Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/331457
Outlet Collection at Niagara by Angela Altass T he Outlet Collection at Niagara is noted to be Canada's larg- est open-air outlet mall with 520,000 square feet of current retail space and the capacity to expand up to 700,000 square feet. "We expect the Outlet Collection at Niagara to become one of the region's top tourist destina- tions," says Bri-Ann Stuart, general manager, Outlet Collection at Niagara. Open to the public on May 15, the Outlet Collection at Niagara features six retail blocks, customer service and food court pavilion, Niagara-on-the-Lake Chamber of Commerce kiosk, serviced pads for three restaurants and parking for 2,700 vehicles. "The building complex is located in the core of the site and is encircled by a primary ring road, which provides entry and exiting onto the adjacent regional and town roads," says Dan Kozmevsk i, projec t manager, PCL Constructors Canada Inc. "Park ing is positioned around the peripher y of the building complex allowing for pedestrian circulation only between the retail buildings." Pedestrian entries are emphasized with prominent portals on the north and south elevations into the complex. "Exterior walkways between the six retail building blocks are partially covered overhead with the utilization of steel barrel vaults and fabric tensile structures," notes Kozmevski. "The walkway design incorporates various architectural concrete patterns and textures. A sun shade structure and playground area is provided in the west courtyard, whereas a steel and wood trellis with a gas fireplace and a wine barrel feature wall are positioned in the east courtyard." Fabric tensile structures, or "tent roofs," are situated in four locations between the steel barrel vault sections. "The tents are a marker," says David Moore, principal, Pellow + Associates Architect s Inc. "They are lit at night and you can see them well before you get to the site. The tents also put day- light in the middle of the long sections of the barrel vaulted steel roof, which makes t hem feel much more inviting and open." The Outlet Collection at Niagara offers distinc- t ive a rchitec t ura l a nd service elements that are very unique to the Niagara region, says David Baffa, senior VP of retail develop- ment, Ivanhoé Cambridge. "The space is open and a ir y, a nd incor porates the Niagara-on-the-Lake reg ion in a nu mber of ways," says Baffa. "We have an event area near the food court pavilion where we will host different com- munity events, such as a farmer's market and Food Truck Fri- days." The landscaping for the project emu- lates the wineries of the Niagara region, says Moore, noting that a small demon- stration vineyard is located adjacent to the northwest entrance. "We created a barrel wall," notes Baffa, "which is com- prised of 216 wine barrels donated by dozens of local wineries." Weather was a challenge for the development of this project, with approximately three months of the original 17-month construction sched- ule lost due to poor weather conditions. "We've experienced one of Canada's worst winters, which made it difficult for our construction team to stay on schedule," says Baffa. "The entire team has been working tirelessly over the last 10 months to ensure all project aspects have been handled on schedule." A prolonged period was required prior to commencement of construc- tion for site plan approvals, which pushed the initial start from the fall of 2012 to late February 2013. "This challenge, combined with a substan- tial increase in our scope of work in assisting the client with completing site pre-grading work and the re-alignment of the regional road coming into the site, required PCL and our client to look at fast-tracking the project," says Kozmevski. "There was also a budget challenge, which required considerable value engineering for cost savings. We had elected to divide the foundation work into two stages to permit consul- tants to complete working drawings, obtain permits, and for PCL to tender, award and execute the work." The severe winter season had a s ig n i f ic a nt i mp ac t on t he abi l- it y to accelerate the schedule, says Kozmevski. "We persisted with the use of winter cover, heating and extended work hours to mitigate for lost time," explains Kozmevski. "Both the client and ourselves had to deal with another challenge midway through the project when it was realized that several key tenants required earlier turnover of their spaces. We were able to work through this challenge as well with some schedule acceleration and effec- tive planning." Assisting in managing the 105 tenant contractor forces in a safe and effective manner was no easy task. "Effective Location University of Toronto Scarborough, Ontario agency ResponsibLe Infrastructure Ontario owneR City of Toronto / University of Toronto DeveLopeR (DbF team) PCL Aquatics Centre 2012 aRchitect NORR Limited constRuction PCL Constructors Canada stRuctuRaL consuLtant Halsall Associates Limited mechanicaL/eLectRicaL/ communications/secuRity consuLtant Smith + Andersen Consulting LanDscape aRchitect Janet Rosenberg + Associates gReen RooF consuLtant LiveRoof Ontario Inc. accessibiLity consuLtant SPH Planning & Consulting Ltd. aquatic consuLtant Counsilman-Hunsaker totaL aRea 360,000 square feet totaL vaLue oF DbF contRact $158 million ALL renderings courtesy high view communicAtions June 2014 /87 Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre Outlet Collection at niagara p.84-89Pan Am_Outlets.indd 87 14-06-03 10:25 AM