The University of Waterloo School of Architecture at Riverside is a conversion of a 100-year-old silk mill located in Cambridge. The existing building is 85,000sq/ft over three storeys and is a steel and wood structure with mill deck flooring. The building was funded by donations from all levels of government as well as the local business community. A unique aspect of the project was the modest budget coupled with an extremely aggressive timeframe: $100/sf and one year to design and build, ready for occupancy. We developed a fast-track schedule to allow for the design and building activities to happen simultaneously. The project was delivered on time and on budget in September 2004.
Bowerbirds /ˈbaʊərbɜrd/ make up the bird family Ptilonorhynchidae. They are renowned for their unique courtship behavior, where males build an elaborate structure in an attempt to attract a mate.
Design Challenge:
The challenge was to design a new home with a view of Lake Erie for a client who did not want to pay the cost of a lakeside property. Hence, the site he acquired was a very long and narrow lot across the road from other homes and 2,000 feet away from the shore of the lake. Despite the client’s selection of a less desirable lot, the project was required to serve as a lure for a mate (a love nest as it were, perched in the treetop) complete with two bedrooms for two yet non-existent/future hatchlings. As such, this love nest aimed to both woo and wow a mate while also demonstrating proper family planning and money-management skills. The remaining challenge involved the limits set by municipal zoning bylaws that restricted the home’s height to a maximum of “two storeys”.
Designer: Paul duBellet Kariouk (Principal), Chris Davis (Senior Design Associate), Sarah McMurtry, Adam Paquette, David King, Dimitar Mehandjiev (Design Associates)
The Woven Stories project addresses two existing conditions: a long-standing desire on Sheridan College’s part to have a mural on the highly visible west edge of its Davis Campus, and heat gain/glare issues in the fully glazed lounge space of the Rob Turner Building, which houses the college’s Faculty of Applied Health and Community Studies. The project comprises a two-layer installation of white vinyl (heat control) and printed perforated window blinds (glare control).
Article source: DUBBELDAM inc. architecture + design
A busy doctor commissioned the renewal of this 128 year-old house to fulfil his desire for a modern and light-filled home with a connection to the outdoors. Situated on a narrow lot in a dense downtown neighbourhood, the renovation of this 135 s.m. residence also aimed to provide increased living space on the interior. However, in order to preserve the intimate rear garden, the design challenge was to ‘expand’ the interior space without increasing the footprint of the house. This was accomplished by a rethinking of traditional programme, utilizing built-in place elements and changes in ceiling heights to define spaces rather than walls, and by creating a powerful visual connection with the small backyard to extend the living space. The dark, cramped interior was carved out to create bright, airy spaces connected by an open plan. Materials and built-ins are designed to emphasize linearity – horizontal lines of rift cut white oak millwork, linear divisions of cabinets and display units, stacked strips of industrial felt on the fireplace, and long porcelain tiling with a linear pattern; they create the perception of expanding and stretching the space and direct the eye through the house towards the rear garden.
Article source: MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects
Centennial College is the oldest publicly funded college in Ontario with four campuses serving the Greater Toronto Area east. Near a major intersection and in the Golden Mile neighbourhood of Toronto, the Ashtonbee Campus serves as the largest transportation technology training school in Canada. The campus is surrounded by residential, parklands, and is situated within a retail / commercial / light industrial typology. While generating successful industry partnerships and a thriving training program, the circa 1970’s campus suffered from safety concerns, accessibility issues, aging infrastructure, and lacked student support services and social gathering spaces.
Tags: Canada, Ontario Comments Off on Centennial College Ashtonbee Campus Library & Student Hub in Ontario, Canada by MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects
Article source: MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects
Branksome Hall was established as an independent all girls school in the residential South Rosedale Heritage Conservation District in the urban heart of the City of Toronto, Canada — now a leading International Baccalaureate (IB) World School. The campus is set within a large 13-acre property characterized by lush, wooded ravine edges and open green spaces. The city’s extension of Mount Pleasant Road divided the campus into two sides and the students cross via a pedestrian bridge.
Sited above the intersection of Tew’s Falls and Webster’s falls on the Bruce Trail, this house makes a strong connection to a singular landscape. The Bruce Trail follows the edge of the Niagara escarpment – a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve – from the Niagara River, almost 900 kilometers to Tobermory at the tip of the Bruce Peninsula. On its way, the Trail passes through a mix of provincial land, municipal and provincial conservation authorities, and private land owners.
Originally built in 1836, 169 King Street East is a 3-storey commercial warehouse in the oldest known standing row of buildings in Toronto. The building is most recognized for housing the Daily Leader newspaper, a driving economic force in the mid-to-late 19th Century, and is located in the Moss Park neighbourhood, near St. Lawrence Market and St. James Park. The building proudly represents the district’s architectural typology, having exposed red brickwork, a recessed entrance, and a glazed store front.
Hamilton’s downtown renewal is well underway after suffering a fate similar to many post-industrial North American cities during the late 20th century. Notably, its renewal is grassroots, centering on the arts and entrepreneurial communities. A diversity of small, locally-owned businesses have taken root and are leading the economic and urban renewal.
The renovation of the Hamilton Public Library and Farmer’s Market was conceived as a design-driven opportunity to spur sustained urban renewal. A 96-meter long, continuous glass vestibule with LED lighting re-establishes the building’s relationship to York Street, while the interior executions are geared around elevating the library’s functionality to modern European standards. An emphasis on transparent materials facilitates a conversation between the library and adjacent market, which received a series of service upgrades.
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