# ABLS Construction

> ABLS Construction is a residential builder in Calgary, Alberta. It designs, permits and builds detached garages, legal basement suites, basement developments and garage suites, with the drawings, the City of Calgary permits and the construction under one contract.

This file summarizes https://abls.ca for AI assistants. The pages it links explain how each type of build works in Calgary: what it starts at, which permits the City requires, what is built as standard and how a project runs. The complete text of every page, with every FAQ and its City of Calgary source, is at https://abls.ca/llms-full.txt.

## Key facts

- Starting prices (CAD): detached garages $24,000 · basement developments $32,000 · legal basement suites $49,000 · garage suites $250,000. The price of a specific build is a written quote, itemized line by line, after a site visit.
- Drawings and City permit fees are included in the contract price.
- Offer: A Lennox ML14XC1 central air conditioner, supplied and installed while our trades are already in the house. Available on basement development contracts. $4,999 + GST, installed, with a basement development.
- Service area: Calgary, Airdrie, Okotoks, Chestermere. Calgary communities include Auburn Bay, Mahogany, Rangeview, Seton, Silverado, Heartwood, New Brighton, McKenzie.
- Contact: phone, text or WhatsApp (403) 667-9800 · email info@abls.ca · WeChat wxabls (Chinese-language service) · Mon to Fri, 9am to 10pm · [contact page](https://abls.ca/contact)
- Google rating: 5.0 from 8 reviews ([Google profile](https://www.google.com/maps/place/ABLS+Construction/@51.0276233,-114.087835,10z/data=!4m6!3m5!1s0x803b967fe0b919e1:0xdffad83eaf9865dc)).
- BBB accredited business ([BBB profile](https://www.bbb.org/ca/ab/calgary/profile/general-contractor/abls-construction-0017-271229)).

## Services

- [Detached garages](https://abls.ca/garages): What comes standard on every ABLS garage, what each upgrade changes, when each decision locks, and the City of Calgary's garage permit rules. Garages start at $24,000.
- [Legal basement suites](https://abls.ca/basements/legal-suites): What the City of Calgary checks before a secondary suite is legal, the ABLS finish spec, and the path through permits and inspections to the City's suite registry. Legal suites start at $49,000.
- [Basement development](https://abls.ca/basements/development): Finishing a basement for the family: the standard spec, wet bars, media walls, and the permit and egress-window rules. Basement developments start at $32,000.
- [Garage suites](https://abls.ca/garage-suites): A three-bedroom suite over a two-car garage drawn to NBC 2023 (Alberta edition): plans, wall and floor assemblies, and Calgary's backyard suite permit and parking rules. Garage suites start at $250,000.
- [Garage interiors](https://abls.ca/garage-interiors): Cabinets, slatwall, counters and floors as design packages, from Cabinets by Hayley (made in Calgary) and NewAge Products, installed by ABLS.
- [Basements overview](https://abls.ca/basements): Legal suite or basement development: how to choose between the two basement builds.
- [Finished builds](https://abls.ca/builds): Photos, measured floor plans and 3D tours of completed ABLS builds.

## Common questions

- Q: How much does a detached garage cost? A: ABLS garages start at $24,000. Size, foundation and finish move the number more than anything else: a bare single-bay shell and a heated, finished double with a custom exterior are different projects. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/garages)
- Q: Do I need a permit to build a detached garage in Calgary? A: Yes. The City of Calgary requires a building permit for any detached garage larger than 10 m² (107 sq ft), and a separate electrical permit for the lights, outlets and door opener on every new garage. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/garages)
- Q: When does a garage need a development permit? A: When it goes past the City's limits for an accessory building: taller than 4.6 m (15 ft) to the peak or 3.0 m to the underside of the eave, larger than 75 m² (807 sq ft), bigger than the house, closer than 1.0 m to the house, or needing a relaxation of a setback. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/garages)
- Q: What does a legal suite cost? A: Legal basement suites start at $49,000. The number moves with the size of the basement, what exists down there today, and the finish level. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/basements/legal-suites)
- Q: What permits does a legal basement suite need in Calgary? A: A building permit, a separate electrical permit, and a plumbing permit for the new plumbing, plus a gas permit where gas work is involved. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/basements/legal-suites)
- Q: What does the City check before a suite is legal? A: A smoke-tight separation from the main home (1/2 inch drywall on the ceiling and both sides of the separating walls, with solid-core, self-closing doors), smoke and CO alarms interconnected between both homes, a bedroom egress window, 1.95 m ceilings, sound separation of at least STC 43, heating and ventilation of its own, and an exit that leads directly outside. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/basements/legal-suites)
- Q: Is the Secondary Suite Incentive Program still open? A: Only as a waitlist. Since June 24, 2026, new applications go on a waitlist with no guarantee of funding. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/basements/legal-suites)
- Q: What does a basement development cost? A: Basement developments start at $32,000. The price moves with the size of the basement, what is down there today, and the features you add, such as a wet bar or a media wall. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/basements/development)
- Q: Do I need a permit to finish my basement? A: Yes. The City of Calgary requires a building permit when a basement is developed for the first time, when walls are moved or when new openings are cut, even without a suite. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/basements/development)
- Q: What does a garage suite cost? A: Garage suites start at $250,000. Where yours lands depends on the lot, the size of the suite and the finishes you choose. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/garage-suites)
- Q: What permits does a garage suite need in Calgary? A: A development permit first, then the building permit and the trade permits. The City requires a development permit for every backyard suite: it is a permitted use only in the R-G district and discretionary everywhere else. [Full answer](https://abls.ca/garage-suites)

## Garage catalog

- [Sizes & layouts](https://abls.ca/garages/sizes): Standard footprints run 20×20 to 24×24, in 2-foot steps of width and depth.
- [Foundations & pads](https://abls.ca/garages/foundations): Every garage sits on a steel-reinforced concrete pad, and the pad is the one part you cannot upgrade later.
- [Doors & openers](https://abls.ca/garages/doors): Overhead door sizes, panel styles, colours, glass and openers, plus the man door.
- [Heat & insulation](https://abls.ca/garages/heating): An unheated shell is the standard build.
- [Floor coatings](https://abls.ca/garages/flooring): The standard finish is smooth trowelled concrete, clean, flat, done.
- [Siding, roof & trim](https://abls.ca/garages/exterior): The exterior is what the street sees and what the weather works on.
- [Electrical & shop](https://abls.ca/garages/shop): Standard electrical covers lights and a few outlets.

## How a project runs

1. Site visit: We measure, look at access and grade, and tell you what your lot actually allows.
2. Design consultation: An hour on the choices that shape the build: size, layout, doors, heat, finishes.
3. Drawings and permit: We draw it, submit to the City, and answer whatever comes back.
4. Site preparation: Demolition, excavation or framing out, depending on what is already there.
5. Build: Trades come in the order the inspections need them, not the order that suits us.
6. Inspection and handover: Final inspections, a deficiency walk with you, and the paperwork for insurance or a tenant.

## Finished builds

- [1-bed legal suite · 520 sq ft](https://abls.ca/builds/legal-basement-suite-nw-calgary): Legal basement suite, Northwest Calgary, September 2026.
- [24 × 24 double garage · heated and drywalled](https://abls.ca/builds/detached-garage-braeside-sw-calgary): Detached double garage, Braeside, southwest Calgary, July 2026.
- [Double garage · heated, drywalled, 9 ft ceiling](https://abls.ca/builds/detached-garage-maple-ridge-se-calgary): Detached double garage, Maple Ridge, southeast Calgary, July 2026.
- [26 × 22 double garage · offset 16 × 8 door, sub panel](https://abls.ca/builds/detached-garage-evergreen-sw-calgary): Detached double garage, Evergreen, southwest Calgary, June 2026.
- [20 × 22 double garage · 9 ft ceiling, 16 × 8 door](https://abls.ca/builds/detached-garage-legacy-se-calgary): Detached double garage, Legacy, southeast Calgary, July 2026.

## Optional

- [Full site text](https://abls.ca/llms-full.txt): every page, every FAQ with its sources, in one file
- [Cabinets by Hayley](https://abls.ca/garage-interiors/custom-cabinets): Made-to-measure garage cabinets from Cabinets by Hayley, manufactured in Calgary, designed with you run by run and installed by ABLS.
- [NewAge Products](https://abls.ca/garage-interiors/modular-systems): NewAge Products cabinet sets, shelving, slatwall and flooring, the fast, budget-conscious way to a fitted garage, configured to your space and installed by ABLS.
- [Blackline garage interior](https://abls.ca/garage-interiors/looks/blackline): The workshop that means it
- [Timber garage interior](https://abls.ca/garage-interiors/looks/timber): Warm as the house it belongs to
- [North garage interior](https://abls.ca/garage-interiors/looks/north): Light, calm, nothing extra
- [Paddock garage interior](https://abls.ca/garage-interiors/looks/paddock): A floor worth parking on
- [关注 ABLS Construction 官方微信公众号](https://abls.ca/learn/abls-construction-wechat): 卡尔加里装修首选 ABLS Construction，专精合法地下室（Legal Secondary Suite）设计与建造，提供从政府审批到最终验收的一站式中文服务。
- [Terms, disclaimers and privacy](https://abls.ca/legal): what a quote commits to, how images on the site are made, privacy