Dedicated to sustainable,
high performance building

Current Issue

SABMag 83 - Summer 2024

Institutional (Large) Award

UBC MACLEOD ENGINEERING BUILDING RENEWAL Vancouver, BC

Jury Comment:  “An incredible transformation of an existing building. While much of the upgrade is technically driven, elements such as solar shading have been used to reimagine its Modern identity. The transformation continues on the inside, with new daylighting and ventilation strategies opening up the spaces.” 

Read more …

Residential (Large) Award

FOXGLOVE SUPPORTIVE HOUSING AND SHELTER Surrey, BC

Jury Comment:  “This complex program of shelter, supportive housing and health services, so important to social sustainability, is appropriately contained in a simple form with a calming character. Material choice and detailing are thoughtful, with horizontal and vertical solar shading balancing the overall expression.”

Read more …

Technical Award

MINISTRY OF CHILDREN & FAMILY DEVELOPMENT Williams Lake, BC 

Jury Comment: “This project takes an underutilized, poor performing and discarded single-storey retail building and transforms it with a variety of technical interventions that make it net-zero, thus greatly extending its service life. Inside, the plain box has been enlivened with light, colour and cultural references.“

Read more …

Mixed Use Award

CHEKO’NIEN HOUSE  University of Victoria, BC

Jury Comment: “This project is notable for its richly mixed program; including student housing, academic areas and food services. Innovative and progressive, it makes a positive contribution to social life on the urban campus. Selective use of large windows and exposed wood in areas where people gather reinforce their connection to nature.”

Read more …

Residential (Small) Award

BIRD’S WING PASSIVHAUS DUPLEX +                              Vancouver, BC

Jury Comment: “In addition to achieving Passive House performance, this duplex addresses multiple aspects of social sustainability, such as affordability, demographic diversity and ageing in place. It doubles the density in  this former single-family zone, while still respecting the form and scale of the surrounding buildings.“

Read more …

Existing Building Upgrade Award

Little by Little Studios Winnipeg, MB

Jury Comment: “This adaptive reuse of a 1950s commercial building is notable for its creative and comprehensive approach.  Beyond the improvements in performance, the innovative repurposing of materials, such as tiles into countertops and existing studs into wood screens, make for a very elegant transformation.“

Read more …

Residential (Small) Award

HEIMAKLETTUR HOUSE Langley, BC

Jury Comment: “This small house is a great example of how doing more with less is key to sustainability. It is appropriately sited, well designed, well detailed, well crafted and thoughtful in its execution. It is notable for its modesty and simplicity, yet the interior has a generous sense of space and light.“

Read more …

Institutional (Small) Award

WINDERMERE FIRE        STATION 31                              Edmonton, AB

Jury Comment: “A fine example of a building in which the form is driven by its performance targets, the sustainability strategies required, and the technologies employed to implement them. The result is simple and elegant, a radical and refreshing departure from the traditional architectural responses to this typology.“

Read more …

Technical Award

GABION HOUSE                    Victoria, BC

Jury Comment: “An exemplar in its suburban context, this project is notable for its many technical innovations. The use of rocks from the site to form its character defining gabion wall is one example of its thoughtful and creative use of durable, low impact materials. Space planning emphasizes functionality and flexibility.“

Read more …