality of life for its residents. 

This continued development means that many communities within Calgary’s southeast offer brand-new homes with modern designs and state-of-the-art features right from the start. This new build environment also inherently translates into fresh infrastructure, including newly paved roads, modern utility systems, and thoughtfully planned community layouts complete with contemporary parks and amenities from day one. It’s about living in a place that’s designed for the future, not retrofitted from the past. 

How Trico Homes Contributes to Southeast Calgary’s Communities

At Trico Homes, we’re not just observing the remarkable growth in Southeast Calgary; we’re actively shaping it, community by community. We understand that choosing to build a new home is a significant decision, and we’re incredibly proud to be a driving force behind this quadrant’s evolution. Our involvement goes beyond simply constructing houses; we’re invested in creating vibrant, sustainable communities that enhance the lives of their residents.

We build our homes in meticulously planned neighbourhoods throughout Southeast Calgary, ensuring that every Trico home thoughtfully integrates into its surroundings. We see the immense potential in this quadrant, from its natural beauty and continually expanding infrastructure to its strong sense of community. We strive to build homes that truly enhance these qualities. Our diverse range of housing options includes spacious single-family homes perfect for growing families, stylish low-maintenance townhomes, designed with the future in mind, and comfortable multi-family homes built with modern conveniences in mind. We prioritize quality craftsmanship, innovative designs, and energy efficiency, ensuring your new home is built to last. 

Being Western Canada’s only Certified B Corp homebuilder means we approach our work with a commitment to people and the planet. This philosophy guides our choices, from the materials we select to the lasting value we provide to homeowners. We are proud to build homes in the beautiful southeast communities of Legacy, Seton, Wolf Willow, Colours of Seton, and Heartwood, creating spaces where families can thrive, neighbours can connect, and countless memories can be built. Our contribution is about more than just houses; it’s about building strong foundations for Calgary’s future. 

Your Future Home Awaits

Ready to lay your roots in Calgary? The city’s southeast offers an unparalleled lifestyle, beautifully blending urban convenience with natural beauty and a palpable sense of community. Visit our inviting showhomes in the Southeast Calgary neighbourhoods of Legacy, Seton, Heartwood, and Wolf Willow, or contact us directly to start building the life you’ve always dreamed of!