Alberta

Spruce Grove, the suburban city just west of Edmonton, recently announced not only that it's coming off a great building year in 2012, but that Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.

Canadian commercial real estate posted an average return for investors of 13.1 per cent during the first quarter of this year, according to the REALpac/IPD Canada Annual Property Index.

The City of Calgary's recently released Calgary & Region 2013-2018 Economic Outlook predicts $4.4 billion in new Calgary construction for this year, and $4.8 billion in 2014 - that after strong totals of $4.5 billion in each of 2011 and 2012.

The cost of industrial space in the Fort McMurray area keeps climbing, and now sits at close to $50 per square foot annually in some projects, according to Colliers International.

Red Deer is also a hub for the oil and gas sector in this province, and that industry is again on the upswing, judging by high demand for everything from new serviced land to existing shop space. "There's a lot of optimism.

They may not have the same raw beauty as grizzlies or bighorn sheep, but brand-name national franchises now have some protection in Banff, the Alberta tourist centre where about one-quarter of main-strip stores are chains or "formula-based businesses

The proposal to restart development on the massive Three Sisters resort community project in the mountain town of Canmore includes a plan to fence out wildlife and create a "hard edge" to corridors designed to move animals past development areas.

Whether it's in the inner city or the 'burbs, that Calgary home was generally priced higher in February. Calgary Real Estate Board data says the average single-family home selling price in the city hit $518,452 in February, up 10.

Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi and the head of the city's biggest home-builders organization are moving forward after a public spat in early 2013.

The northwest Alberta resource city wants developers to know it's made great progress in streamlining development approvals.