Situated on the Bow River, the Harry Hays Building was one of the finer government buildings in Canada. Spanning an entire city block, this eight-storey building is constructed of reinforced post-tensioned slabs, concrete beams, and columns. The floor area on each storey is reduced as one moves up the building, giving a modern sprawl feel.
The original design of the building included eight levels of office and retail space which totaled 520,000 ft². Harry Hays was elected mayor of Calgary in 1959 and The Harry Hays Building was the last federal government structure for which original works of art were commissioned.