The great thing about living in Calgary is that every neighbourhood comes with bragging rights and the southeast riverside community of Quarry Park is no exception.

"There really isn't anything that compares to Quarry Park in Calgary – the location, the variety of housing types, the strong sense of community and the strong identity with great architectural character," said Glen Deibert, residential director at Remington Development Corp., the developer behind the community.

Situated on a historic quarry site adjacent to the Bow River, Quarry Park graces 400 acres of reclaimed land that features over 90 acres of park land, a 50 acre nature reserve and 10 km of paved walking and cycling paths that weave through the area, connecting to the Bow River pathway system.

In real estate, the one buzzword I hear all the time is "amenities."

Whether it's a new high-rise condo development in the inner city or a new community in the distant suburbs, the salespeople for the project will inevitably talk about amenities and their proximity to new homes.

Jackie and Michael Bernard stayed put in their first house as the community around them blossomed

When self-professed inner-city people Jackie and Michael Bernard purchased their 1,100-square-foot bungalow as a starter home in 1992, they thought they would stay for a few years, build some equity and then move to a larger home closer to the core. At the time, their home in the Lynnwood Ridge district of Ogden was "really far away" from the action and bustle of the downtown, but over the years, shopping destinations and several other amenities have popped up within minutes of this secret gem of a neighbourhood. As a result, the couple decided to stay put, making their starter home their forever home.

Cranston's Riverstone "just felt right" for Ben and Heather Cox

Ben and Heather Cox fell in love with Calgary when they moved here from the southern United States for a work contract seven years ago. "We came right out of college and we thought we would only be here for three months," said Heather.

Quarry Park drawing big companies to its mixed-use community

While Calgary's downtown is home to some of the biggest companies in the world, Quarry Park in the southeast has become the new kid on the commercial block, and many of those same companies are deciding to call it home instead.

A gravel pit for 50 years, Quarry Park is emerging as one of Calgary's most up and coming "it" communities. In 2005 it began to form as a vision of Remington Development Corp. The mixed-use community includes homes, retail and commercial offerings.