The new Scott Building Revitalization and Development project is located at the south-east corner of Douglas Street and Hillside Avenue in Victoria, BC. An opportunity to reinvigorate an existing heritage building, this project will be a feature to the vibrant residential community of Humber Green while also serving as a gateway to downtown Victoria.
Our project includes the rejuvenation of the existing three-storey Scott Building, a century-old brick-clad building with a hybrid timber and steel structure, used for many different purposes throughout its life. The design includes plans for rental residential apartments while cafes, shops, and commercial spaces will animate the ground floor and provide new amenities for residents and the neighbourhood.
The Scott Building will be carefully retained and restored to maintain its vintage character while updated building components will be implemented to meet modern building codes, energy requirements, and support the health and comfort of residents and visitors.
The building will undergo seismic upgrades and modern extensions to the east and south. The centre of the upper two storeys of the building will be removed to create a ‘U’ configuration, permitting daylight to new apartments and wrapping an elevated courtyard at Level 2. A discrete fourth level, mostly concealed behind the parapet of the existing building, will be added to provide additional rental apartments.
The new six-storey wood frame volume to the east of the Scott Building is separated from the existing building in order for the heritage component of the project to be a visual focus from the surrounding streets. Modern interventions as part of the renovation of the existing building will take the language from the new structure and marry them into the existing building’s character. This harmonization ties the two buildings together as one coherent development.
The two buildings will frame a green central plaza, creating a pedestrian experience while allowing for intermittent vehicular access and short-term parking stalls. The central plaza will be accessible to the public and is intended to be enjoyed by both residents and visitors. One and a half levels of underground parking will fill the east side of the site under the new building and plaza. The upper portion of the underground parkade will be allocated to commercial/retail staff, customers, and residential visitors. Beyond the staff and visitor parking, gated secured parking will be provided to building residents.