Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/177525
Bradford West Gwillimbury Leisure Centre by Christine Peets RENDERING BY LIFANG INTERNATIONAL he Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury, north of Toronto, is now able to provide local residents with "Many Ways to Play" in its newly opened Leisure Centre. "Our motto re lects the variety of activities available for all ages," says Tom Graham, director of the municipality's leisure services department. "It also re lects that people have many options for memberships. The 158,273-square-foot building is the newest structure on the 17.7-acre civic campus that features a library and cultural centre completed in May 2010. The two buildings complement each other without being identical, says Steve Dearlove, principal architect with Salter Pilon Architecture Inc. who worked with Lett Architects Inc. in designing the project. The centre showcases many sports, recreation and leisure activities including hockey, igure skating, leisure T LOCATION 471 West Park Avenue Bradford, Ontario OWNER/DEVELOPER Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury PROJECT MANAGER MHPM Project Managers Inc. ARCHITECT Salter Pilon Architecture Inc. ASSOCIATE ARCHITECTS Lett Architects Inc. GENERAL CONTRACTOR Acquicon Construction Ltd. STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Ravens Engineering Inc. MECHANICAL/ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT Smith + Andersen Consulting Engineering CIVIL CONSULTANT Skelton Brumwell & Associates LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Basterfield & Associates TOTAL AREA 158,273 square feet TOTAL CONSTRUCTION COST $41.6 million 84/ FEBRUARY 2012 p.84-85Bradford West.indd 84 skating, swimming, gymnastics, basketball, badminton and more social activities. Residents no longer have to travel outside of the area for access to these amenities, Graham says. It is especially nice to have larger rinks right in the centre of the community, he adds. The arena features two 200-by-85-foot (NHL-sized) ice pads, seating 900 and 350 spectators respectively, 10 dressing rooms and a skate-change area. The accredited itness centre houses a strength training room, an aerobics studio, a cardio training area and a walking track. The aquatics centre features an eight-lane, 25 metre competitive pool, a leisure pool complete with water slide and a warm relaxation/therapy pool. The dividable gymnasium has courts for basketball, volleyball, and badminton, and is used for gymnastics. Centre amenities also include the pro shop, concession stands and a multi-purpose program room. Provincial and federal infrastructure funding for the $41.6-million project was augmented by funds raised by the municipality. Initial earthworks site preparation was done in 2009 with construction beginning in 2010. According to project manager Ron Spina from MHPM Project Managers Inc., keeping costs under control through careful management and regular reporting to the mayor, selected members of council and the committee overseeing the project, helped to keep the work on track with respect to the issues, cost, schedule, and future milestones. "This was done by a cost-tracking system from inception to close-out that progressively looked at all known and potential costs," Spina says. "The advantage was that it provided certainty as to the overall costs at the end of the project. Another success for the project according to Spina was the multiple-level tender system. "By doing the grading and earthworks irst, it allowed for proper presentation of the second tender for the construction work. We also had a collaborative relationship between team members that allowed for technical issues to be worked out as they arose." Some of those technical issues included the roof structure, long span steel trusses over the large arenas and pool areas, according to the structural consultant Alena Ravens, director of Ravens Engineering Inc. "It was challenging having to design building with so many large open spaces. The roof for the area housing all three pools is framed using exposed three-dimensional space trusses. The intent of the design was to make this space more visually interesting and appealing," she says. There are a couple of distinctive features to this building in the arenas, and in the pool. The building is divided by an expansion joint with the main components – arenas, pool and gymnasium – all being different sizes. This gives the area an irregular perimeter that is brought together visually by a metal-clad 'frame' that anchors the building on four corners to bring these areas together, according to Dearlove. "Having the frame allows for some unity between the different components." The ice rinks have heating built into the concrete bleachers, which Dearlove says is more comfortable for spectators than the overhead radiant heaters. For the pool, a 'shark gill' design was used on the west side and most windows are oriented to the north to bring in natural, indirect light and late-day sun in the summer. Permanent solar shades are used on the south side to, "avoid glare onto the pool surface which is important for safety, but having the windows is also important as it provides a more attractive environment for the patrons," Dearlove says. Another feature of the pool itself is the stainlesssteel panel system designed by Italian company Myrtha Pool, which Dearlove describes as superior to the traditional poured-in-place concrete and tile type. "This system allows for easier cleaning and requires fewer drainings and re illing of the pool, which saves energy and water," says Dearlove. Saving energy and water and maintaining a healthy indoor air quality were important considerations for the Silver LEED designation being sought. "Before occupancy the building will be ' lushed out' by the HVAC system with 100 per cent outside air to remove any airborne contaminants and improve indoor air quality," says Kevin Key, the LEED AP mechanical designer from Smith + Andersen Consulting Engineering. The company also provided electrical design. "Rooftop unit controls include a supply air temperature reset sequence to incrementally increase or decrease the supply air temperature based on the demands in the space." Other mechanical LEED initiatives include: • A cistern to capture rainwater for reuse for the irrigation system, flushing toilets and urinals to reduce the building's potable water demand; • Low-flow plumbing fixtures including toilets, urinals, lavatories and showers to reduce potable water demand and sewage discharge; • CFC- and HCFC-free mechanical refrigeration equipment; • Waste heat from the ice rink refrigeration system is captured and used for snow melting, rink change-room heating and slab heating of the rink spectator seating area; and • Pool and rink change-room rooftop units include an enthalpy recovery wheel to pretreat 100 per cent outside air and reduce unit heating and cooling loads. "We've gone from having one ice pad in the community to three, and having an aquatics centre and itness centre is new," Graham says. "It was a strategic priority for the past and present municipal councils to have a multi-use recreation facility, and now we have accomplished that goal." ■ Bradford West Gwillimbury Leisure Centre 1/23/12 10:49:15 AM