Inglewood Grove townhouses

Out in the country yet in the inner city, this attractive collection of townhouses is hidden in an off-the-beaten-path location adjacent to Pearce Estate Park and the Sam Livingston Fish Hatchery alongside the Bow River just downstream from Calgary's Zoo. On the east side a rarely-used CPR spur line runs past the development on its way north, and on the west it backs onto a large natural area and the Bow River pathway. It's a rural-feeling location, yet steps from east-side employment, Inglewood cafe and services, and of course downtown itself.

It was 2000 when Streetside Developments began building this three-phase almost 100-home bare-land townhouse project on a triangle-shaped property. Space between two rows of attached homes allows for internal green space with two ponds. Homes vary between smaller ones with a single drive-under garage and larger end-unit homes with double drive-under parking. All are of three storeys and offer from 1,255 to over 1,500 square feet of living space. Every home's driveway allows for additional parking. Around back every townhouse has a deck, most of which back onto either the ponds area or west to the natural area and the river beyond. End-unit townhouses have a faux-Victorian corner turret that creates a rounded living area.

Finishing for this project was high end, including overheight ceilings, soaker tubs and pedestal bathroom sinks, laundry equipment included in the appliance package and a variety of upgrade options, such as for double-ensuite bedrooms. Streetside even created a LAN network, so a small charge in the condo contributions provides wireless internet service to every home.

The bare-land nature of this development means that property lines run between all homes, governed by a party-wall agreement where homes are attached. Everyone owns their lot but has assigned exterior maintenance of the land and the building's vinyl-clad shell to the condo corporation, so there's a modest condo contribution for exterior maintenance, but every home pays its own utilities. I keep on file the original marketing materials and floor plans.