It truly is Canada's fountain of youth.
A roaring economy has made Calgary a beacon for young people seeking their fortune. Hundreds stream into the booming Alberta metropolis every week.
The influx has pushed Calgary's population past the one-million mark and has given the Stampede city a new claim to fame -- welcome to Canada's youngest city.
According to the latest census figures released Tuesday by Statistics Canada, the median age of a Calgary resident in 2006 was 35.7 years, compared with the national average of almost 40.
While the first of Canada's aging baby boom generation verged on retirement and one in every seven Canadians became a senior citizen, Calgary's proportion of people 65 and older was significantly below the national average. In fact, it now has the lowest proportion of seniors in the country.
Calgary is also out of step with another national trend -- a diminishing proportion of Canadian children aged 14 and under. Calgary's young families provided the country's second fastest rate of growth in that age group at 18.4 per cent, while nationally children accounted for 17.7 per cent of the population in 2006, their lowest share ever in Canada.
Overall, the city recorded a whopping 13.4 per cent population increase in a single census period and not surprisingly has inherited the growing pains -- crowded schools and children's programs, traffic snarls and skyrocketing house prices.
Rosaleen Donohoe, 60, worries it all adds up to a fountain of trouble for Calgary's young families.
"It's ridiculous. It's unbelievable. I don't know how the young people will cope,'' she said. "There are a lot more children on the streets now. There's no hope. There's nowhere for them to go.''
Donohoe was enjoying the bright summer sunshine along with her daughter Alana, 32, as they watched two-year-old Kamen splashing in a wading pool teeming with dozens of other delighted children at Calgary's downtown Eau Claire Market.
"My son will be in school three years from now, and in that time that's a lot more people to accommodate,'' said Alana Donohoe. "Yes, I'm worried about the future.''
"It's OK (for facilities) downtown, but if you go to the outer areas, the suburbs, there's nothing for the kids.''
Calgary's baby boom has maternity wards bursting at the seams. The number of births in the city jumped 21 per cent to 15,721 in 2006 from just over 13,000 in 2002.
"Calgary's very unique. We are certainly experiencing a baby boom and we don't anticipate it will decrease in the next three years,'' said Laurie Blahitka, director of women's health for the Calgary Health Region.
"It's a very young city, and a lot of young families transferred here from other provinces because of job opportunities.''
Every day, another 186 people, many of child-bearing age, move into Calgary. A six per cent annual increase in births has meant the three acute-care hospitals providing maternity service are filled to capacity at any given time. A fourth hospital is under construction but won't be ready for several years.
In the meantime, the health region is providing more home-care services to get new mothers out of the hospital more quickly. During the busiest months of May, June and July, they have to transfer some patients to rural hospitals in the region. When it comes to women giving birth in Calgary, there hardly seems to be a slow period anymore.
"It always seems to be busy now,'' Blahitka said with a sigh. "We always seem to be full.''
Calgary schools are also feeling the pressure. Several new schools are planned, and enrolment is high. Even if parents can find space for their children in the school of their choice, there's no guarantee a bus will be available to get them there.
Bernard Guite, 34, moved to Calgary six months ago after living in nearby Canmore for the last 11 years.
"It's a little bit of a challenge when it comes to transport to get our kids to school,'' Guite said. "We have to drive them in every morning and pick them up at night,'' said Guite, who was rollerblading at a city park with daughters Andrea, 4, and Nyla, 8, and son Michael, 7.
"The price of housing right now is difficult and traffic is definitely a hassle especially downtown with all the construction,'' added Guite, who is originally from Beloeil, Que.
Home ownership is rapidly becoming an unattainable dream for many in Calgary. The average bungalow in the city now sells for more than $450,000.
Ingrid Middleton, 39, moved to Calgary from Regina 15 years ago. She had hoped to eventually buy a home but realizes that may not be possible now.
"There are too many people and outrageous prices for housing -- even rentals,'' Middleton said as her five-year-old daughter Isabella played nearby. "People can't afford it,''
The hardships hit both ends of the age spectrum. There are 101,225 people over the age of 65 in Calgary and its suburbs, and many are struggling as the city tries to accommodate its newest residents.
"Housing and health care -- if you have money, it's not bad at all; if you don't, it's terribly hard,'' acknowledged Patricia Allan, executive director of the Kerby Centre, a multi-purpose social service, recreational and educational facility for seniors.
"People who are being cast out because they can't pay the rental increases that are coming up. We have only a very limited amount of public housing for seniors.''
Statistics Canada says these trends will persist. By 2022, the agency predicts that seniors will outnumber children in every province.
