Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/175815
COURTESY ALGONQUIN COLLEGE OF APPLIED ARTS & TECH. Robert C. Gillett Student Commons – Algonquin College by Pamela Tourigny merging from a former parking area along campus thoroughfare Navaho Drive, an eye-catching, lowrise, elongated building welcomes visitors to Ottawa's Algonquin College. The strong sculptural overhang frames the primary formal entrance to the building like a front porch, while another corner is drawn to the extreme northwest area of the site, providing a visual peak at that entry point. The exterior of the building – the college's Robert C. Gillett Student Commons – is inished in a combination of curtain wall and punched windows, aluminum- inished metal cladding, and brick masonry intended to harmonize with the material language on campus. Its form frames and engages the outdoors, bringing the outside in. "The angular metal cladding is the key visual, chosen for its strong, contemporary look, along with its ability to work well with the planar language of the building," says architect Donna Johnston, associate with IBI Group Architects, the architect of record. Adjacent to the existing home of the college's Hospitality and Tourism programs, the Student Commons, which opened its doors this September, not only serves as a gateway for visitors, but provides students with a unique space that is the social heart of the college's Woodroffe Campus. The Student Commons is built to LEED Gold standards, using high-performance materials and practices. The project was initiated by the college's Students' Association in early 2008, which had found that the top problem was a lack of student space. The college had integrated many of its operations in the Registrar's Of ice, and could take advantage of the new opportunity to provide students with a single point of contact. The Students' Association would contribute $30 million in funding, with the college providing an additional $22 million. The college put out an RFP for concepts for the designbuild project. The design requirement section de ined the guiding principles for the building as: Heart of the Campus, Rich Algonquin Experience, Service Hub, Learning Outside the Classroom, and Sustainable High Performance Building. "Each of the proponents responded to our RFP with very different interpretation of the 'Project Visions and Principles' [PVP]," says John Dalziel, Algonquin College's head of major construction. "Each proposal had to meet our set price, and was evaluated against a detailed set of technical criteria and then against our PVP." The concept put forward by IBI Group E Robert C. Gillett Student Commons – Algonquin College p.86-87Robert Gillette.indd 87 Architects in partnership with Teeple Architects and PCL Constructors Canada Inc. was selected. Ground was broken in April 2011. The Student Commons is anchored by a 700-seat auditorium for lectures and performances, con igured to provide an intimate venue with its form sculpted to maximize acoustic performance. The Commons also provides a grand atrium lounge area in which students can relax and socialize. Student support services have been centralized, the Mamidosewin Aboriginal Student Centre expanded, and food services upgraded. Outdoor green LOCATION Navaho Drive Ottawa, Ontario OWNER/DEVELOPER Algonquin College ARCHITECT OF RECORD/ CIVIL CONSULTANT/ LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT IBI Group Architects DESIGN/BUILD CONTRACTOR PCL Constructors Canada Inc. LEAD DESIGN ARCHITECT/ INTERIOR DESIGNER space includes a ceremonial grove connected to the Mamidosewin Centre and a large urban park fronting the main entrance. "The functions inside the building wrap around a three-storey open atrium lounge space adjacent the 'Central Park' to form the heart of the Student Commons," explains IBI's Donna Johnston. "The feature stair, which draws the eye all the way to the Student Success Centre on the third loor, succeeds in visually connecting the programmatic areas, drawing them into an active part of the core through overlooks and open railings." Virtually all program areas have a direct visual and circulation connection to the atrium/lounge, including the auditorium, expressed from the outside through its own distinct volume to the south of the grand circulation axis. This circulation thoroughfare connects the Commons through the adjacent Hospitality Building and on to the rest of the campus. The Mamidosewin Centre, focused around its circular multi-purpose gathering area, opens to an outdoor ceremonial space providing an abundance of natural light. The primary site challenge was poor-quality soil, which dictated the building's size, height and weight. The traditional method of working on such soil – mounting the building on piles driven deep into the ground – was an unworkable option as the cost and time to install piles could not be harmonized with the budget or delivery timelines. "The building, as a result, has a very large footprint to accommodate the entire program without exceeding three loors at any point. This resulted in a relatively lightweight structural system which could ' loat' across the site on widespread footings," Johnston says. "This has yielded a strong, elegant solution, with visual complexity and exuberance, but which in its essence is restrained." "The geometry of the building has created some challenges for our design team and ield staff to overcome," says PCL's Rob McGowan. Building material selection was in luenced by LEED standards at every turn. On the exterior, the lightweight cladding was installed using PVC rather than traditional metal mounting clips, minimizing thermal bridging through the system, contributing to its energy performance. Inside, sustainable, durable and cost-effective materials include exposed concrete loors with porcelain tile in hightraf ic areas – the main lounge, lobby and auditorium spaces. "The interior language is robust and energetic, and brings in warmth and natural texture through the use of wood for doors, furniture and built-in cabinetry, and through use of linoleum sheet looring, a material identi ied by its natural components and visual depth. Curving gypsum board bulkheads and balustrades wrap around this space contributing to its dynamic character," says Johnston. Algonquin College has come a long way since its humble beginnings in the 1960s, and is now renowned for many of its programs. Its student population continues to climb, and the college is adapting to the digital reality of the present, and future. The Student Commons is one re lection of this adaptation."I think the building will go on to de ine, in large part, the Algonquin student experience," says Johnston. ■ Teeple Architects Inc. STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Adjeleian Allen Rubeli Ltd. MECHANICAL/ ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT Crossey Engineering ACOUSTICAL CONSULTANT Novus Environmental Inc. GEOTECHNICAL CONSULTANT Paterson Group Inc. TOTAL AREA 115,000 square fet – new space 14,000 square feet – renovated space TOTAL CONSTRUCTION COST $52 million OCTOBER 2012 /87 9/11/12 12:17 PM