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Tag: 2022 Green Building Awards Winner

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Gastown Child Care Centre

Vancouver, BC

Institutional (small) Award

Jury Comment: This simple and elegant project is an innovative response to the acute shortage of childcare spaces in a city experiencing rapid densification. It seems fitting that the expansive roof of an underused downtown parkade should be repurposed to serve the needs of urban families. 

The Gastown Child Care Centre is a creative response to an intriguing City of Vancouver initiative to develop child care centres on the roofs of under-utilized parkades located in the downtown core. This innovative solution features two 400m² prefabricated, 37-seat, Passive House and LEED Gold-certified child care facilities to serve the immediate needs of the local community.

The design solution focused on net-zero energy and low carbon fuel sources, as well as specifications that prioritized materials and products with Environmental Product Declarations, Healthy Building Declarations and transparent sourcing.

To optimize efficiency, economy, and repeatability, various elements of the two buildings, including the canopy, support plinth, enclosure, and outdoor play are virtually identical prefabricated components. A raised construction crane located in an alley between the two parkades allowed vehicles to pass below while prefabricated glulam structures, insulated wood cassettes, and outdoor play area components were lifted to the top of the parkades for assembly.

An elevated large-span steel platform allows surface rainwater to flow into the existing drainage system and the new structural loads are efficiently transferred to the parkade structure to avoid the need for costly seismic upgrades.

Oriented toward Burrard Inlet, with spectacular views of the North Shore Mountains, the rusty red-hued buildings, bright yellow storage sheds, bold and colourful outdoor play areas, and a multi-coloured tricycle court provide a variety of opportunities for imaginative play. An open-air bridge spans the alley between the parking structures, connecting the two child care buildings and making them one facility.

The north elevations of both child care buildings have triple-glazed windows and sliding doors by Cascadia Windows & Doors, offering large views, ample daylight and direct access to an outdoor play area, sheltered by a translucent glazed canopy.

Project Credits

  • Owner/Developer  City of Vancouver
  • Architect  Acton Ostry Architects Inc
  • General contractor  Heatherbrae Builders
  • Landscape Architect  Durante Kreuk
  • Electrical/mechanical engineer  The Integral Group
  • Structural engineer  Fast + Epp
  • Passive House Consultant  Ryder Architecture
  • Commissioning Agent  C.E.S. Engineering Ltd
  • Acoustic consultant  RWDI
  • LEED Consultant  Stantec LEED
  • Special Consultant  Environmental Solutions
  • Code Certified Professional  GHL Consultants
  • Photos  Michael Elkan Architectural Photography

Project Performance

  • Energy intensity (building and process energy) = 65.4 KWhr/m²/year
  • Energy intensity reduction relative to reference building under NECB 2011 = 68%
  • Water consumption from municipal sources = 4,357 litres/occupant/year
  • Reduction in water consumption relative to reference building under LEED = 26%
  • Construction waste diverted from landfill = 65%

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MEC Flagship Store

Vancouver, BC

Commercial-Industrial (large) Award

Jury Comment: As well as reflecting the client’s values in a refined and sophisticated way, this project also contributes positively to the public realm. Transparent facades, an elegant entrance canopy and a sidewalk level bioswale animate the street. The verdant living roof is visible from surrounding apartments.

This latest addition to the portfolio of Vancouver-based outdoor equipment retailer MEC uses architecture and interior design to embody the company’s ethos of environmental responsibility.

The store is located at the intersection of Second Avenue and Quebec Street, marking the southeast entrance to Vancouver’s Olympic village neighbourhood. Counter to the prevailing trend, the client and architect wanted to down-zone the site, so the store itself would be highly visible, rather than being integrated into the podium of a high-rise structure. The result is an elegant, eye-catching and transparent landmark as seen from street level, and a luxuriant living roof as seen from the surrounding high-rise apartments.

The building has three floors of exposed mass timber structure above grade, on top of a three-storey concrete parking garage. The building announces its environmental credentials with a cross laminated timber canopy running the full length of the entrance (south) elevation sheltering an extensive bicycle rack. The colourful interior retail spaces are clearly visible from the street through extensive storefront glazing; inverting the often-inward-looking typology of big box stores.

On the east elevation a broad Corten steel scupper discharges stormwater from the blue and green roofs, into a bioswale planter at street level. The bioswale provides additional filtration, before discharging the run off through the stormwater system into nearby False Creek. The elevational treatment continues around the corner of the building into the lane. Rather than a traditional ‘back of house’ treatment, this lane is lined with stepping Corten planters and a trellis for climbing plants; the continuous siding is broken by double height glazing that provides views into the interior atrium; and the entrance to the loading dock and parking garage is lined with murals.

Project Credits

  • Owner/Developer  Beedie Group
  • Architect  Proscenium Architecture + Interiors Inc.
  • General Contractor  Heatherbrae Builders Landscape Architect  G | ALA Gauthier + Associates
  • Electrical and mechanical engineer  Pageau Morel Structural engineer  Fast + Epp Commissioning Agent  SYSTÈMES ÉNERGIE TST INC
  • Interior Retail Designer  Aedifica Architecture + Design
  • Project Manager (previously for MEC)  Corin Flood LEED Consultant  Sebastien Garon Architecture + Design Photos  Michael Elkan Architectural Photography

Project Performance 

  • Energy intensity (building and process energy) = 82.8 KWhr/m²/year
  • Energy intensity reduction relative to reference building under ASHRAE 90.1 – 2007 = 43%
  • Water consumption from municipal sources = 2,536 litres/occupant/year
  • Reduction in water consumption relative to reference building under LEED = 46.7%
  • Recycled material content by value = 15.2%
  • Regional materials (800km radius) by value = 39.7%
  • Construction waste diverted from landfill = 80.2%

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Red Deer Polytechnic Student Residence

Red Deer, Alberta

Residential (Large) Award

Jury Comment: The project is notable for its use of sustainable features, such as the photovoltaic cladding panels, to create an architectural language.  Also notable are the multiple social spaces visible from the exterior and the exposed mass timber structure; both adding to the didactic quality of the building.

This 5,800 m², five-storey, 145-unit mass timber structure was first occupied by 300 athletes who attended the Canada Winter Games in 2019.  However, the long-term purpose of the building was always to house Red Deer Polytechnic’s growing student population. The building also functions as  a hotel, providing accommodation for short- and long-term guests, including faculty and external users. The Polytechnic’s vision was to create a building that would keep students on campus by providing recreational and social opportunities, rather than having them to drive to downtown Red Deer.  The result is a residence that offers a bright and airy interior environment with an unprecedented range of social spaces.

Although the client did not mandate the design team to achieve any green building certification, the project was designed to LEED Gold standards. With its R35 walls, R45 roof, R7 windows and Passive House Certified fibreglass curtainwall, it exceeds the prescriptive requirements of the National Energy Code for Buildings (NECB).

Special attention was also given to:

  • encouraging walking within the building and discouraging use of the elevator
  • passive solar heating in winter, and operable windows for ventilation in warmer months
  • leveraging the health benefits of natural daylight, views and indoor plants,
  • energy reduction through use of 100% LED lighting and a 90% efficient HVAC system.

Exposing the soffits of the mass timber floors eliminated the need for suspended ceilings All the wood was locally harvested, milled in an Edmonton shop to minimize transportation costs and GHG impacts.

The east, west and south facades of the building are covered with a 163 kW integrated photovoltaic array that offsets approximately 40% of the annual energy consumption of the building.

The successful implementation of these diverse sustainability goals was made possible through a collaborative design approach and an Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) method using a multi-party contract.

The Polytechnic was well aware that isolation and lack of community support for students has a negative influence, not only on their ability to perform in the classroom, but also on their mental, physical and emotional well-being. In this context, the design team saw an opportunity to reconceptualize the typical student residence typology.

Duxton Windows and Doors supplied its high-performance fiberglass windows Series 328.

Western Archrib suppled the glulam columns and beams, and its Westdek floor panels.

The main HVAC components consists of fan coils for common areas, air handling units and chillers supplied by Daikin Applied; Mitsubishi Electric Sales Canada Mr. Slim P-Series ductless air conditioners; and CREST boilers by Lochinvar.

Project Credits

  • Owner/developer  Red Deer Polytechnic
  • Architect  Reimagine Architects Ltd
  • General Contractor  Clark Builders
  • Landscape Architect  Katharina Kafka Landscape Architect
  • Civil Engineer  Stantec
  • Electrical Engineer  Manasc Isaac Consulting
  • Mechanical Engineer  Smith + Andersen (Edmonton)
  • Structural engineer  RJC Engineers
  • Photos  Cooper + O’Hara

Project Performance

  • Energy intensity (building and process energy) = 70.68KWhr/m²/year
  • Energy intensity reduction relative to reference building under MNECB 2011 = 50%

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50-Unit Passive House Affordable Rental Housing

Fort St. John, BC

Residential (Large) Award

Jury Comment: A simple building with a standard floor plate, its character comes from subtle changes in geometry and refined detailing.  A cant in plan adds interest to hallways and creates central meeting places; cladding panels and vertical sunshades enliven the façades. A great low-energy prototype for affordable housing.

This six-storey building provides workforce housing for the duration of a large infrastructure project, before converting to affordable family housing for  the community. The program consists of two- and three-bedroom suites, common interior and exterior amenity spaces, fitness room, bicycle storage, outdoor playground and landscaped rain gardens. 

The plan is a simple double-loaded corridor scheme with inset stairwells, central elevators and a nine-degree crank, symmetrical through the centre of the building. This simple gesture accentuates the main entrance when viewed from the street, orients half the building façade further towards south, creates a natural break in the west façade, accommodates exterior balconies connected to common amenity rooms on each floor, and provides a larger landscaped setting for the ground-oriented suites on the east side.

The north-south orientation gives each unit direct sunlight and optimizes outdoor space. Each façade responds to its specific solar orientation, while maintaining a cohesive visual character. The main exterior cladding is a cementitious rain-screen system, with deep recessed triple-glazed fiberglass windows and metal flashing surrounds. To achieve the required 200 mm insulation thickness, enable strapping to respond to the joint patterns and colour changes in the cladding system, the thickness of the exterior plywood sheathing was increased, eliminating the need to blindly fasten the exterior strapping thru to structural studs. This approach improved the construction schedule and made it easier to maintain the air barrier, resulting in an air tightness of 0.2 air changes per hour.

The vertical sunshades and recessed triple-glazed high-performance fiberglass windows with krypton gas fill by Duxton Windows and Doors.

The building is heated and cooled by a heat recovery variable refrigerant volume air source heat pump system by Daikin Applied, which also supplied chillers, fancoils and AC units.

Project Performance

  • Energy intensity (building and process energy) = 119.96KWhr/m²/year
  • Energy intensity reduction relative to reference building under = 65%
  • Water consumption from municipal sources = 219,000 litres/occupant/year
  • Recycled material content by value = 12%
  • Regional materials (800km radius) by value = 33 %
  • Construction waste diverted from landfill = 81%

Project Credits

  • Owner/Developer  BC Housing Corporation
  • Architect Low Hammond Rowe Architects
  • Design/Build Constructor  WCPG Construction Ltd.
  • Landscape Architect  Murdoch deGreeff
  • Civil Engineer  WSP CANADA
  • Electrical Engineer  Beairsto & Associates Engineering Ltd
  • Mechanical Engineer (HVAC)  RENÜ Engineering Inc.
  • Mechanical Engineer (Plumbing)  Beairsto & Associates Engineering Ltd
  • Structural Engineer  Beairsto & Associates Engineering Ltd
  • Commissioning Agent  E3 ECO Group Inc, West Rockies Services
  • Energy Modelling  Marken Design +Consult
  • Energy Consultant  RENÜ Engineering Inc
  • Passive House Consultant  Marken Design +Consult
  • Passive House Certifier  Stich Consulting & Design Inc.
  • Building Envelope Consultant  Aqua-coast Engineering Ltd
  • Geotechnical Consultant  Northern Geo Testing & Engineering
  • Photos  SILENTSAMA Architectural Photography

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