Calgary Court Centre

Bridges connect the towers across the light-filled atrium at every level

by Bill Chomik

Located in the heart of Calgary, the new court centre serves both federal and provincial jurisdictions with a total of 73 courtrooms - one configured specifically for aboriginal hearings - making it the largest court facility in Canada. The design for the 1 million SF complex was driven by concerns for transparency, public space, sustainability, circulation, and flexibility. (more…)

Past and present coexist comfortably in heritage laboratory renovation

The BC granite facade and leaded windows were cleaned, and the copper scuppers and downspouts restored

Completed in 1923, the Chemistry Centre was UBC’s first permanent building and is a major heritage landmark.
It is one of only two Collegiate Gothic style buildings on campus, complete with granite facade, copper scuppers
and downspouts, leaded windows, and corridors with detailed brickwork and woodwork. (more…)

Wastewater testing facility

Low environmental impact and high indoor air quality drive design

The low profile building is clad with cedar siding, brick and stucco that help connect it to its residential neighbourhood

Completed in 2007, the new 26,340sf water and wastewater testing facility, part of the City of Hamilton’s central sewage treatment plant, sits in a mixed residential and industrial neighbourhood.
The location presented some unusual design challenges including: how to offset the heavy building systems loads and environmental impacts inherent in this building type; how to minimize the facility’s environmental impact on the adjacent residential community; and how to maximize indoor air quality. (more…)

A Sustainable Campus

The north elevation. By using passive solar design, indigenous materials, geothermal energy, enhanced air quality, energy and water efficiency, and sustainable landscape design, the project stands for the idea that resources are finite and that building design should respond to this fact. The College conducts tours for students, professionals, and the community to explain the sustainable features of the building

Library/classroom building combines sustainable architectural and landscape practices

The goal of Langara College is to create a sustainable campus that demonstrates environmental responsibility and stewardship for the student body and the community. (more…)

Development combines density and conservation

Creating the Wakefield Beach Community

Curved roofs evoke the rolling ocean breakers. The development uses geothermal heating and cooling, high performance windows, solar-powered street lighting, and water conserving plumbing fixtures

Retirement and recreation homes now flank most of the coastal roads in south-western British Columbia and demand is increasing.
Environmentally, the typical linear, low density form of subdivision has little to recommend it, as it squanders precious waterfront land, negatively impacts or destroys often delicate shoreline ecosystems, and compromises public access to beaches and inter-tidal areas. (more…)

New facility re-energizes established community

The design provides the lightest possible structural system and optimizes north views of the park and mountains beyond

Filled with an abundance of natural light, the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation Killarney Community Pool engages the surrounding public spaces, bringing a new intensity to an important civic facility. (more…)