Calgary will get an economic boost when the G7 Summit draws a crowd, and with the world watching, the city outlined the security measures being installed beside the welcome mat. 

On June 9, relevant industry representatives joined Mayor Jyoti Gondek at the Historic City Hall to discuss rolling out the “blue carpet” for delegates coming to the Blue Sky City between June 15 and 17. 

The conference will be happening in Kananaskis Country, but with Calgary being the closest urban area, Mayor Gondek said that the event will be an opportunity to showcase what the city has to offer on a global scale. 

“It’s important that our country’s leader and the world understand that Calgary is not only the economic engine of Canada,” she said.

“But a global hub for safe, secure, and responsible energy.”

President of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, Deborah Yedlin, named technological and agricultural innovation as key contributions coming straight from Calgary. During the conference, however, she said the city will pause giving and relish earning an anticipated sum of $190 million locally and $240 million provincially. 

“That impact felt across hotels, restaurants, retailers, security, event management — you name it,” said Yedlin. 

“This means real, immediate opportunities for small and local businesses, and short-term job creation for all Calgarians.”

Hoping for a boom, preparing for a bust

Government officials, international organizations, and members of the media are estimated to result in an influx of 4,000 people passing through Calgary in the upcoming weeks. 

President and CEO of the Calgary Airport Authority, Chris Dinsdale, said that apart from increased noise, security presence, and road closures happening around the airport, travel will be business as usual.

“The airport is open and operating throughout the Summit, and there’s no need to alter or rethink travel plans,” he said. 

As of the first week of June, Mayor Gondek said that 10,000 hotel bookings have been made in direct relation to the conference. 

“Our hospitality workers and tourism operators will have a lot to be smiling about,” she said. 

Indeed, the CEO of Tourism Calgary, Alisha Reynolds, said that between the Stampede and the Rotary International convention, expected to boost the city’s economy with another $81 million, the 2025 tourism season will be record-breaking, all starting with the G7 Summit. 

“Calgary sees this as more of an opportunity than a fly-in transition,” she said. 

“We have an opportunity to share our hospitality and create a memorable experience that will encourage them to return in the future.”

But with every positive comes a negative, and Gondek said the city is planning for the worst amid the city’s population temporarily surging, including eliminating the traditional White Hatting of delegates and ensuring a safer downtown.

Reshaping the White Hat ceremony

Since the 1950s, receiving a Smithbilt White Hat — a felt cowboy hat with a red ribbon lining the diameter — has been internationally recognized as a symbol identifying honourable visitors of Calgary. 

Delegates of the G8 Summit received their hat following the inaugural Kananaskis conference in 2002. However, Mayor Gondek cited safety concerns when announcing that the ceremony would not be a ceremony at all for the 2025 conference. 

“This is a tradition that we hold very close to our hearts, and it’s a way of sharing Calgary’s Western hospitality and Stampede spirit with the world,” she said.

“But we also need to respect that security considerations today are very different than when we last hosted the summit.”

Instead, Gondek said that every dignitary, including Prime Minister Mark Carney, will receive their White Hat informally alongside other gifts representing the city. 

Acknowledging the confusing international trade climate and how this has changed the relationship that Canada and the United States share, she said that President Donald Trump will be one of the many receiving a White Hat.

“It’s our job as the host city to ensure that we are doing everything we can to be welcoming to the dignitaries that are coming here,” said Gondek. 

“It’s really important to practice diplomacy, and so all delegates will be treated equally.”

Downtown designated demonstration zones

On May 27, the acting superintendent of the Calgary Police Service (CPS), Sheldon Scott, announced that three designated demonstration zones (DDZs) will be taped off. One will be near the airport and two will be along Macleod Trail in Calgary’s downtown, he said that the sites are intended to give people a safe place to express their political concerns. 

According to a statement by the CPS, they and the Integrated Safety and Security Group held an invite-only information session to inform all relevant community associations and Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) about the potential impact of the DDZs on Apr. 29. 

Additionally, in May, CPS said that businesses and residences adjacent to the DDZs were informed of the protest placements via letters, social media posts, and sessions hosted at the Calgary Public Library, which were available to anyone online. 

David Low is the executive director of the Victoria Park BIA, which sits directly beside the Enoch Park DDZ on Macleod Trail. He found out about the DDZ during a stakeholder meeting at the beginning of May and said that the announcement took him back to the protests that happened during pandemic restrictions. 

“They got up to all kinds of different things,” said Low. 

“Hopefully, things don’t get too disruptive.”

He said that CCTV cameras have been installed around the perimeter of Enoch Park and that this will provide him and CPS with ample tools to strategize de-escalating situations if necessary. 

“We’re going to have the ability to real-time monitor the situation, and then basically be on standby,” said Low. 

Executive director of the Downtown Calgary Association, Mark Garner, said that he has kept in close contact with members through direct emails. He confirmed that conflict mitigation plans for the DDZs are a work in progress, but that local businesses feel confident about expectations. 

“Specifically to the protest locations…our members have not really projected any major concerns,” he said.