Calgary Trend House listed as an Evaluated Historic Resource

Well it took a while to work through the process, but the Calgary Trend House has finally been listed on the City of Calgary’s Inventory of Evaluated Historic Resources! We had received the heritage evaluation just prior to Christmas, but it was early in the New Year that we got the full report and notification from the City.

“The Calgary Trend House is one of only 11 innovative and modern houses built across Canada as part of the Trend House Program from 1953 to 1954. The Calgary Trend House is highly significant as a symbol of new expressions in modern living in Calgary and serves as a prototype and showpiece for Prairie Modernism and innovative technologies in Canadian-based materials and design (Symbolic value – City-wide significance).

The Calgary Trend House is also significant for its unique design value. The architecture and design of the Calgary Trend House was considered highly progressive at the time, and the house was acclaimed for its functional innovation that maximized its open spatial qualities and allowed natural light to penetrate throughout the interior spaces (Design value – City-wide significance).

An integral component of the Trend House Program was the use of traditional Canadian softwood products and Canadian designed materials and technologies in the design to showcase the new paradigm for Canadian domestic living in the postwar era. The Calgary Trend House is thus significant for its prolific use of innovative design materials in the form of exterior and interior treatments, and interior built-ins and fittings (Design value – City-wide significance).”

You can see the entry on the city’s website here…