Award

J U N E 2 0 2 2 | 81 Burnaby School District Administration Office P H OTO G R A P H Y CO U RT E S Y O M I C RO N A RC H I T EC T U R E EN G I N EER I N G CO N S T RU C T I O N LT D. BURNABY SCHOOL DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION OFFICE by ROBIN BRUNET C reating a new administration office for a school district is never an easy task, but the effort spent on finding a new home for Burnaby School District #41 was worth it, accord- ing to all parties involved. For starters, the new office is located in a 1914 wood- framed former elementary school that received a complete restoration. Russell Horswill, secretary-trea- surer at Burnaby School District, says, "Trustees had debated what to do about a new administration office as long as 15 years ago, because our current facil- ity was approaching its end of life and not worth renovating. Much later, a site review favoured the former school, and its heritage status allowed for flex- ibility in the necessary rezoning." But rezoning and restoration weren't the only tasks of the proj- ect. As the former school was 12,000 square feet and the District's program for the board office was 25,000 square feet, a new annex had to be cre- ated. "Fortunately, the architect who joined our discussions 15 years ago – Omicron Architecture Engineering Construction Ltd. – was still on board," Horswill says. The District obtained a P3 zoning in 2019; Kevin Hanvey, principal at Omicron, explains the scope of resto- ration work. "The heritage building required structural upgrading and demolition of an annex that had been added in the 1970s," he says. "Also, the building's cupola had long been removed, and much work had to be done to restore the exterior. "Arguably, the biggest challenge was bringing the building up to modern energy efficiency standards without compromising the heritage aspects." Omicron worked closely with her- itage consultant Donald Luxton & Associates Inc. to restore period fin- ishes and windows to the building shell and provide a contemporary interior to suit the District's pro- gram. "All the original windows were replaced with new sashes and double glazing within the existing frames, and to improve the envelope's energy efficiency we used closed cell spray insulation in the stud cavities and installed air barriers," Hanvey says. "We also completely sealed the huge attic." This contributed to the proj- ect being developed to a high level of energy performance and air tightness. Challenges common to renovations abounded. "The electrical system had to be completely replaced, and generations of accumulated dirt had to be removed in areas where extra structural sup- port was required," Horswill says. The biggest construction under- taking was the new, fully functional cupola. "We worked from old photographs to duplicate the struc- ture," Horswill says, adding that restoring the building to its orig- inal colours "required peeling away numerous layers of paint to find out what was underneath." Omicron designed the annex to complement rather than mimic the heritage building. "It has a similar architectural composition such as a pitched roof and wood upper storey on a heavier base, but with modern detailing," Hanvey says. A new glass atrium with eleva- tor and feature stair was created to connect the new structure to the old and act as the building's new main entrance. The atrium also helped bring natural light deep into the building, as did interior glass wall offices. Hanvey says of the original porch entry, "We decommissioned the entry but rehabilitated the porch and surrounding windows, as well as an interior staircase." Unitech Construction Management began work on site in August of 2019, and project manager Calvin Lal says his main challenge was limited space. "We're just off Canada Way and next to residences, so we had to be meticulous with our scheduling in order to miti- gate noise as much as possible. "Also, hoisting the new cupola and installing it on the roof was nerve- wracking, but it was done without a hitch – and the bright yellow structure now acts as a beacon for the building and can be seen from quite a distance." Horswill is particularly impressed by the restored building's energy per- formance. "About 60 percent of its heating and cooling needs are pro- vided by a geothermal field and electric heat pumps," he says. "We also have back up boilers, but last winter during several severe cold snaps the geothermal system proved more than adequate – the boilers never kicked in." Hanvey echoes the sentiments of his colleagues by stating, "Everyone worked well together, and Burnaby School District is a great client. If all projects were as much fun as this one, I'd never retire." A LOCATION 4054 Norfolk Street, Burnaby, B.C. OWNER /DEVELOPER Burnaby School District #41 ARCHITECT/STRUCTUR AL /MECHANICAL / ELECTRICAL /INTERIOR DESIGN CONSULTANT Omicron Architecture Engineering Construction Ltd. CONSTRUCTION MANAGER Unitech Construction Management HERITAGE CONSULTANT Donald Luxton & Associates Inc. CIVIL CONSULTANT McElhanney BUILDING ENVELOPE CONSULTANT BC Building Science Partnership L ANDSCAPE ARCHITECT PMG Landscape Architects TOTAL COST $22 million

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