The Calgary Metropolitan Region (CMR), also known as Greater Calgary or Metro Calgary is a conglomeration of municipalities centred on
Calgary
Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...
, the
largest city in
Alberta
Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
.
With the Government of Alberta's establishment of the Calgary Metropolitan Region Board (CMRB) in 2017, the CMR's boundaries were legislated to include the City of Calgary,
Foothills County
Foothills County is a municipal district in southern Alberta, Canada adjacent to the south side of Calgary in Census Division No. 6. Despite sharing a common border with the City of Calgary, it does not form part of the Calgary census metropo ...
to the south,
Rocky View County
Rocky View County is a municipal district in southern Alberta, Canada that is named for its views of the nearby Rocky Mountains to the west. It surrounds most of Calgary, forming the city's northern boundary and most of the city's western and e ...
to the west, north, and east, and a western portion of
Wheatland County further to the east.
Also within these boundaries are the cities of
Airdrie and
Chestermere
Chestermere, originally named Chestermere Lake is a city in the Canadian province of Alberta, within Rocky View County. It is largely a commuter town of Calgary and is a member municipality of the Calgary Region. The city, which surrounds Ches ...
, seven towns:
Cochrane,
Crossfield,
Diamond Valley,
High River,
Irricana
Irricana is a town in the Calgary Metropolitan Region of Alberta, Canada. Surrounded by Rocky View County, it is adjacent to Alberta Highway 9, Highway 9, approximately northeast of Calgary.
The name of the town is a portmanteau of the words "i ...
,
Okotoks, and
Strathmore, two villages:
Beiseker and
Longview, and two
First Nations communities:
Tsuu T'ina 145 and
Eden Valley 216. Not all of these, however, are administrative members of the CMRB.
The Calgary
census metropolitan area
The census geographic units of Canada are the census subdivisions defined and used by Canada's federal government statistics bureau Statistics Canada to conduct the country's quinquennial census. These areas exist solely for the purposes of stat ...
(CMA) as delineated by
Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...
is smaller than the CMR. The Calgary CMA includes Calgary, Rocky View County, Airdrie, Beiseker, Chestermere, Cochrane, Crossfield, Irricana, and Tsuu T'ina 145.
The Calgary Metropolitan Region is a major transportation hub for
southern Alberta,
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...
, eastern
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
, and parts of the northern
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. It is home to the
Calgary International Airport, the fourth busiest airport in Canada in terms of total aircraft movements.
Calgary CMA
The Calgary CMA, as defined by Statistics Canada, includes the following nine municipalities:
*three cities (
Airdrie, Calgary and
Chestermere
Chestermere, originally named Chestermere Lake is a city in the Canadian province of Alberta, within Rocky View County. It is largely a commuter town of Calgary and is a member municipality of the Calgary Region. The city, which surrounds Ches ...
);
*one municipal district (
Rocky View County
Rocky View County is a municipal district in southern Alberta, Canada that is named for its views of the nearby Rocky Mountains to the west. It surrounds most of Calgary, forming the city's northern boundary and most of the city's western and e ...
, which includes
Langdon – the CMA's
largest hamlet);
*three towns (
Cochrane,
Crossfield, and
Irricana
Irricana is a town in the Calgary Metropolitan Region of Alberta, Canada. Surrounded by Rocky View County, it is adjacent to Alberta Highway 9, Highway 9, approximately northeast of Calgary.
The name of the town is a portmanteau of the words "i ...
);
*one village (
Beiseker); and
*one First Nations reserve (
Tsuu T'ina Nation, which includes the Townsite of
Redwood Meadows).
In the
2011 Census, the Calgary CMA had a population of 1,214,839 living in 464,001 of its 488,451 total dwellings, a 12.6% change from its 2006 population of 1,079,310, making it the largest CMA in Alberta and the
fourth largest in Canada. With a land area of , it had a population density of 237.9 people per square kilometre in 2011.
Also in terms of area, the Calgary CMA makes up approximately 40% of Statistics Canada's
Division No. 6 in Alberta.
The balance of Division No. 6 includes the
census consolidated subdivision
The census geographic units of Canada are the census subdivisions defined and used by Canada's federal government statistics bureau Statistics Canada to conduct the country's quinquennial census. These areas exist solely for the purposes of stat ...
s of the MD of Foothills No. 31 to the south and
Mountain View County to the north.
Foothills County
Foothills County is a municipal district in southern Alberta, Canada adjacent to the south side of Calgary in Census Division No. 6. Despite sharing a common border with the City of Calgary, it does not form part of the Calgary census metropo ...
and the municipalities within are often considered as part of Calgary's metropolitan area due to, among other things, the MDs shared boundary with the City of Calgary and the bedroom community nature of towns like Okotoks, High River, and Diamond Valley
Demographics
Ethnicity
Language
The question on knowledge of languages allows for multiple responses. The following figures are from the
2021 Canadian Census
The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canada, Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, whic ...
, and lists languages that were selected by at least 1,000 respondents.
Calgary Metropolitan Region Board
The Calgary Metropolitan Region Board (CMRB) was legislated through the enactment of the CMRB Regulation in 2017, and will be officially established on its effective date of January 1, 2018.
[ Municipalities that will be participating as members of the CMRB include the cities of Airdrie, Calgary, and Chestermere, the towns of Cochrane, Okotoks, High River and Strathmore, the MD of Foothills No. 31, Rocky View County, and Wheatland County.]
Calgary Regional Partnership
Founded in 1999, the Calgary Regional Partnership (CRP) is a cooperative between 15 urban municipalities in the greater Calgary area that deals with regional growth and planning issues.[ The CRP's motto is ''Thinking regionally... acting locally...''][
]
Membership
The CRP's current membership includes three cities ( Airdrie, Calgary, and Chestermere
Chestermere, originally named Chestermere Lake is a city in the Canadian province of Alberta, within Rocky View County. It is largely a commuter town of Calgary and is a member municipality of the Calgary Region. The city, which surrounds Ches ...
), eight towns ( Banff, Canmore, Cochrane, Diamond Valley, Irricana
Irricana is a town in the Calgary Metropolitan Region of Alberta, Canada. Surrounded by Rocky View County, it is adjacent to Alberta Highway 9, Highway 9, approximately northeast of Calgary.
The name of the town is a portmanteau of the words "i ...
, Nanton, Okotoks, and Strathmore, and one townsite ( Redwood Meadows).[ Of these thirteen municipalities, four of the ten towns (Banff, Canmore, Nanton, and Strathmore) are outside, but in proximity to, the Calgary Region's boundaries as defined in this article. Of the remaining six towns, two of them (Diamond Valley, and Okotoks) are outside the Calgary CMA boundaries as defined by Statistics Canada.
]
Past members
Membership in the CRP once consisted of the four municipal districts and two additional towns. These included the MD of Bighorn No. 8, the MD of Foothills No. 31, Rocky View County, Wheatland County and the towns of Crossfield and High River. The MD of Bighorn No. 8 pulled out of the CRP in March 2009 due to the lack of opportunity for infrastructure connectivity to the balance of the Calgary Region. In June 2009, the latter three opposed the Calgary Metropolitan Plan that was being considered for approval by the CRP's member municipalities. All three subsequently withdrew from the CRP in September 2009. Crossfield and High River withdrew from the CRP in December 2011 and April 2013 respectively citing concerns that the CRP was becoming another layer of government.
In an attempt to bring the MD of Foothills No. 31 and Rocky View County back to the CRP, Alberta's Minister of Municipal Affairs, Doug Griffiths, requested that the two municipal districts and the CRP engage in mediation. All parties agreed to participate and the mediation process has since concluded with a report delivered to Minister Griffiths for review and decision.
List of municipalities
The following list provides the overlapping memberships or enumerations of municipalities in the greater Calgary area that are part of some, or all, of the designations: Calgary Metropolitan Region (CMR); Calgary census metropolitan area (CMA); or the Calgary Regional Partnership (CRP).
See also
* Calgary
Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...
* Calgary-Edmonton Corridor
* Edmonton metropolitan region
* Census Metropolitan Area
The census geographic units of Canada are the census subdivisions defined and used by Canada's federal government statistics bureau Statistics Canada to conduct the country's quinquennial census. These areas exist solely for the purposes of stat ...
* https://www.calgarymetroregion.ca/
References
External links
*
{{Census metropolitan areas by size
Metropolitan areas of Alberta