Built on Experience: Why Locals Trust ACS for Quality Canmore Construction

Canmore is a beautiful place to live – and a complicated place to build. Depending on where you build, you might encounter sensitive environmental zones, unique permitting processes, and seasonal constraints.

Over the past decade, Ashton Construction Services (ACS) has worked with housing developers, restaurant owners, nonprofits, and healthcare providers to deliver builds that meet timelines and budgets while navigating the realities of mountain construction.

Read on to find out what we’ve learned, and how that expertise and experience keeps our Bow Valley builds running like clockwork. (Spoiler: Knowing how to work with the land, the towns, and the people who live there has a lot to do with it).

733 Main Street, Canmore
Photo: Eva Urbanska

1. Tap Into Local Know-How

From structural surprises to wildlife corridor delays, every Bow Valley construction site comes with its own challenges. That kind of complexity makes it essential to work with a construction management company that’s already familiar with the terrain, the trades, and the timing.

For Canmore Community Housing, that familiarity was one of the deciding factors in hiring ACS to manage its Ptarmigan Pointe affordable housing project. “ACS understood the timeline on this project and knew the subsurface conditions, because they’re building homes literally next door and across the street,” says Kristopher Mathieu, Executive Director of Canmore Community Housing. “They’ve been great about being open about who’s involved, and who’s doing what. They’re also proactive—and I quite like working with people like that.”

That kind of local presence doesn’t just help on-site. It can also lead to smoother permit applications, better relationships with inspectors, and faster responses when conditions change.

Town of Canmore commercial projects building permits issued in 2024
(source: Town of Canmore)

2. Start Strong and Plan Early

In Canmore’s tight building season, pre-construction is critical to good risk management. Developers who prioritize early-stage budgeting, trade planning, and site coordination tend to encounter fewer surprises once construction begins. The result? Their projects are more likely to stay on schedule and on budget.

At The Slopes at Stewart Creek, ACS worked closely with Devonian Properties to manage a 40-unit residential build. For Devonian, having a collaborative local partner to share early insights, help develop a realistic budget, and source trades was a major asset.

Devonian brought extensive development experience to the table, but as the company’s previous Vice President says, “Someone whose specialty is construction can bring a valuable perspective to the table. We’re in a rising cost market, so pre-development and budgeting are the most important roles of a construction manager.”

Pre-construction planning can make a difference in everything from material choices to delivery schedules. For Devonian, it meant the company was able to honour the committed possession date for all 40 units at the Slopes.

The Slopes at Stewart Creek, Canmore

3. Stay in Touch

When construction overlaps with business operations – or when timing is non-negotiable – communication becomes almost as important as craftsmanship. That was the case at Banff Sport Medicine, where ACS had to navigate unpredictable delays without disrupting clinic operations.

“ACS was able to jump in quickly to resolve the issue for us in a way that didn’t impact the budget, minimized our stress, and achieved the desired results – all thanks to strong communication, and a culture of accountability,” says Sara-Jane Klinker, the Clinic Manager at Banff Sport Medicine. “They also found a way to work around our business schedule to finish up, which allowed us to open on time despite the trade delay.”

The ability to adapt and keep clients informed – without compromising workflow – is something ACS clients mention frequently. A successful commercial construction project requires more than a finished build. It also requires communication and sensitivity to client needs.

Banff Sport Medicine, Shops of Canmore
Photo: Eva Urbanska

4. Expect the Unexpected

Like Banff Sport Medicine, many commercial construction projects happen in live environments: open businesses, working kitchens, and operating production floors. In those cases, responsiveness and flexibility can make or break a build.

When Fergus & Bix decided to open a new restaurant and beer market in Canmore, the company needed a flexible construction partner that could produce a high-quality initial build and fit them in whenever urgent restaurant repairs were required.

“I had a good team in Calgary, but I thought it was important to establish relationships with trades in Canmore,” says Scott Shipley, President at Fergus & Bix. “Restaurants need a lot of repairs, so working with locals makes more sense than having people run out from Calgary all the time.”

Fergus & Bix also avoided hiring a large construction company because the company didn’t want the bureaucratic delays and complexities that tend to come with them. “I don’t work with large construction companies, because they tend to be less flexible,” Shipley says. “Everything has to go through head office to be signed off on, and you end up incurring a lot of additional costs for change orders.”

Fergus & Bix, Downtown Canmore
Photographer: Eva Urbanska

5. Ensure Budget Transparency

This is a frequent concern for business owners – especially those managing build while actively operating a business. Clear communication around costs, options, and constraints can improve the entire client experience.

When Dean Smolicz, Founder of Eclipse Coffee Roasters, was looking for a construction partner, it was ACS’s budget clarity and organization that stood out. “ACS is enjoyable to work with,” says Smolicz. “They’re very open, very honest, and they give you all the information you need up-front. They also helped us figure out where we could save money.”

In that case, ACS helped Eclipse mitigate an unexpected code issue by:

• Reporting it immediately
• Strategically navigating the supply chain in order to find alternative materials to bring down the cost without compromising quality
• Finishing the project on time, despite the unexpected challenge

Eclipse Coffee Roasters, Canmore
Photo: Eva Urbanska

6. Look for Consistency

When seeking a construction management partner, look for a company with plenty of repeat clients. When business owners bring back the same construction manager for multiple projects, it’s often because they appreciated the company’s processes, follow-through, and sense of shared accountability.

That’s why Wild Life Distillery brought Ashton Construction Services back to help them build a larger production space, just a few years after ACS helped the company build its original location.

“We trust ACS, and we knew they’d have the jets to get the project done,” says Keith Robinson, Co-Founder at Wild Life Distillery. “We didn’t think of anyone else to work with on this project. Throughout each phase… ACS’ work was high quality. Their attention to detail, level of service, and commitment to our project was outstanding. The job was well planned and executed, and came to completion on time and under budget.”

Robinson says that knowing they could trust ACS to manage subcontractor quotes and coordinate site activity gave the Wild Life team the peace of mind they needed to focus on running the business while the work was underway.

Wilf Life Distillery, Canmore
Photo: Eva Urbanska 

7. Look for Reliability

After Rocky Mountain Soap Company hired ACS to manage the build of its Canmore office and factory, the company decided to hire ACS again, for the renovation of their retail store in Banff.

The company appreciated being able to hand-off the stress of commercial construction to a team it could trust. ACS’s ability to schedule night crews and manage logistics meant the Banff location was renovated without any business interruption.

“I advocated hard to get ACS involved because I knew they could take care of everything from getting the permits, to coordinating with the engineers, to creating the budgets, to completing the build,” says Cam Baty, Co-Founder of Rocky Mountain Soap Company. “They’ll just hand over the keys at the end. Not many companies in the Bow Valley can take it from start to finish, and that takes a load off when you don’t have a lot of internal resources for those things.”

When the Banff reno went off without a hitch, Rocky Mountain partnered with ACS for two additional projects, including the major renovation of their flagship store in Canmore.

Rocky Mountain Soap Co., Canmore
Photo: Eva Urbanska

Blog article written by: Scribe National

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