Calgary’s newest downtown office tower to residential conversion is being touted as modern living blended with historic charm. The Petro Fina Tower, built in 1959 along Stephen Avenue, was seen back then as a symbol of Calgary’s growing oil and gas industry. It’s now been converted from 130,000 square feet of office space into 103 two and three-bedroom suites. The mid-century modern structure is among the five vacant towers selected for the city’s Downtown Development Incentive Program. It’s also a protected historic site. Developer Maxim Olshevsky, the managing director of Peoplefirst Developments, said that while it was a rewarding project, it also had its challenges. “We had to preserve a lot of heritage elements,” Olshevsky said, “and we had to preserve the exterior on three sides, so a lot of the mechanical systems had to be rerouted through the back of the building -- and that posed a lot of challenges. “But you truly see the difference that’s currently happening in the city and we just wanted to be part of that solution that improves our city for the better.” The city provided $9.1 million of the estimated $34.1 million cost towards the project. The majority of the units will be rented out, with 40 per cent of them going at 20 per cent below market value. Tenants will start moving in before the end of the month.
