Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1408886
S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1 | 81 Robert G. Kuhn Building at Trinity Western University R EN D ER I N GS CO U RT E SY T H I N K S PAC E A RC H I T EC T U R E P L A N N I N G A N D I N T ER I O R D E S I G N ROBERT G. KUHN BUILDING AT TRINITY WESTERN UNIVERSITY by ROBIN BRUNET C hallenging circumstances sometimes produce the best results, and the new $35-million Robert G. Kuhn Building at Trinity Western University (T W U) in Langley, B.C., which was developed with a care- ful budget and tight schedule, is a prime example. A talented team of architects and builders, working closely with univer- sity stakeholders, created a four-storey building (the campus's first in more than 40 years) that not only houses T W U's School of Business, T W U Global, and Student Life's Global Engagement Office (GEO), but also acts as a gateway to the campus. Aklilu Mulat, T W U's senior VP of business administration and chief financial officer, says of the 73,000 square foot facility, "Our business and leaderships programs had been grow- ing by as much as 12 percent annually, to the point where we needed a marquee building to meet projected growth." He adds, "We wanted to develop the Robert G. Kuhn Building with attention to esthetics, innovation, function, and budget, so in January of 2019 we retained Ray Wolfe, partner at Thinkspace Architecture Planning and Interior Design – and after a few days of listening to stakehold- ers he came up with four options. We selected one option – a building whose shape as seen from overhead tapers like the letter 'V' – and design develop- ment began in earnest." Clark Builders was retained early on as the construction manager to help ensure a fall 2021 completion date, and Wolfe made key decisions based on stakeholder input that heav- ily influenced the final design. "We thought of the entrance of the build- ing as a new campus 'node' that is the termination of the existing academic greenway, and hence we developed a double-high canopy," he says. "On the south facade we created a colonnade under which students could gather." Wolfe organized the building around a central four-storey atrium with adjacent teaching and learning spaces, and the circular design bisected by bridges at different levels accom- plished several things: it was visually striking; it brought natural light deep into the building; and it created a thermal chimney that worked with heat pumps to contribute to energy efficiency. "Also, the bridges brought travel spaces up to code and guided circulation to the stairs," Wolfe says. Mass timber was chosen as the primary structure, partly to accom- modate the clear spans desired for a flexible learning environment and also for warm ambiance (large sec- tions of the timber would be exposed throughout the building). "Technically speaking the structure was a hybrid of timber with steel and concrete sup- port," Wolfe says. "We painted all the steel components, including a steel feature stair, white to augment the appearance of the timber." The flexibility of Wolfe's design proved helpful when it was decided during the early months of the project that the GEO would be a third end-user of the facil- ity. "We adjusted our design very quickly," he says. "To give each user group a distinct identity we located Student Life on the ground floor with a higher volume of informal gathering spaces. The MBA suite with dedicated classrooms and lounge was located on the third floor, and Global was on the fourth with a more transparent flow between spaces for greater interaction." The exterior cladding respects the masonry elements of other T W U buildings with the extensive use of earthy-coloured brick. White again contributed to the lightness of the new gateway building, wood across the sof- fits imparted a sense of warmth, and custom designed solar shades reduced glare and heat gain. Ground broke on the project in February of 2020 and since the site proved to contain a landfill, reme- diation was undertaken. "Plus there was differential settlement, so a lot of effort was spent ensuring that our foundations were resilient," says Scott Benoit, director, project development at Clark Builders. Benoit adds that the two larger interior spans "were actually steel beams wrapped in wood for seismic strength, and concrete shear walls imparted additional strength to the elevators and stairwells." As for the global COVID lockdowns that caused supply chain havoc, Benoit ordered materials well in advance to minimize production slowdowns. Mulat keenly anticipates a fall opening for the Robert G. Kuhn Building. "Special thanks should go to Jo Jansen, our executive director of campus services, and consultant Joe Cosgrove," he says. "With their lead- ership and the excellence in design and construction, we have been given a facility that is truly special, and in a remarkably short time frame." A LOCATION 22500 University Drive, Langley, B.C. OWNER /DEVELOPER Trinity Western University ARCHITECT Thinkspace Architecture Planning and Interior Design GENER AL CONTR ACTOR Clark Builders STRUCTUR AL CONSULTANT Entuitive (Vancouver) MECHANICAL /ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT Smith + Andersen (Vancouver) TOTAL SIZE 73,000 square feet TOTAL COST $35 million