Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/493534
A PR IL 2015 | 57 Faculty & Staff Housing - Nobel House UBC PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY UBC PROPERTIES TRUST Faculty & Staff Housing – Nobel House UBC by JERRY EBERTS N obel House is a new residential rental project at the University of British Columbia (UBC). Featuring apartments of one, two, three and four bedrooms, this 94-suite building is next door to Nobel Park – featuring a softball diamond, playground and community gar- dens – and close to beautiful Pacific Spirit Regional Park. This is sustainable living for UBC faculty and staff right on campus. "Design of the project began in 2012," says Megan Pohanka, development co- ordinator for owner UBC Properties Trust. "Construction began in July 2013 and the project was completed in March 2015." But perhaps the most interesting aspect of Nobel House is that it is a six- storey wooden structure. That is two full f loors higher than most wooden buildings constructed in Canada. In fact, new regulations have had to be created to deal with these new structures. "It was a bit of a struggle to accommodate certain aspects inherent with wood- frame buildings," says Pohanka. "We had to reconfigure shafts and other building system elements to fit within the walls and between trusses. There were a lot of design considerations. It isn't just a matter of extending a four-storey wood- frame building a bit higher." Having control over rental buildings such as Nobel House means the univer- sity can offer these perfectly located residences at a subsidized rate com- pared with housing in other parts of the city. "In a region of high housing costs and transportation constraints, this really helps the university attract and retain faculty and staff," says Pohanka. Greg Voute of Raymond Letkeman Architects Inc. of Vancouver acted as project architect for Nobel House. He describes the building as being part of the Wesbrook South Campus develop- ment. More new structures are planned for the coming years. "Nobel House is a U-shaped building that sits on a corner and catches the sun in the back courtyard," says Voute. "We wanted to keep the street character along Wesbrook, so we used brick walls and individual entries on the ground floor. Along the park side the building is a little more elevated; some of the suites have balconies. In the courtyard there is a water feature, trellises and a barbe- cue area with seating that can be accessed from the park side. It is a very livable space." While the project went smoothly, Voute says one challenge was to create the entrance to the two levels of below- ground parking using a long ramp on the Ross Street side, tucked around the back of the building. This same ramp will do double duty when a neighbouring project is built in the future. Darren Rae from Scott Construction says the project "had its challenges. For example, centre studs were eight- to 12-inches apart, which meant more drilling for plumbers and electricians. But the consultant team has been fan- tastic. There were few changes during LOCATION 3655 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, B.C. OWNER/DEVELOPER UBC Properties Trust ARCHITECT Raymond Letkeman Architects Inc. GENERAL CONTRACTOR Scott Construction Group STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Thomas Leung Structural Engineering MECHANICAL CONSULTANT Williams Engineering Canada Inc. ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT Nemetz (S/A) & Associates Ltd. LANDSCAPE CONSULTANT Perry + Associates (P+A) INTERIOR DESIGN Laura Vroom Design TOTAL AREA 107,260 square feet TOTAL CONSTRUCTION COST $19 million