Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, LEED® Silver Candidate.
This $44.5 million project had two missions: to design a new LEED® Silver administration building to accommodate 491 people, and to renovate the existing adjacent administration building. The new 151,739 sf. facility is a long linear form that adheres to site restrictions, with shallow floor plates and maximized light penetration. To break up the length, three element walls run east/west allowing the building to break and shift. This change in axis reduces the perceived length of the building internally and creates an opportunity for social areas that are removed from the work environment. The element walls also designate links into the existing building through two second-floor pedways, and one two-story link on the south end of the building. The open-concept design places employees at the periphery of the building to provide more access to natural light. Common areas like conference rooms, file rooms, and utility spaces make up the core of the building and serve to provide an acoustic buffer between work areas and the main public hallway that runs the length of the building. The renovation of the existing 16,792 sf. structure, built in 1999, was a complete gut and rebuild, which turned former closed office space into a group-focused facility with a large multi-purpose room for 200 people, a dedicated crisis management room, technical library, cafeteria and kitchen, as well as locker rooms and a new fitness space. The renovation also included a redesign and expansion of the existing cafeteria and kitchen, transforming it into a better functional space. Repurposing the old space into an employee-focused function reinforced to clients a priority to treat all staff equally and ensure their needs are accommodated. Construction was completed in 2013.