[2][3] The building was designed through a collaboration between Sturgess Architecture and Manasc Isaac.

[4] It was built on a brownfield site owned by the city near the Calgary Stampede grounds, previously occupied by a furrier and a C-Train depot.

[4] The Calgary Water Centre is the first building in Alberta to be certified Gold by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system,[3] and is one of the first to be built under the City of Calgary's 2003 requirement for all new buildings to meet or exceed LEED's Silver rating.

[3] The building incorporates many sustainable design elements such as water conservation (including a green roof, rainwater harvesting, and zero-irrigation landscaping), natural lighting, and an innovative HVAC system.

[5] The building itself is 95% day lit, reduces waste water by 72%, reduces overall water usage by 59%, and achieves a 58% savings in annual energy consumption.