Scotia Place is no longer just a hole in the ground with a big promise attached to it. The future home of the Calgary Flames is starting to look like the real deal, with the building now rising clearly above street level and taking on the shape of an NHL arena.
Construction has been moving for more than two years now, since shovels first hit the dirt on the project that NHL commissioner Gary Bettman called “State-of-the-art.” What once looked like a massive excavation has turned into something much more recognizable, and the latest progress shows the exterior coming together fast.
The height of the building is now impossible to miss, and the outside is being covered with panelling at a steady clip. The northwest corner has made especially strong gains over the past month, with the green enveloping continuing to wrap around the structure until the interior is no longer visible from street level.
There has also been major movement in the southeast corner. That section has seen some of the biggest recent upgrades, especially with upper-level steel framing advancing quickly. The Esso Community Arena is also coming along, with noticeable progress on its structure as well.
Across the whole site, the siding has changed dramatically from where it stood just a few months ago. The project is clearly moving in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go before the doors open.
Scotia Place is not expected to be ready until the 2027-28 campaign, which means the Saddledome will host one more season. After Scotia Place is finished, the Saddledome will be torn down a short time later.
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