How We Calculate Community Metrics
Methodology and data sources for Calgary community profiles
Safety Percentile
Each community's safety percentile compares its crime rate to all other Calgary communities. A community with a 75% safety percentile has a lower crime rate than 75% of other communities.
Calculation
- Calculate crime rate per 1,000 residents for each community using 2024 crime incidents and Census 2021 population
- Rank all residential communities by crime rate (lowest to highest)
- Percentile = (rank / total communities) × 100
We use population-based rates rather than raw incident counts so communities of different sizes can be fairly compared. A high-population community naturally has more incidents than a small one, but may still be safer per capita.
Census Crosswalk
Statistics Canada releases Census data by Census Tracts (CTs), which don't align with Calgary's community boundaries. We use a geographic crosswalk to aggregate CT-level data to communities.
How It Works
- For each Calgary community boundary, identify overlapping Census Tracts
- Calculate the proportional overlap (e.g., 60% of CT 8250001 falls within Beltline)
- Weight Census values by these proportions when aggregating
- Sum weighted values to get community-level estimates
This method provides estimates, not exact counts. Communities that span multiple CTs or contain partial CT coverage have higher uncertainty.
Residential Communities
Community profiles only include residential communities (class_code = 1 in Calgary's community boundaries dataset). This excludes:
- Industrial areas
- Parks and recreation areas
- Residual/unassigned areas
- Areas with codes like 01B, 02C (non-residential subdivisions)
Data Sources
| Metric | Source | Update Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Crime Incidents | Calgary Police Service | Monthly |
| Population & Demographics | Statistics Canada Census 2021 | Every 5 years |
| Property Assessments | City of Calgary | Annual |
| 311 Service Requests | City of Calgary Open Data | Monthly |
| School Ratings | Fraser Institute | Annual |
| Transit Routes | Calgary Transit GTFS | Periodic |
| Community Boundaries | City of Calgary GIS | Periodic |
Limitations
- Census 2021 staleness: Population figures are from 2021. Fast-growing communities (e.g., Seton, Cornerstone) may have significantly larger current populations, which would lower their actual crime rates.
- Crosswalk precision: Census tract boundaries don't match community boundaries exactly. Edge communities have higher uncertainty.
- Crime reporting: Crime statistics reflect reported incidents only. Actual crime rates may differ.
- YoY comparison: Year-over-year changes require full-year data for both years. Some communities may show no YoY data if prior year is incomplete.