Evergreen, Calgary: 136 basements finished, zero new houses

In Evergreen, the space people are adding is underground. City of Calgary open data shows 136 basement development permits there from January 2023 to 29 September 2026, tied with Tuscany for the 12th highest count of 97 communities and the most of any profiled community with no new house, semi or rowhouse permits. Owners also took out 51 permits to turn existing space into a suite and 20 addition permits, tied for ninth of the 97 communities on this site.

Why are so many Evergreen basements being finished?

The data can't give motive, but it shows the setup. Evergreen's 6,805 households averaged 3.1 people in 2021, tied for 12th highest of 84 communities, and 14% had five or more. In 2019, 73% of its 7,256 dwellings were single-detached and 80% were owner-occupied.

Population and household figures are from the 2021 Census of Canada as published by the City of Calgary; dwelling types are from the City's 2019 civic census, the last one it ran. Newer communities have grown since. Source: City of Calgary open data (building permits, development permits, secondary suite registry, census 2021 population, census 2021 households, civic census 2019, land use districts), retrieved 5 October 2026.

Large households in owned detached houses, with no new houses going up nearby, suggests owners are finding room where they already live. Before you plan bedrooms down there, check the basement ceiling height guide and the egress window guide, which set out what the code asks of a bedroom below grade.

What do Evergreen permits show by year?

A busy first two years for basements, then a lower, steadier pace. Basement permits dropped from 45 in 2023 to 27 in 2025. Additions moved the other way, from 4 and 3 in 2023 and 2024 to 10 in 2025.

Permits issued, excluding cancelled ones. "Share of Calgary" is this community's part of the citywide count for the same project type and years. Declared value is what the applicant wrote on the permit application. It is not a quote and runs below real costs. Medians are shown only where a category has at least 5 permits. Source: City of Calgary open data (building permits, development permits, secondary suite registry, census 2021 population, census 2021 households, civic census 2019, land use districts), retrieved 5 October 2026.

Renovations held between 13 and 20 a year, 66 in all, with a median declared value of $8,500, and detached garages totalled 62. Declared values are what applicants wrote on the permit and run below real costs: the $31,070 median on a basement and $33,647 on an addition are not budgets. The home addition cost guide has real prices.

Permits move fast here. Basements took a median 9 days from application to issue and garages 7.5 days. Additions were slower, at a median 28 days.

Can you put a suite in an Evergreen basement?

Many owners have. The City issued 51 permits to create a suite by altering existing space in Evergreen, 20 of them in 2024 and 19 in 2025, plus 18 suite permits it classes as new construction (its New work class).

Development permits applied for from 1 January 2023; many home projects in Calgary need only a building permit, so these are a subset of all work. The registry lists suites the City has confirmed meet the rules, not every suite that exists. Source: City of Calgary open data (building permits, development permits, secondary suite registry, census 2021 population, census 2021 households, civic census 2019, land use districts), retrieved 5 October 2026.

Evergreen owners also filed 53 secondary suite development permit applications, tied for 20th most of 97 communities. All 128 decided development permits here were approved, with a median of 38 days to a decision. The registry lists 136 Evergreen suites; 26 were added in 2024 and 33 in 2025.

The rules changed this year. Until Bylaw 26P2026 in July 2026, the City's suite pages listed R-1 and R-1N among the districts where a suite needed a development permit. As of October 2026, the site's legal basement suite guide lists a secondary suite as a permitted use in both, so one that meets every zoning rule goes straight to a building permit. A lot can have one suite, not a secondary suite and a backyard suite; just two backyard suite permits were issued here.

What zoning covers Evergreen?

Single-detached districts, split almost evenly. R-1N covers about 34.1% of the area and R-1 about 30.5%, the fifth highest R-1 share of the 97. Together they leave about a third for everything else.

The share of the community's districted area in each land use district, from the City's district and community boundary maps intersected exactly. Districts change by lot and by amendment: check a specific lot on the City's land use map before you plan. Source: City of Calgary open data (building permits, development permits, secondary suite registry, census 2021 population, census 2021 households, civic census 2019, land use districts), retrieved 5 October 2026.

The City describes R-1 as single-detached homes and R-1N as single-detached homes on narrow or small parcels (The City of Calgary, land use districts). S-SPR, about 10%, is the City's district for public parks, schools and reserve land, and S-FUD, about 8.4%, is what the City labels future urban development. M-1, at about 3%, is a multi-residential district for apartments, townhouses and rowhouses, and R-2, just outside the table at about 2.5%, allows single-detached, semi-detached and duplex homes.

The development permit record lists R-G on 52 applications. Those lots were rezoned citywide in 2024 and, unless an R-CG, R-G or H-GO development had been applied for or approved, went back to their earlier district when the repeal took effect on 4 August 2026 (The City of Calgary, 2026). Look up your lot on the land use map.

Walking an Evergreen basement plan

A basement plan works around things you can't move: the stair, the furnace and water heater, the beams and posts. On the studio's LED floor, the plan is shown at full size with room names and dimension lines, so you can stand in the proposed bedroom and see how it sits against the mechanical room. Freestanding walls mark the new partitions, and a sofa and coffee table show whether the rec room still works once the suite takes its share.

Edits go onto the floor during the session, and you keep the recording. Send a PDF or DWG at least three days ahead. Sessions are quoted by plan size, and the quote is free: see pricing, book, or the communities hub.