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Although most Canadian cities overcame the recession successfully, according to a report recently released by the Conference Board of Canada, factors such as the winding-down of federal and provincial government stimulus measures, a weaker domestic economy and uncertain economic conditions in the United States will result in declining growth this year for most of the 27 municipalities measured by the Metropolitan Outlook Winter 2011.

Calgary, with 3.7 per cent, is among the top five cities for growth in gross domestic product in 2011 along with Windsor (3.9 per cent), Oshawa (3.5 per cent), Regina (3.5 per cent) and Saskatoon (3.4 per cent). Calgary, driven by the energy sector, is expected to boost its economic growth by 4.2 per cent between 2012 and 2015. It is estimated that over 20 new oilsands projects will be approved over the next five years.

The growth of the energy sector is believed to encourage demand for downtown office space, resulting in fresh commercial construction. Total construction output in Calgary is predicted to rise 4.7 per cent on average per year from 2011 to 2015.