Following the addition of a new phase, a master-planned northeast Calgary community set the pace in demand for new home construction last month.

Builders in Cornerstone, located just east of SkyView Ranch, accounted for the most residential building permit applications of any community in Calgary in May, says the city’s planning and development department.

Cornerstone by Anthem United and Walton Development and Management ended May having submitted 64 applications for residential building permits, all for single-family homes, says the city. This tally not only topped all communities in the single-family segment, but eclipsed those where multi-family permit applications were filed, as well.

The release of a new phase brought on earlier this year was “the biggest reason for the spike in traffic last month,” says Megan Starke, Anthem United’s marketing manager. While dubbed Phase 2, the above-mentioned release marks the community’s third phase of residential development.

“May was a busy month,” says Dwayne Habib, area sales manager for Jayman Built in Cornerstone, who’s selling laned single-family homes from the $350,000s. “The demand is high in the neighbourhood, for sure. We had good sales all year, but it did ramp (up) starting in April, then into May, and June, as well.

“The busy time is usually a few months before that, but it went a little later this year due to the longer winter. But we are seeing steady traffic and people interested in buying and moving.”

Habib also points to the benefit of having permits for Cornerstone’s new phase as a factor in the uptick. “There’s also continued awareness after another year of people moving in,” he adds. “We had a lot of people move in last year and those people tell their friends.”

Along with Jayman, the builder group in Cornerstone includes Morrison Homes, Pacesetter by Sterling Homes, Shane Homes, and Truman Homes.

Cornerstone is planned to include a major activity centre, two future LRT transit plazas, a future regional park, a combined 38 hectares (95 acres) earmarked for park and school spaces, and 14 kilometres of regional pathways.

The next most active areas for residential permit applications last month were southeast Calgary’s Mahogany and Saddle Ridge, which is in the northeast, with 29 building permit applications apiece, says the city of Calgary.

Master-planned by Hopewell Residential, the lake community of Mahogany has the year-to-date lead in residential building permit applications. Saddle Ridge, an established end of northeast Calgary, has two new master-planned communities developing within in it: Savanna in Saddle Ridge by Genstar Development Co., and Saddlestone by Genesis Land.

The other communities with 20 or more building permit applications last month include Evanston by Qualico Communities with 26, Legacy by WestCreek Developments with 23, and Carrington with 20. Carrington is a new area in northwest Calgary with separate master-planned communities by Mattamy Homes and Genstar.

Legacy, located in southeast Calgary, led all communities in applications for permits to build multi-family development last month with four.

This article originally appeared on Calgary Herald.