Airdrie was first established as a railway siding in 1889 during the construction of the Calgary and Edmonton Railway, named for Airdrie, Scotland. Only railway buildings existed until 1901 when the first farmhouse and barn was built, followed by a post office and store in that same year. Today, Airdrie is a bedroom community and industrial centre.
Geography
Recent annexation of land by Airdrie to the south, coupled with recent expansion of Calgary's city limits in July 2007, have placed the two cities' boundaries within only a few kilometres of each other.
Neighbourhoods
Airdrie is divided into four civic addressing quadrants. As of the 2012 census, the City of Airdrie recognized the following neighbourhoods, not including rural and annexation land.
The population of the City of Airdrie according to its 2019 municipal census is 70,564, a change of from its 2018 municipal census population of 68,091. In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the City of Airdrie recorded a population of 61,581 living in 21,661 of its 22,398 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2011 population of 43,271. With a land area of, it had a population density of in 2016. In the 2011 Census, the City of Airdrie had a population of 42,564 living in 15,024 of its 15,638 total dwellings, a change of 47.1% from its 2006 population of 28,927. With a land area of, it had a population density of in 2011. The 2011 census also indicated that Airdrie was ranked as the municipality with the eighth-highest population growth between 2006 and 2011. Following its 2011 annexation, Statistics Canada adjusted Airdrie's 2011 population by an additional 707 people to 43,271.
Religion
According to 2001 Statistics Canada Census, the religious breakdown of Airdrie's residents was as follows:
Protestant: 46.3%
Catholic: 22.7%
Other Christian: 3.9%
Other Non-Christian: 1.58%
Muslim:.018%
No religion: 24.2%
Arts and culture
Nose Creek Park hosts the annual Airdrie Festival of Lights during the Christmas season, usually lasting for the whole month of December. Other annual festivals include the Canada Day Parade and the Airdrie Pro Rodeo. Airdrie's primary cultural venues include the Nose Creek Valley Museum and the Bert Church Live Theatre.
Airdrie is the home of several sporting franchises. Major teams include the Knights of Airdrie, a senior men's lacrosse team that plays in the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League. As well they have a Jr. B level hockey Team, the Airdrie Thunder, that competes in the Heritage Junior B Hockey League, and Team Airdrie, a Jr. C level hockey team that competes in the Calgary Jr. C Hockey League. They are also home to the CFR Chemical Bisons, a AAA Midget hockey team, playing out of the AMHL. Airdrie is also the home of the Airdrie Irish a SR MENS Semi Pro Alberta Football League. The Irish were formed in 2015 and play all home games at Airdrie's Genesis Place in summer months. There is also a number of competitive junior and amateur sports with the largest being soccer, that call Airdrie home. Airdrie District Soccer Association has over 2000 children between the ages of 3 and 18 registered to its ever-growing program. With Airdrie being one of the fastest-growing cities in Canada, it is also home to eight competitive adult soccer teams playing within the Calgary Soccer Associations competition.
Infrastructure
Transportation
Airdrie is situated on the Queen Elizabeth II Highway, which links Calgary and Edmonton. Highway 567 provides access to Cochrane to the west and Irricana to the east. Airdrie is served by the Airdrie Airport, with the closest major airport being the Calgary International Airport. Airdrie launched the InterCity Express in the fall of 2010, connecting Airdrie and Calgary transit hubs by a two-way express bus service. Local bus service is provided by Airdrie Transit.
Education
provides public education in Airdrie, and operates 5 schools in the city:
Private schools in the city include Airdrie Koinonia Christian School. Airdrie has one fully francophone school, operated by the FrancoSud school board: École Francophone d’Airdrie
Media
Due to its proximity to Calgary, Airdrie receives radio and television broadcasts from the city. It at present has no local television broadcasters but has a radio station, Air 106.1 FM and an accompanying community internet portal, DiscoverAirdrie.com, . The city has two local newspapers, the Airdrie City View and the Airdrie Echo. A community newsletter, Here's the Scoop, is also published weekly and delivered door to door as part of a larger flyer package throughout the city. A quarterly magazine, AirdrieLIFE, is also available,
Shopping and services
Airdrie offers a full slate of resident services, with any services not available in the city being easily obtained nearby Calgary. The city is served by a number of strip-mall developments, including Tower Lane Mall and Yankee Valley Crossing. On the city's south end, the Sierra Springs area is seeing the ongoing development of big-box retail, including a Walmart Supercentre and London Drugs. The city's north end includes Real Canadian Superstore and Canadian Tire locations and other major grocery chains such as Sobeys, Canada Safeway and Calgary Co-op are also located in the city. Airdrie is located immediately north of the hamlet of Balzac, which is the location of the major regional shopping mall CrossIron Mills, which opened in 2009, and its neighbouring retail/business park development. In addition, north Calgary's numerous malls and retail areas are quickly accessible via Hwy. 2 and the extension of Calgary's Métis Trail into the Balzac/CrossIron Mills area.
