Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1211841
F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 0 | 43 300 Main R EN D ER I N GS CO U RT E SY R AY M O N D S .C . WA N A RC H I T EC T S 300 MAIN by LAURA NEWTON 3 00 Main, a new 40-storey resi- dential apartment building in downtown Winnipeg, is set to offer locals a whole new experience in city living. Not only will 300 Main stand as the tallest building in the city's skyline, it will also provide a unique contribution to Winnipeg's vibrant and growing downtown community. Bringing 400 apartments to the corner of Portage Avenue and Main Street is something new for the area, but the Artis REIT development also honours and incorporates the estab- lished uses of the site by building on and up from the existing Winnipeg Square. "When the building was designed in the late '70s, the origi- nal intent of [then-owner] Trizec Corporation Ltd. was to have two towers built on the same site," says Raymond Wan of Raymond S.C. Wan Architects. "This set the groundwork for the provisions of existing founda- tions to be utilized at a later date." Scott Craig of Marwest Group of Companies explains that "unlike other new developments, in many ways, this project has been much like a renova- tion, particularly at the interface of the old and new buildings." As such, some unique preparation work has been required throughout the process. "The analysis of the existing structure and the work required to prepare the main floor to receive the new tower was an amazing feat itself," adds Wan. The tower was not only a massive undertaking from a design standpoint but from a constructability stand- point as well, says Wan. "All the subtle nuances from connection tie-in details to issues with existing conditions all pose their own difficulties." While a portion of the existing building had been designed to support a future cast-in-place concrete tower, additional floors in the new tower were incorporated into the design. In order to accommodate these extra floors, highly specialized geotechnical testing was performed to determine the feasibility of increasing the capac- ity of the existing foundations. "A lighter-weight structural system was also used for the building, to allow for additional floors on the existing foundations," explains Susan Grieef of Crosier Kilgour & Partners Ltd. "Delta beams, which are set within the depth of the hollowcore floor slabs, were used for the beams rather than con- ventional steel beams to reduce the floor-to-floor heights." Further, because the building is located at the windy intersection of Portage and Main, wind tunnel testing was done to determine a more accurate wind loading on the building in order to better define the actual loads on the building. "The testing programs and lighter structural system, in combi- nation with reinforcing of some of the existing concrete columns and walls, allowed us to achieve a new 42-storey tower in lieu of the original 32-storey concept," says Grieef. A two-storey structural steel build- ing provides a low podium to the building tower, which is also com- prised of a structural steel frame and supports hollowcore floors. "The core of the building, where the elevator banks and stairwells are located, is made of cast-in-place concrete with the config- uration matching that of the existing shafts below," describes Grieef. Having an established building as the starting point for the project also LOCATION 300 Main Street, Winnipeg, Manitoba OWNER /DEVELOPER Artis REIT ARCHITECT Raymond S.C. Wan Architects GENER AL CONTR ACTOR Marwest Group of Companies STRUCTUR AL CONSULTANT Crosier Kilgour & Partners Ltd. MECHANICAL /ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT Nova 3 Engineering L ANDSCAPE ARCHITECT McGowan Russell Group TOTAL SIZE 640,000 square feet TOTAL COST $185 Million 12:04 PM