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Category: Building Profiles

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Cheko’nien House

Energy efficiency, resilience, and emission reductions on a grand scale

By Alex Minard

Cheko’nien (Čeqʷəŋín ʔéʔləŋ) House is the first of two buildings that together comprise the new Student Housing and Dining project at the University of Victoria (UVic) that embodies a transformative approach to student living and community engagement.

The unique design emphasizes social connectivity and sustainability. The first two storeys house a 600-seat dining hall, a multi-purpose room for 200, a servery, and a commercial kitchen, while above a 398-bedroom student residence offers modern living spaces tailored to promote student well-being and academic success.

The facility supports UVic in its commitment to energy efficiency, climate resilience, and GHG emission reductions, as outlined in the university’s Sustainability Action Plan. The project has achieved Step 4 of the BC Energy Code and LEED v4 Gold certification, and is on track for Passive House certification.

“Passive House allows us to meet a number of our objectives for sustainability and the student experience, and was the natural choice for the new Student Housing and Dining buildings,” says Mike Wilson, Director of Campus Planning and Sustainability.

Simultaneously addressing the need to preserve greenspace while meeting the growing demand for on campus student housing, the building has a compact footprint and much greater height than any other building on campus. Strategically positioned to catalyze the new Campus Greenway strategy, the building massing shelters the pedestrian realm from rain and shades its transparent ground floor from sun.

Achieving Passive House energy performance depends to a significant degree on passive design strategies. These include fixed sunshades and optimized fenestration to balance daylight, heating, and cooling. Complemented by energy-efficient HVAC and lighting systems and a high-performance building envelope, these strategies ensure optimal performance while minimizing energy inputs and carbon emissions.

From inside to outside, the exterior walls comprise: 16mm Gypsum board; 152mm metal studs; exterior gypsum sheathing;  vapour non-permeable self adhered sheet air/weather barrier; 203mm low density mineral wool with LKME clips @ 400mm o/c horizontally and 610mm o/c vertically; air gap and cladding.

Insulation, shading, and thermal bridge reduction all contribute to high energy efficiency, as do triple glazing and a tested airtightness of 0.22 ACH50—approximately one third of the Passive House limit. The resulting reduction in energy demand for heating and cooling means that  the building can be powered almost entirely by hydroelectricity from British Columbia’s clean energy grid. This considerably reduces the use of fossil fuels.

However, serving approximately 8,700 meals per day, the large commercial kitchen represents a significant amount of the energy demand for the building. Employing a robust energy reduction strategy, the kitchen is designed to be five to six times more energy efficient than conventionally equipped equivalents —reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% for the entire building.

In addition to the commercial kitchen, the 398 bedrooms mean the project has an inherently  high demand for domestic hot water (DHW)—roughly 27,750 L/day. A waste heat recovery system from the refrigeration system, kitchen exhaust, dishwashers, and shower drains, is used to pre-heat water. Captured heat from the kitchen also preheats supply air, resulting in an 82% reduction in heating demand.

Project Credits

  • Owner/Developer  University of Victoria
  • Architect  Perkins&Will
  • General Contractor  EllisDon-Kinetic, A Joint Venture
  • Civil and Electrical Engineer  WSP Canada
  • Mechanical Engineer  Introba
  • Structural Engineer  Fast+Epp
  • Landscape Architect  Hapa Collaborative
  • Commissioning Consultant  WSP Canada
  • Photos  Michael Elkan

The housing entrance is located on the new north-south greenway that connects the residential district. Cascadia Windows & Doors supplied the fixed and operable fibreglass windows from its Universal PH Series.

Interconnections among spaces create a vibrant and dynamic environment. A mixed-mode ventilation system using semi-centralized Swegon Gold RXF HRVs deliver excellent airflow to the student quarters, augmented by operable windows and regulated by exposed thermal mass.

The glazed aluminum curtainwalls, exterior sun control devices, and interior aluminum framed storefronts and doors by Phoenix Glass provide abundant natural light and a visual connection to the outside.

ALEX MINARD ARCHITECT AIBC, MRAIC, CPHD, LEED AP BD+C IS PRINCIPAL AT PERKINS&WILL, VANCOUVER.

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The Narrows

Experience hones understanding of details

By Scott Kennedy and Simon Richards

Located in the Hastings Sunrise neighbourhood of Vancouver, The Narrows is a six-storey mixed-use building with 48 residential rental suites in conventional wood frame construction over 225 sq. m of commercial uses in a concrete podium. It is located just one block east of The Heights, another mixed-use building which in 2018 became the first Passive House certified project to be completed by Cornerstone Architecture.  The Narrows has been recognized by the Province as a Clean BC Net-Zero Energy-Ready Challenge Winner.

Unlike The Heights, which is located on a corner, The Narrows has zero lot line setbacks on both the east and west sides, with its south façade on busy Hastings Street, and its north façade facing a commercial lane. From a Passive House perspective, the site is a challenging one, as the lane is almost two storeys higher than the street. As well as planning complexity, this creates issues around thermal bridging, the extent and detailing of the airtight envelope, and the transition between the parkade and the occupied portion of the building.

Additional massing complexity was generated by setback steps in the building section, in part responding to City zoning guidelines (of note, the City is recognizing this issue and is moving to allow simpler massing forms). The Narrows achieves a form factor of 0.47; higher than that for The Heights (which was 0.42) but still within the range that can meet Passive House energy standards. The zero lot line condition on the two sides necessitated an innovative solution to achieve the required levels of air tightness, insulation, minimized thermal bridging, as well as providing required fire ratings.

On the ground floor, which is at basement level relative to the lane, there are two retail units. The transition from the parking area includes a vestibule with doors at either end. The vestibule prevents the infiltration of carbon monoxide from the parking garage to the occupied spaces of the building. With the low air change rates required in Passive House buildings, ensuring the quality of incoming air is critical. 

Elevators connect a cold parkade to a warm building. At The Heights, the inside of the elevator shaft was lined with insulation; at The Narrows the outside of the shaft was insulated. Where the concrete podium extends beyond the upper floors, thermal bridging is again an issue.  At The Heights, the solution was to create a double slab with insulation between the layers; at The Narrows, the insulation was simply extended out beyond the building enclosure. Even with well-considered and conscientious detailing, it is impossible to eliminate thermal bridging entirely.  In large buildings, these deficiencies are manageable, as their impact can be minimal when considering the performance of the whole building.

The wall framing is generally conventional; the front and rear assembly comprises a 2×8 load-bearing external section with an internal 2×3 framed service layer – both with insulated cavities. The intelligent combined air/vapour barrier is installed in a protected position between the two. This membrane needs to be construction-sequenced around the outside of the floor perimeter for continuity.

Project Credits

  • Owner/Developer  Steiner Properties
  • Architect  Cornerstone Architecture
  • Project Manager  ADM Management
  • Construction Manager  Scott Construction Group
  • CP/Code Consultant  Camphora Engineering
  • Structural Engineer Weiler Smith Bowers
  • Mechanical/ Electrical Engineer  Smith + Andersen
  • Geotechnical Engineer  Terrane Group
  • Civil Engineer  Webster Engineering
  • Building Envelope Engineer 
  • Aqua-Coast Engineering
  • Interior Design  Port + Quarter
  • Landscape Architect  Forma Design td.
  • Photos Luke Han Architect AIBC

The zero lot line conditions on two sides required innovative solutions to achieve the required levels of air tightness, minimized thermal bridging, and fire ratings. Varsa Windows & Doors provided Passive-certified UPVC windows and doors for the project, contributing to the high energy-efficiency performance of the envelope.

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WINDERMERE FIRE STATION No.31

Canada’s first net-zero fire station features sweeping PV array

Windermere Fire Station No. 31 is located in southwest Edmonton in a rapidly expanding neighbourhood. The project is the City of Edmonton’s first net-zero building, achieved through a comprehensive passive design approach and a combination of solar arrays, geothermal heating and cooling.

he 1,520 sq.m facility has bays for three fire engines as well as offices, sleeping quarters and dining areas for a crew of up to 12 firefighters.  The post-disaster, non-combustible, sprinklered building will also act as a community centre in the event of an emergency. To underpin this role, it also has a dedicated room to support  the many community drives in which the department is involved.

Design Approach

As civic buildings, fire stations are highly functional and technical facilities, usually embedded in residential communities for citizen safety. At once practical and symbolic, contemporary fire stations serve a critical public service while conveying important civic values within a neighbourhood.

The design challenge was to create an expressive and engaging structure that would encourage community pride and incorporate technical advances in environmental performance.

The City of Edmonton requested a highly sustainable project that would generate on-site renewable energy equal to 100% of the total building energy demand. The facility must also have an energy performance that is 40% more efficient than NECB 2011, yield 40% less green house gas emissions than the baseline using NECB 2011, and operate at no more than 80 kilowatt-hours per square metre per year for heating needs.

The project site was unbuilt and unremarkable – essentially a blank slate. The station’s form was derived from a desire to underscore both the iconic image of a fire station as a community anchor, and a contemporary imperative for sustainable citizenship. A typical fire station might have been characterized by familiar signatures such as a pitched roof, large fire truck doors, a hose and bell tower, and solid and heavy load-bearing walls.

Windermere adheres to those principles, however, it re-imagines the hose and bell tower form – now redundant elements – with a gently curving, south-facing roof, outfitted with an extensive array of photovoltaic panels.

Other strategies to increase environmental performance include the building’s southern orientation which reduces energy demand by improving the quality of light received in the workplace. A geothermal heating and cooling system is also incorporated. The building is extremely well-insulated and includes high-performance windows and exterior doors.

Edited by SABMag editor Jim Taggart from material created by the project team.

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CENTENNIAL COLLEGE: A-BUILDING EXPANSION

LEED Gold, net-zero carbon, and WELL certifications signify huge commitment to sustainability

By Craig Applegath

Established in 1966, Centennial College of Applied Arts & Technology is the oldest publicly funded college in Ontario.  A-Building is situated on the Progress Campus in Scarborough, about 25km east of Downtown Toronto.

The city of Toronto is located on the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and is now home to many different First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. This contributes to the cultural diversity of Centennial College; whose faculty and students speak more than 80 different languages.

Context and Concept

Centennial College envisioned its A Building Expansion as a living embodiment of Chief R.

Stacey Laforme’s inspirational book Living in the Tall Grass: Poems of Reconciliation.  The design response to this challenge is a celebration of the Mi’kmaq concept of “Two-Eyed Seeing” which harmonizes Indigenous wisdom and Western perspectives. 

The A-Building Expansion, which houses the School of Engineering Technology and Applied Science programs completes the truncated corner of the site, forming a gateway into the campus. A new urban edge & landscaped area planted with biologically indigenous plant species enhances the public realm.

The prominent north & west facades act as a tool for storytelling, visually symbolizing the aspirations of the institution. Designed to embody the Indigenous concepts of the four-colour medicine wheel and the seven directions, the building also visually signals the coming together of Indigenous and Western aesthetics.

Program

The A Building Expansion sits lightly on the land, and is aligned with the four cardinal directions. The main entrance opens to the East, echoing the traditional approach of a longhouse. In this six storey structure, the lower three floors contain flexible and accessible classrooms, labs, informal learning spaces and food services; while the upper three floors contain flexible workspaces for Faculty and Staff specifically planned for collaboration and student engagement. The building also surrounds an exterior courtyard that serves as an outdoor classroom for teaching in the round. Designed for inclusivity, the facility also incorporates universal Washrooms, lactation rooms, and a multi-faith space to meet the needs of all occupants.

Structure, Form and Materials

The ground floor structure is cast-in-place concrete, above which are five storeys of glulam post and beam construction, with CLT floor panels with concrete topping. Much of the mass timber structure is left exposed.

The geometry of the exterior envelope is inspired by the underlying structure in indigenous arts and craft, animal skins and the shingling of traditional haudenosaunee longhouses.  The cladding combines parallelogram and trapezoidal shingled aluminum wall panels in combination with composite wood veneer wall panels, which wrap the building mass and administration floors at the upper levels.  The envelope of the classroom block complements and balances the architectural form, grounding the building through the west of the site. It is clad in large and elegant anthracite grey solid phenolic wall panels.

Large areas of triple glazed aluminum framed curtain wall reveal the underlying wood structure, exposing student, staff and faculty life while alluding to the drawing back of the skins over a traditional Haudenosaunee wigwam frame in response to seasonal temperature changes. 

Interior Design

Internally, the plan is organized along Wisdom Hall, a highly transparent, 4-storey diagonal atrium space for user engagement & study zones with a grand stair that ascends from the East entrance toward the West, lined with Indigenous stories

Entering the building from the East, students ascend the grand stair, animating the main spine of the building through a series of informal learning spaces designed to facilitate spontaneous conversation and the sharing of ideas.

Reaching the top at Level 3, the stair culminates at a large Student hub and café that showcase Indigenous food offerings, allowing students to experience Indigenous culture through its cuisine.

The main circulation corridor along Wisdom Hall features acoustic wood ceiling baffles that undulate to represent the flow of water, a key element that is richly woven through Indigenous stories, customs, and heritage. On each side of the baffles, commissioned artwork tells a Creation Story. Students may learn the story of the Anishinaabe as they walk West to class and the story of Haudenosaunee on their return towards the East.

The cladding combines parallelogram and trapezoidal shingled aluminum wall panels in combination with composite wood veneer wall panels. Tremco supplied all of the roofing products.

Project Performance

  • Energy intensity (building and process energy) = 106 KWhr/m²/year
  • ANNUAL ON-SITE RENEWABLE ENERGY EXPORTED = 69,000 kWh/year
  • ANNUAL NET ENERGY USE INTENSITY = 98 kWh/year
  • Energy savings relative to OBC SB-10 reference building = 40%
  • Annual Energy Cost (ECI) = $14/m²/year

Project Credits

  • Owner/Developer  Centennial College
  • Architect  DIALOG Architects and Smoke Architecture Project Manager  Colliers
  • Design/Build Contractor Ellis Don
  • Landscape Architect  Vertechs Design
  • Civil Engineer Walter Fedy
  • Mechanical & Electrical Engineer  Smith + Andersen
  • Structural Engineer  RJC Engineers
  • Photos  James Brittain

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Waterfront Innovation Centre

Transformative project targets LEED Platinum

By Peter Kurkjian and David Copeland

The Waterfront Innovation Centre (WIC) was born out of a competition by Waterfront Toronto in 2015 with the intention of transforming Toronto’s once derelict East Bayfront Precinct into an animated mixed-use community. WIC is a purpose-built commercial development that caters to Toronto’s growing technology and media sectors.

The project consists of two mid-rise buildings connected by a bridge, with a total area of 44,000 sq.m (475,000 sq. ft.). Passive design strategies include optimized natural daylighting, a high-performance curtain wall envelope, green roofs, landscaping with native plants, and excellent transit and bike path connectivity. Active systems include on-site energy generation with an array of solar panels, underfloor air distribution systems, connection to the Enwave deep water cooling district network, and rainwater harvesting. It has achieved LEED v4.1 Platinum certification (Core and Shell), one of Canada’s first developments to achieve this rating.

WIC features three distinct programmatic areas, the ‘Hive’, which is an adaptable, high-performance workplace with unobstructed planning flexibility. The ‘Exchange’, which features gathering areas, labs, and workspaces, and ‘The ‘Nexus’, which converges all three. The Nexus is a light-filled space for both the public and the buildings’ tenants.

Both of WIC’s ’ main entrances feature amphitheatre-styled seating that extends from ground level up to The Nexus. Spanning both buildings, the Nexus houses two expansive lounges with multi-use seating and tables, event space with high-tech meeting areas, 3 cafes, breakout areas and public washrooms.  By providing a distinctive, welcoming and easily accessible interior amenity, the Nexus becomes an extension of the public realm, and invites the public and building users to interact in a readily adaptable space. Retail spaces open out onto the adjacent park frontages and streets.

Externally, native species were used as they are more resilient, promote water conservation and stormwater management, as well as supporting greater biodiversity. A partial green roof filters rainwater and reduces the heat island effect.

Efficient floor plates optimize daylight, with over 90% of leasable space within 12m (40ft.) of the perimeter glazing. As a result, during 85% of annual working hours, artificial lighting is not required.  Photo-electric sensors along the perimeter take advantage of daylight harvesting, and high-performance glazing with a low Solar Heat Gain Coefficient assists in reducing thermal gains.

The Underfloor Air Distribution (UFAD) system has individual, user-controlled diffusers at floor level which circulate clean air from below. This provides comfort by eliminating thermal stratification and improves indoor air quality, with stale air rising above the occupied zone to be replaced by fresh air from below.

The UFAD system supplies low pressure, individual user-controlled ventilation at lower energy than conventional overhead systems. Coupled with a heat recovery system for all ventilation air, high efficiency boilers, and variable frequency drive pumps, WIC achieves a 49% reduction in winter heating and 23% reduction for summer cooling over baseline. The energy reduction is aided by site-generated renewable energy in the form of a 253-kW photovoltaic system located on the roof, supplying 5% of the building’s required energy. An integrated demand-response program allows the building to make operational adjustments before peak demand, reducing  stress on the Ontario electrical grid.

Trane equipment is used extensively in the ventilation system, in the chilled water and hot water systems, in the stormwater system, and in the underfloor air distribution system.

Project Performance

  • Energy Use Intensity (building and process energy) = 172.11KWhr/m²/year
  • Energy intensity reduction relative to reference building under ASHRAE 90.1 2013 = 10%
  • Water consumption from municipal sources = 4247.7 litres/occupant/year
  • Reduction in indoor water consumption relative to reference building under LEED = 42%
  • Reduction in outdoor water consumption
  • relative to reference building under LEED = 62%
  • Recycled material content by value = 20%
  • Regional materials (160km radius) by value = 20%
  • Construction waste diverted from landfill = 81%

Project Credits

  • Owner/Developer  Menkes Developments
  • Architect  Sweeny&Co Architects Inc
  • General Contractor  EllisDon
  • Landscape Architect  Janet Rosenburg Studio
  • Civil Engineer  Stantec
  • Electrical Engineer  Mulvey & Banani
  • Mechanical Engineer  The Mitchell Partnership
  • Structural Engineer  Stephenson Engineering
  • Interior Design (Landlord spaces)  Sweeny&Co Architects Inc
  • Commissioning Agent  JLL
  • LEED Consultant  Green Reason
  • Photos  Tom Arban, Paul Cassselman Photography

Peter Kurkjian, Senior Associate and David Copeland, Associate, both of Sweeny & Co, were project architect and project manager, respectively, on the design team for the project.

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THE WELLINGTON

THE WELLINGTON

Good design and high performance break stereotype of affordable housing

By Stephen Kopp

Located at the historic intersection of Union & Wellington streets in the heart of Saint John, The Wellington is a 6-storey mixed-use development, with ground floor commercial space and 5 upper floors containing a total of 47 affordable and market rate apartment units.

On a tight urban site, the building massing steps back in three volumes to reveal the neighbouring landmark Loyalist House, views of historic church towers on Germain Street, and the leafy maples of Queen Square in the distance. A quarried stone-clad podium level with a wood entrance wall, together with the striking glazing pattern above are aesthetic departures from the standard box that often characterizes low-cost development. In the city of Saint John 22.5% of people live in poverty.

There are many barriers to people breaking the cycle of poverty, at the heart of which is access to affordable housing. Affordable housing projects often look low-cost, resulting in residents being further ostracized by their communities. These realities reinforce acre Architects’ conviction that modern housing should encompass sustainability, affordability and accessibility, and at the same time counter the stereotype that affordability and good design are mutually exclusive.

DESIGN APPROACH

Designed to international Passive House standards, The Wellington is the first (soon to be) PH certified affordable housing project completed in Atlantic Canada.

The building employs the main tenets of Passive House design, and while not unique in its approach, the building exceeded performance expectations during its multiple testing periods. As such, it has set an important precedent for the Maritimes.

In keeping with Passive House standards, Acre Architects created an envelope with a balance of airtight design, high insulation value, and carefully considered window details.

Beyond the base wall assembly, which achieves a min. R-value of 55 for the roof and 37 for the walls, coordination with mechanical and electrical consultants was critical to minimize penetrations through the building envelope.

Internally, the heating and cooling system for the Wellington employs a highly efficient variable refrigerant flow (VRF) design that is able to deliver simultaneous heating and cooling year round. Each suite is equipped with a wall mounted evaporator unit that is integrated into the central VRF system.

The system is able to meet the heating targets even on the coldest days of the year. On exceptionally cold days, the building is equipped with electric baseboard heaters that supplement the heating load if required.

PROJECT CREDITS

  • OWNER/DEVELOPER Saint John Non-Profit Housing Inc.
  • ARCHITECT Acre Architects
  • GENERAL CONTRACTOR John Flood & Sons Construction
  • COMMISSIONING (PHIUS VERIFICATION) RDH Building Science
  • ENERGY MODELLING ZON Engineering
  • LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Brackish Landscape Studio
  • CIVIL ENGINEER Fundy Engineering & Consulting
  • ELECTRICAL/ MECHANICAL ENGINEER Fundy Engineering & Consulting
  • STRUCTURAL ENGINEER Blackwell Structural Engineers
  • FIRE PROTECTION RJ Bartlett Engineering Ltd.
  • PASSIVE HOUSE CONSULTANT Zon Engineering
  • PHOTOS Julien Parkinson

PROJECT PERFORMANCE

  • ENERGY INTENSITY REDUCTION RELATIVE TO REFERENCE BUILDING
  • (DESIGN CALCULATION UNDER 2015 NECB) = 57% 
  • ENERGY INTENSITY (HEATING AND COOLING) = 10.1 KWhr/m2/year
  • ENERGY INTENSITY (HEATING) = 6.8 KWh/m2/year
  • ENERGY INTENSITY (COOLING) = 3.2 KWh/m2/year

Gold window frame extrusion detail. High-performing windows and frames were sought, with the additional ambition of finding a thin, low-profile frame in contrast to the less elegant ‘chunky’ units often used. The window units were sealed during installation with Contega Tape from 475 High Performance Building Supply.

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BUILDING NX RETROFIT

A first for Passive House certification

By Holly Jordan

Building NX was constructed in 1989 as the main library for Humber College, also serving as the gateway to its North Campus. When the main library and entrance moved to the Learning Resource Commons, the five-storey concrete structure became an office area for faculty.

In 2015, Humber College launched its Integrated Energy Master Plan (IEMP) a long-term strategy designed to achieve 50% reductions in energy and water consumption and 30% reduction in carbon emissions across all its campuses by 2034. With major deficiencies in its base building systems and building envelope, including water leakage and air infiltration, a complete retrofit of Building NX was identified as a high priority.

Typical of 1980s design and construction, Building NX featured large sections of glass block and geometric articulation of the building form.

The extensive use of glass block reduced the thermal performance of the envelope; increased interior glare, and limited prime views to the campus courtyard. A large central skylight and a protruding entrance were vulnerable to water leakage and were also major sources of heat loss.

DESIGN APPROACH

Given these existing conditions, the design team identified the strategies necessary to achieve the desired performance goals:

  • • Replace windows and walls with high-performance assemblies
  • • Remove chamfers from building form to reduce surface area
  • • Improve roof insulation
  • • Remove and infill skylight to address thermal and water leakage
  • Internalize vestibule to minimize heat loss
  • Separate canopy from building, both structurally and thermally

Following the change of occupancy from library to office in 2015, staff quickly found that the building was drafty, and work stations experienced solar glare and uneven lighting. To address these issues, the new building envelope uses punched windows with vision glazing, lower heads, and sills raised to desk height. Larger glazed openings are used at entrances and in key common areas.

Overall, the window-to-wall ratio has been reduced from 44% to 14%, yet still provides daylight to workspaces. Additionally, the high-performance, triple-glazed units achieve a superior level of thermal comfort, introduce operable windows and re-establish the visual relationship between interior and exterior. To improve airflow, the HVAC system was upgraded to a dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS) with local heating and cooling and heat pumps for space conditioning.

PROJECT PERFORMANCE

  • TOTAL ENERGY INTENSITY (UPGRADED BUILDING) = 58.4 kWh/m2/year
  • BASE BUILDING = 64 kWh/m2/year
  • PROCESS ENERGY = 22kWh/m2/year
  • ONSITE RENEWABLE ENERGY GENERATION = 31 kWh PHOTOVOLTAIC ROOFTOP ARRAY
  • ENERGY REDUCTION COMPARED TO EXISTING BUILDING = 70%

PROJECT TEAM

  • ARCHITECT B+H Architects
  • OWNER/DEVELOPER Humber College
  • GENERAL CONTRACTOR Bird Construction
  • ELECTRICAL / MECHANICAL ENGINEER Morrison Hershfield
  • STRUCTURAL ENGINEER Morrison Hershfield
  • COMMISSIONING AGENT Morrison Hershfield
  • ENERGY MODEL RDH Building Science Inc
  • BUILDING ENVELOPE Morrison Hershfield
  • PHOTOS Double Space Photo

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MOSAÏQ COMMUNITY HOUSING

Urban infill delivers comfort and affordable living

By Marc Thivierge

The construction of the affordable housing complex known as “Mosaïq” is part of a much larger multiblock redevelopment set in the urban core of Ottawa’s Little Italy. The program called for a significant increase in density while designing to the stringent sustainability provisions of Passive House (PHIUS).

The initial concept of a single taller passive house building evolved into a three-building scheme which eased community acceptance and made for a more resolved urban experience.

However, the budget implications meant that the passive house component had to be contained to the taller building.

Nevertheless, the townhouses are integral to the project as they are tied into the overall energy system. Excess energy from the townhouses is used to heat the larger building, and their roof surfaces also account for a large proportion of the photovoltaic array.

Super-insulated airtight building envelopes reduce utility costs significantly for the low-income tenants. A partnership with Hydro Ottawa provides carbon neutral hydro-electric power in exchange for electricity generated by the building’s large rooftop PV array.

The site is part of a large urban parcel that was developed for social housing in the 1960s. After more than 50 years, those original townhomes had reached the end of their service life. This project is the first phase of a sustainable design vision that will provide higher density affordable housing while weaving into the existing urban fabric and enhancing community life. Site design included preserving some of the site’s existing trees, maintaining 35% of the site as landscaped open space with native plants, a children’s play area, and permeable surfaces to reduce stormwater runoff.

The integration of pedestrian paths with an array of amenity spaces and activity centres provides a platform for community building and health.

These include a gym, community garden, maker room, teaching kitchen, and multipurpose rooms. With easy access to nearby bike paths, cycling is encouraged as well with the provision of generous bike storage and maintenance facilities.

The building envelope consists of continuous insulation, the elimination of thermal bridges, highperformance triple-pane windows with U-values (IP) between 0.13 and 0.145, and air sealing of exterior components to 0.08 cfm50/ft.. Fresh air is provided through balanced ventilation with heat and moisture recovery.

The building was designed with window-to-wall ratios optimized by orientation and to achieve a radiation balance that allows winter solar gain to offset heating needs; and with window reveal depths, shading elements and glazing SHGC tuned to mitigate unwanted solar gains in the summer.

PROJECT INFO

  • SITE AREA 4,715 m2
  • BUILDING GROSS FLOOR AREA 8,903 m2
  • ENERGY INTENSITY 60.6 KWhr/m2/year [Includes base building and process energy]
  • REDUCTION IN ENERGY INTENSITY BASED ON NECB 2015 18%

PROJECT CREDITS

  • OWNER Ottawa Community Housing
  • ARCHITECT Hobin Architecture: Marc Thivierge, Doug Brooks, Gord Lorimer, Barry Hobin
  • STRUCTURAL ENGINEER WSP
  • CIVIL ENGINEER DSEL
  • ELECTRICAL AND MECHANICAL ENGINEER Goodkey Weedmark and Associates
  • LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT CSW Landscape Architects
  • PASSIVE HOUSE DESIGNER Prudence Ferreira
  • COMMISSIONING AGENT Geo-Energie Inc
  • GENERAL CONTRACTOR EllisDon
  • BUILDING ENVELOPE CONSULTANT AND ENERGY MODELLING Morrison Hershfield
  • INTERIOR DESIGN Grant-Henley Design
  • PHOTOS 1, 2, 4, 6: Gleb Gomberg; 3: Steve Clifford, 5: Arriv Properties

Detail of windows by INLINE Fiberglass at south facade. In the event of power outages, the highperformance building envelopes would allow residents to shelter comfortably in place indefinitely, with ventilation systems remaining operational via the emergency back-up generator.

View of a lounge area. The mechanical system harvests waste heat for reuse in the buildings. Continuous fresh air ventilation is provided by two Swegon Gold RX energy recovery ventilators with MERV 13 filtration.

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BIRD’S WING DUPLEX

Creative spatial design makes for flexible living

By Allison Holden Pope

Located in an established single-family neighbourhood on the west side of Vancouver, this project takes advantage of recent zoning changes to create an energy efficient duplex, with lock-off suites, combining thermal efficiency and spatial flexibility, within an architectural expression that is both minimalist and contextual.

The project goes beyond the basic concerns of Passive House certification for energy efficiency and indoor air quality to embrace broader community issues of affordability and aging in place.

In Vancouver, where land comes at a premium, splitting the cost of land and construction between two families, while also creating income generating rental suites, made the dream of building a custom Passive House a reality for our clients. We capitalized on the City of Vancouver’s floor area incentives, which encourage Passive House construction by compensating owners for the additional space occupied by the thick envelope assemblies. These incentives increased the permissible FSR by 18%; translating into an additional 33.4m2 of useable interior floor area. This was a game changer for our clients, allowing each unit to have an additional bedroom and bathroom.

The folding roof line, like the wing of a bird in flight, is a modern take on a traditional gabled profile. The footprint of the home is continuous from foundation to roof, and incorporates a single notch in plan to create architectural interest while keeping the thermal envelope simple.

Nestled into the space created by this step-in plan, the main floor unit has a large south-facing covered front porch, featuring a Tyndall stone clad landscape wall for privacy. Above, and wrapped in the protective wing-like roof, the upper unit has a south-facing balcony. These outdoor spaces create a flow from inside to out while having a level of privacy from the street.

The planning of the duplex was an exercise in spatial optimization, as with a creative three-dimensional puzzle of interlocking pieces. The suites bend and fold around each other to maximize efficiency and create evocative volumes within the strict zoning regulations.

PROJECT CREDITS

  • ARCHITECT  ONE SEED Architecture + Interiors
  • INTERIOR DESIGN
  • ONE SEED Architecture + Interiors
  • STRUCTURAL ENGINEER Timber Engineering
  • BUILDER Naikoon Contracting
  • CERTIFIED PASSIVE HOUSE DESIGNER  JRG Building Engineering
  • CERTIFIER CertiPHIers Cooperative
  • LANDSCAPE DESIGN Acre Horticulture
  • PHOTOS Janis Nicolay

The duplex interior connects to the exterior through strategically placed windows and doors for ample daylight and cross-ventilation. Proclima Solitex Mento Plus from 475 High Performance Building Supply performs the dual role of water-resistant barrier and air barrier.

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West 5 Office and Parking Structure

Ontario project demonstrates the possibilities of net zero in energy and carbon

By McMichael Ruth

The West 5 Office Building and parking structure is a Net-Zero energy and Net-Zero carbon project that forms an integral part of the West 5 development, Ontario’s first Net-Zero community.

The four-storey, 4180m² Class A office and commercial building and adjacent two-storey parking structure connect with surrounding existing buildings to create a self sufficient energy network. The building utilizes 876 solar panels mounted to the façade and roof, which generate more than 89 percent of the building’s required energy.

The remaining energy comes from the 1,116-panel solar canopy mounted above the 164-space parking structure.

Together, these panels generate 350 mWh of on-site electricity annually. The surplus energy from the solar canopy, which is more than 100 mWh, is fed directly back into the surrounding buildings, helping to offset their energy consumption.

The vertically mounted PV panels on the east, south and west façades of the office building maximize the amount of solar energy harvested, avoiding the snow build-up that compromises the performance of angled panels.

Panels are strategically placed between windows to preserve light and views to the outside and ensure a comfortable environment for building users. The roof-mounted equipment is also screened by carefully placed vertically mounted PV panels.

The parking structure is integrated into the sloping site and utilizes the existing grade change to provide access to both levels of the garage. The upper level supports the solar canopy which is designed without perimeter columns to create the illusion that the canopy is floating.

The use of bifacial solar modules permit natural light to pass through the panels, illuminating the garage below, while simultaneously capturing reflected light to produce solar power from the underside.

To reduce overall demand to the level where net-zero energy is achievable, the West 5 Office Building employs passive design strategies and high efficiency mechanical and electrical systems to maximize energy conservation.

LED fixtures are provided throughout for the base building, and have become the standard for tenant fit outs. The lighting system features occupancy sensing and dimming capabilities. The energy consumption for the lighting was modelled at 16.6 KWhr/m²/year.

For ventilation, the building features a dedicated outside air system, which distributes treated and filtered air to each tenant space directly. The 100 percent outside air is pretreated through a heat recovery enthalpy wheel to reduce annual energy demand. Energy is recovered from both sanitary exhaust and general exhaust to ensure maximum heat recovery.

The mechanical system is an air source Variable Refrigerant Flow system, which heats and cools the building through condensers located on the roof with distributed evaporators in the tenant spaces. The ambient air is the heat sink or the heat source throughout the year. Thermal comfort is enhanced by providing multiple control zones throughout each floor space and also within tenant areas.

The exterior is partly finished with Alcotex ACM cladding in a custom woodgrain finish and Mouse Grey installed by Ontario Panelization. 

The project is equipped with CityMulti Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) energy recovery ventilators by Mitsubishi Electric Sales Canada Ltd.

PROJECT PERFORMANCE

  • Energy intensity (building and process energy) = 92 KWhr/m2/year
  • Energy intensity reduction relative to reference building under ASHRAE 90.1 = 38 %
  • Water consumption from municipal sources = 4,051 litres/occupant/year
  • Reduction in water consumption relative to reference building under LEED = 55%
  • Construction waste diverted from landfill = 98%

PROJECT CREDITS

  • ARCHITECT  Tillmann Ruth Robinson Inc
  • OWNER/DEVELOPER  Sifton Properties Limited
  • GENERAL CONTRACTOR  D. Grant Construction Limited
  • LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT  Ron Koudys Landscape Architect
  • CIVIL ENGINEER  Stantec
  • ELECTRICAL/MECHANICAL ENGINEER  Smith + Andersen
  • STRUCTURAL ENGINEER  VanBoxmeer & Stranges
  • Alcotex Facade Installer  Ontario Panelization
  • PHOTOS Ginzel Photography

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