Estate

Welcome to the creme de la creme of Calgary's established high-rise condominium towers. The 24/7 concierge will take your coat, announce your arrival and later hail a cab when you leave. Built in 1980 as a luxury condominium attached to the Ranchmen's Club (http://ranchmensclub.com), this concrete landmark of 88 spacious homes soars 27 floors angled 45 degrees from the street grid; a bit of design daring-do for that time.

There's a four-level parkade, with two of those floors below grade, the others above grade and fully enclosed. In front of the above-ground parkade are four two-level townhouses with access onto Thirteenth Avenue, and atop the parkade are 12 suites in a three-storey structure overlooking the third-floor roof-top gardens. Of course just inside the high-rise tower off that garden you'll find the indoor swimming pool, gymnasium, and other amenities. The 230 indoor parking stalls are assigned common property, but stalls are surveyed on the condo plan, so suite owners can have leases to guarantee parking rights, which in many cases is for two or more stalls. I recall that I once viewed an Estate penthouse with five parking stalls!

Space is valued here, as owners likely once lived in sprawling homes in Mount Royal or Springbank. Most suites are of at least 1,500 square feet but many are much larger, with several extending to 3,175 square feet. Of course even reasonable condo fees on a square-foot basis add up over that area, so keep in mind that if you have to ask what the fees are, you can't afford them. All suites in the tower have corner settings, with higher-up suites enjoying vistas of the city and the mountains. There are no balconies, which would have cluttered the building's appearance, but suites have broad sliding doors with railings, so the sun and air certainly get in during good weather, and there's always the central air conditioning. Anyway, there's a lovely roof-top deck just off the pool, right? Dating as it does to 1980, some suites are in original condition, while others have been spectacularly upgraded. There are New York-style suites here where Donald Trump would feel right at home.

A practical note: The Estate's condo plan was amended to make exterior windows and doors each suite owner's responsibility, so the reserve fund doesn't need to save to replace them. If you want to upgrade those when you renovate, it'll be at your own cost. I keep the Condo Plan on file.