Statement Design Intent
Site Planning
Of the common forms of housing applicable to this density (single-family detached, duplexes, row housing), row housing was chosen to allow sharing of wall area and the corresponding reduction in exposure to the elements.
The form of the scheme allows various types of tenure, ie., condominium, zero lot line, cooperative housing or rental housing.
The use of the cul-de-sac principle provides a restriction to vehicular traffic flow that allows a choice from each unit of an active urban space on one side or a passive green space on the other that allows secure play space for younger children.
The cul-de-sacs are oriented to approximate the prevailing wind direction to alleviate the collection of snow and drifting.
Each unit has southern exposure for optimum sun utilization.
A north-south pedestrian connection through the site allows the interconnection of cul-de-sacs and connection to schools, the bus route to the north and tot lots. The resulting break in the building mass negates the need for masonry firewalls.
Deciduous tree masses are provided to the south of all units to provide summer shading and allow winter sun.
Coniferous tree masses are used to provide wind breaks and identification of cul-de-sac access points.
The building masses have been extensively beamed to provide additional energy conservation, however exist¬ing drainage patterns to adjacent properties have been maintained to ensure preservation of existing plant material.
Unit Massing
Unit roofs have been designed to provide a transition in scale from the street and from smaller to larger units.
For the most part, this transition also alleviates snow build-up by allowing prevailing winds to sweep roof planes.
Unit Layout
Units have been organized on the interior to allow all habitable spaces to have a southern orientation and the corresponding heat gain. Service spaces have been collected along the north wall to act as an additional insulating space.
The majority of bedrooms are placed on the lower level to take advantage of the lower ambient temperature required during sleep.
All entries occur into a vestibule or through the garage.
Deck space has been provided on each side of the unit to allow the choice of orientation in direction and activity.
But for the requirement of cross-ventilation all glazing is in the south wall. The lower level will achieve heat gain on the floor slab that will be radiated into the space. Provision of ceiling vents at the south wall will allow this heat to circulate upward. The main level is provided with a "Franklin" type cast-iron fireplace on a masonry hearth surround. The glazing behind it will allow the fireplace and hearth to absorb heat and radiate it into the space.
Ducting from the upper level hall to the lower level hall with a thermostatically controlled in-duct fan will allow for hot air to be drawn back to the lower level as required.
(From competition program)
Unlike the other two schemes which received awards, Submissions 4 and 17, Submission 5 fitted more customarily within professional expectations for modem, medium-density housing design in Canada. It treated the site as an ensemble and dealt with it as a unified whole. The jury admired the clear organization of clusters which it developed and the clever way in which the designer had grouped entrances around entrance courts on two-sided streets, while still maintaining consistent southerly exposures for the principal rooms and largest glazed areas, for ail the units. Then too, the jury admired the detailed treatment of the automobile: brought to every unit, it was still dealt with unobtrusively, and its situation under the decks didn't generate any problematical heat loss conditions.
Finally, the jury admired what it saw as the careful quality of the elevation treatments and of the detailed development of landscape proposals, both for the private outdoor living areas and the collective landscaped open space of the project as a whole.
The reservations the jury had about the scheme were limited ones. Some concerns were expressed about unit planning?especially the bedrooms on lower levels, and the extent of landscaped berming called for. As well, the jury was disappointed that the scheme did not press its concern with energy conservation farther than the simple matter of orientation. The complex profiles of the building clusters, and the conventional detailing of the buildings left them with the impression that more attention could have been paid to the energy conservation aspect of the scheme.
(From jury report)
10 scanned / 5 viewable
- Site Plan
- Plan
- Axonometric Drawing
- Section
- Elevation
