Award

Park Royal Village Retail Expansion by Jessica Krippendorf courtesy park royal P ark Royal is one of West Vancouver's most successful and community-fo- cused shopping experiences. Its ex- terior village-themed drive-up portion complements interior mall retail space, and abundant parking and transit access creates a solid community hub. A two-year expansion and renova- tion project, completed in late fall 2014, will add 150,000 square feet of commer- cial retail and 250,000 square feet of additional parking to the shopping cen- tre, creating a new urban main street- inspired portion to Park Royal South as well as a rich pedestrian experience that will enhance the streetscape beauty with greenery, art, fountains, way-find- ing graphics and custom paving. John Moorcroft, senior associate with Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership (MCMP) Architects, says the company was familiar with the project, having designed the original Park Royal Village 10 years ago. "It was such a success, the client wanted to replicate that with addi- tional outdoor shopping, rather than creating an interior mall," he says. Although the client requested a grow- ing scope that would see the overall retail space expand to 1.4-million square feet, high on the wish list was a more urban design than the original develop- ment, and one that offered retailers the freedom to express their individuality. The design team delivered with a building facade that expresses individual tenant spaces with a mix of brick, stucco, metal panel, stone, tile, glazing and entry door styles. Glass canopies create the downtown esthetic that welcomes pedestrians and drive-up traffic, offering weather protection and visual diversity. "The result is a modern, more con- temporary feel than the original village, which has a more traditional design," says Moorcroft. "The previous village had a seaside village theme, but the expansion has a very modern feel to it." Two new buildings across the street expand the vision of an outdoor retail space. The street between was modified and improved with trees, new lighting, pavers and a curving configuration, so it becomes a more pleasant pedestrian experience. T he ex pansion a lso includes a major reconf ig urat ion of t he on- site parking, with two new levels of parking structure. Ivona Zebrowski, architect with MCMP Architects, says the nor th-facing parkade elevation features a diffused glass panel screen- ing system that serves practical and esthetic purposes. "We didn't want to leave exposed structural lines," she says. "We considered using metal fins or planting, but settled on individual glass panels mounted proud of the wall for natural ventilation and light." The unique glass facade is more t han 1,000-feet long , and creates v isual interest above t he g round- f loor retail space. Inside the parkade, exposed concrete is covered by per- forated metal soffits with recessed lighting in areas where the two new pedestrian bridges connect the upper- level parkade structure with the exist- ing south mall entrances. A courtyard between the buildings offers a community space that can be used for gatherings. The grounds are marked with a fountain and Squamish First Nations art to commemorate the band's traditional territory. The ex tensive project was com- pleted while the existing building was open and active, requiring the design and construction crews to take extra safety and noise related precautions. An overpass connecting two sides of the development had to be readjusted, underpinned and realigned, and there- fore closed for two weeks and traffic rerouted. Construction crews worked non-stop to level the overpass and reopen it within time constraints. As the tenants took up residence, changes and var ying requirement s also required flexibility and time man- agement on the team's part. "One building was designed as a one storey, and at the last minute added a second f loor and changed the entire design," says Moorcroft. "Such is the nature of these t ypes of projects, so you have to be f lexible." The soil conditions proved chal- lenging, says Carlos Rios, director of operations for Metro-Can Construction, general contractor on the project. Metro-Can Construction's scope of work included construction of each commercial building and the new park- ing structure, and renovations to the ground f loor of the existing parking structure and overhead pedestrian walkway. "Every time we excavated we came across buried services not noted in the drawings. There were also people october 2014 /73 Park royal Village retail expansion 1:53 PM

• Cover