Award

B ringing Jubiliee Plaza (JP) to life in downtown Fort McMurray – a $16.9-million City Centre Revital- ization Initiative by the Regional Mu- nicipality of Wood Buffalo (RMWB) – is more than just the creation of the town's first public square, but a two-fold plan to expand the downtown core and in- crease its permanent population. "It's an important component of the redevelopment of the city centre," says Kashif Khan, RMWB's project manager, Jubilee Plaza. "It will be a beautiful space for residents to gather, socialize, per- form and just be together. This central area will be highly visible and accessible for residents. From public art to land- scaping, the plaza's design incorporates and celebrates the many facets of our community in one place." JP is located beside the Jubilee Centre municipal building, and will be home to cultural festivals, an urban market and a variety of events. "The Plaza is also intended to act as a catalyst for investment by private devel- opers to build new office, retail, hotel and residential buildings in the vicinity," says Ron Soskolne, RMWB's planning and design advisor for the City Centre. "The parking lots and small-scale build- ings that surround the site are expected to be replaced by mid- and high-rise office, retail, hotel and residential build- ings over the next 10 to 15 years to meet the substantial backlog that currently exists for those facilities." Local geology is a crucial factor in the design, and the sedimentary stone plaza at Jubilee Centre will be supported atop a steel frame and pile system to protect it from extreme weather conditions and accommodate the rolling mobile podium loads, while leveraging the remnant piles from the previous plaza demolition. "With its iconic movable wood platform, the square creates distinct relationships with surrounding street fronts and invites new programs and uses that can be reconfigured on a sea- sonal basis," says Khan. "The platform can be placed at different points in the plaza to track the sun, find shelter from the wind or secure the best views of the Northern Lights." Public Work was commissioned in January 2013 to design Jubilee Plaza, "because this is the first urban public space at the heart of a city centre, which is undergoing remarkable grow th and transformation," says Marc Ryan, architect and principle. "The plaza is designed as a dynamic place that can accommodate a diverse and constantly changing array of events and gatherings throughout the year. "It had to be completely flexible and adaptable, but it also needed a strong identity and feeling to make it memora- ble," Ryan adds. "Every element within the plaza – the movable raised timber stage, the paving stone, lighting, boreal planter landscape and Weather Catcher structure – are designed to contribute towards creating a new public destina- tion with a particular emphasis on the delights and qualities of the North." Architect Adam Nicklin, also a firm principle, stresses that there was a need for the design to demonstrate that the community is becoming more Jubilee Plaza by Irwin Rapoport 66/ october 2014 Jubilee Plaza Proud to have been the roofing contractor for the Buckingham Arena at Downsview Park. 3 C l a r k Av e n u e H a m i l t o n , O n t a r i o • Tel: 905.525.9689 email: info@roqueroofing.com • www.roqueroofing.com Roofing.indd 1 14-08-28 2:31 PM Proud to have provided the mechanical installations on this prestigious project 100, 1415-90 Ave NW Edmonton, AB T6P 0C8 • Tel: 780-440-6440 Fax: 780-464-6496 Mechanical Contractors Goldbar Mechanical.indd 1 14-09-08 4:00 PM Overhead Door (Hamilton-Burlington) Ltd. 5450 Harvester Road, Burlington ON L7L 5N5 • 905.333.1772 overheaddoorburlington.ca •  info@overheaddoorburlington.ca Glad to be part of the Buckingham Arena at Downsview Park project. Overhead Door.indd 1 14-09-17 1:22 PM T. LLOYD ELECTRIC ONTARIO LTD. TL 16 Harlowe Road, Unit #5, Hamilton Ontario L8W 3R6 • 905.388.8916 www.tlloydelectric.ca • info@tlloydelectric.ca Proud to be the electrical contractor for the Buckingham Area at Downsview Park project. Electric.indd 1 14-09-10 12:58 PM Besseling Mech.indd 1 14-09-24 2:20 PM

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