Hazak Lunch & Learn: When Avenues Collide
Join us for our monthly Hazak Lunch & Learn, featuring guest speakers on a variety of engaging topics. Enjoy a delicious meal while expanding your knowledge and connecting with the community. Each session offers fresh insights and lively discussions. Don’t miss this enriching lunchtime experience! This February, we’ll be joined by Doug Coats.
Avenues are supposed to run neatly side by side—so why do some of Calgary’s intersect? Why is Tomkins Square a triangle? And why does your GPS insist you “turn onto Anderson Road South West East”?
At our February Hazak Lunch & Learn, Doug Coats will unravel the curious, confusing, and surprisingly fascinating stories behind Calgary’s road system. With a historian’s eye and a storyteller’s touch, Doug will take us on a journey through the city’s planning puzzles, oddities, and enduring urban myths. Come for the lunch, stay for the “aha!” moments—and you may never look at Calgary streets the same way again.
About the Speaker: Doug Coats
Doug Coats is a proud native Calgarian with a lifelong passion for the city’s history. He holds degrees in History and Education from the University of Calgary and spent 33 years teaching junior high social studies at Woodman School, where he delighted generations of students with his love of stories and learning.
After his first retirement, Doug launched a second career at Heritage Park, working full-time for nine years as a storyteller, program writer, and tour guide. Now happily retired again, Doug devotes his time to exploring Calgary history and indulging his love of model railroading—two hobbies that pair perfectly with a deep curiosity about how cities, and their streets, come to be.
