Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1408886
S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1 | 75 The Beacon At 1400 Quadra P H OTO G R A P H Y + R EN D ER I N G CO U RT E SY A L P H A P RO J EC T D E V ELO P M EN T S LT D. THE BEACON AT 1400 QUADRA by LAURIE JONES A mid the hustle and bustle of downtown Victoria, B.C., The Beacon at 1400 Quadra stands out in a collection of new buildings. Located at the corner of Quadra and Johnson streets – two main thorough- fares – this 14-storey, purpose-built rental building offers 113 suites rang- ing from studio to three-bedroom units with retail on the ground floor. "The design of this building was quite challenging because there are three heritage landmark build- ings along Quadra Street within a smaller radius of 1400 Quadra," says Bijan Neyestani, president, Alpha Project Developments Ltd. "We had to respect the visual prominence and character defining importance of these buildings, and we particu- larly had to give consideration of the views from the Victoria Conservatory of Music, which is directly across the street. The primary reason for this step-back design of the tower was so we can provide adequate breath- ing room for the Conservatory." With the four-storey podium incor- porated into the tower, it almost looks like two separate buildings. "On the exterior, the tower has a much lighter expression with white brick, while the podium has a darker brick design, Neyestani explains. "The retail space has double height, which makes the podium look taller than four storeys. Every suite has a balcony or terrace, including Juliet balconies." Because the majority of sites in downtown Victoria were a gas sta- tion or automotive shop at one point, soil contamination is a major con- sideration. "The site for 1400 Quadra was particularly contaminated so the remediation took a year to bring it to acceptable standards, which was quite costly," he says. Part of the design came out of pol- icy and guidelines from the city of Victoria, particularly because it was a corner site. "We had to design a step- back on two sides of the building, which was a complication in itself," explains Charles Kierulf, architect of record at de Hoog & Kierulf Architects (dHKarchitects). "The project went through a number of iterations – dif- ferent materials, different looks – to get to where we ended up to get approval from the planning partners. The decision to add the brick facade came in late, but once we decided on the material, we were able to have fun with the design. We made the building look contemporary with some tradi- tional detailing, sort of old and new at the same time." The variety of trees outside of the building was important to include in the design because the city is adamant about maintaining the urban forest. Kierulf says the interior design is contemporary and bright, with dura- ble finishes for the rental market. "In addition to the exterior com- mon space for tenants, a bookable inside space is available that is essen- tially a suite with no bedroom, but has the kitchen area and bathroom. It opens up to a large terrace on the northwest corner of the building, and another terrace below is connected to it. There's lots of benches and seating areas if residents had a larger group of people that would not comfortably fit in their home." Every unit has in- suite laundry, and an amenity space with outdoor barbecue is on level two, and a green roof is on level five. Lukas Farey, project manager, Campbell Construction Ltd. says the architectural design of this build- ing, with the brick facade, allows the apartment to fit in well with the other historic structures in the down- town area, but visually as the floors go up, it's a more modern design. Brick cladding and aluminum glazed cur- tain wall compose the outside of the structure above the podium. "On the Quadra and Johnson faces, the brick goes all the way up to the 13th floor and the rest is glazed alumi- num frame, which makes it look like a totally different building on two sides," he says, noting three levels of underground parking accommodates 104 cars and 155 bicycle spaces. "With Quadra being a main artery to the downtown streets, we were limited in terms of deliveries, and high-voltage lines had to be removed and put underground then reinstated once the job was done," Farey explains. "It took just over two years to build, including complications at the start. In addition to the extensive soil reme- diation, not far below the surface was hard rock so we did a lot of blasting." Views from the upper floors cap- ture Victoria's inner harbour, the famed Dallas Road and other iconic images of the city. A LOCATION 1400 Quadra Street, Victoria, B.C. OWNER /DEVELOPER Alpha Project Developments Ltd. ARCHITECT de Hoog & Kierulf Architects (dHKarchitects) GENER AL CONTR ACTOR Campbell Construction Ltd. MECHANICAL CONSULTANT Avalon Mechanical Consultants ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT AES Engineering CIVIL CONSULTANT Herold Engineering L ANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Murdoch de Greeff Inc. BUILDING ENVELOPE CONSULTANT RJC Engineers INTERIOR DESIGN Heather Kallos Interior Design TOTAL SIZE 82,000 square feet TOTAL COST $32 million 9:48 AM