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RENDERINGS COURTESY STANTEC ARCHITECTURE 14 Division Station – Toronto Police Service by Dan O'Reilly ocated in the heart of a downtown Toronto residential community, the recently completed Toronto Police Service (TPS) 14 Division building could be considered a model of evolving trends in police building construction. With a geothermal system, green roof and host of energysaving features, the three-storey cast-in-place concrete building, which has two levels of underground parking, is targeted to achieve LEED Silver. It was designed by Stantec Architecture and built by construction manager Eastern Construction. The building replaces an existing station with limited onsite parking that had been ruled inadequate after a major review was conducted by the Toronto Police Service, says corporate communications director, Mark Pugash. "A lot of thought, research and planning went into the decision to construct the new building," says Pugash. "Police divisional facilities are unique in that they are public buildings but with areas not accessible to the public for security reasons." For that reason, the design requires considerable attention to detail. As with any police station, Division 14 has necessary features including a holding bullpen, a prisoner's elevator, rooms for interviewing suspects and cells – of which there are 26 allotted for men, women, youth and transgendered people. But the real story about the building is how the TPS, the design team and construction manager worked to ensure that the station seamlessly it into the residential neighbourhood, which is mainly comprised of older homes on small lots. The station projects a very public face through the use of large windows – discreetly screened by bushes or opaque materials – an accessible main- loor lobby, a community room, and a large tree- illed landscaped plaza, part of which has been deemed public space, says project architect Tom Kyle. "This is the third station that Stantec Architecture has designed for the TPS," he says. A new building encased within the shell of a historically signi icant Consumers' Gas Building was the irst, while the second incorporated heritage elements from a previous building on the property. Unlike those projects, heritage protection did not come into play for Division 14. The site was previously occupied by a long-closed 1960s-era vocational school that had little heritage signi icance. The project did have challenges, notably the need to minimize the impact on the community and create the delicate mix of public areas and sections that had to be secure for the dayto-day operations of a police force, according to Kyle. In recognizing the tight urban site they were working with, the architects minimized the building footprint "through the vertical stacking of programs," says Kyle, referring to the use of minimal corridors to improve ef iciency. It also refers to the central positioning of meeting and operational rooms, with open-concept of ices on the perimeter, with lockers, a lunch room and a itness centre on the second loor. L 14 Division Station – Toronto Police Service p.74-75_14 Division.indd 75 Then there is the two-level, 65,000-square-foot underground parking garage. Intended to eliminate on-street parking which had been an issue with the previous station, the garage extends well beyond the north wall of the station and underneath the civic plaza. The need and desire for the plaza was strongly voiced by residents during an initial public consultation and later during the design process. As part of the Service's commitment to community policing and "being a good neighbour," local residents sat on the design committee, says Kyle. Of course, Division 14 is a police station and separating secure zones from the public areas was integral. One element use to achieve that division was the construction of an outside wall at the edge of the plaza that extends into the building. "It creates a demarcation line between the public and private spaces," says Kyle. Designed as a 'post-disaster building' under both the National and Ontario building codes, the station will be able to provide shelter during an earthquake or other natural disaster, says Kevin Li, an engineer with Yolles, a CH2M Hill Company, the structural consultant. Seismic and lateral resistance was achieved through the construction of a combination of stairwells and elevator core wall elements, he explains. That disaster preparation also encompasses the electrical system, says Alex Zheng, associate with consultant Mulvey & Banani International Inc. "Unlike standard of ice towers with limited emergency generating power," says Zheng, "the station is equipped with a three-phase, four-watt standby dieselelectric generator to service the entire load of the building in case of utility source power failure to keep it operating." Energy conservation and sustainable design components were also incorporated into the mechanical system. Measures include the geothermal system, heat recovery-air handlers and rainwater harvesting, says Hank Lem, project manager with mechanical consultant Smith + Andersen. Integrating the various systems was no easy task for Eastern Construction and, in fact, the construction challenges were as formidable as the ones faced by the designers. "Our tower crane couldn't extend beyond the south wall," says superintendent Matt Alderson, explaining the need for Eastern and its trades to be cognizant of the rights and privacy of the homeowners. And, in the compact neighbourhood, delivery of materials "was a bit tedious and parking was an issue," he says. There was little parking available on the residential streets and the trades were not allowed to park on site – although that wasn't a surprise as the restriction had been clearly stated in the tender documents. As a solution, one subtrade operated a shuttle service from a nearby shopping centre for its employees, says Alderson. Considerable dewatering was required and, in one particularly troublesome section near a stairwell, a raft foundation had to be placed instead of the slab on grade/caission foundation used for the remainder of the site. But complications are expected on construction sites and Eastern was prepared. "We did a fair amount of planning, resulting in only a few hiccups," says Alderson. "In the end, we had a good relationship with the architect and owner." ■ LOCATION 350 Dovercourt Street Toronto, Ontario OWNER/DEVELOPER Toronto Police Service ARCHITECT Stantec Architecture CONSTRUCTION MANAGER Eastern Construction STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Yolles, a CH2M Hill Company MECHANICAL CONSULTANT Smith + Andersen ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT Mulvey & Banani International Inc. LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT gh3 TOTAL BUILDING AREA 55,000 square feet (main structure) 65,000 square feet (parking garage) TOTAL PROJECT COST $27 million OCTOBER 2012 /75 9/11/12 12:13 PM