Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/607779
DECEMBER 2015 | 79 Taché Hall Music, Art & Theatre Complex – University of Manitoba RENDERING + PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA Taché Hall Music, Art & Theatre Complex – University of Manitoba by ZUZANNA WODZYNSKA T he University of Manitoba is currently undergoing phase three of a four- phase upgrade to house the Desautels Faculty of Music, the Faculty of Arts Black Hole Theatre Company and students from the School of Art. The first phase saw the addition of a new award-winning build- ing named the Art Research Technology lab (ARTlab) – home to the School of Art that opened in 2012. Adjacent to the ARTlab, the second phase is a compre- hensive renovation and adaptive re-use of the 100-year-old Taché Residence Hall for both Music and Art. "The transformation of the historic Taché Hall is part of a larger plan to restore the University's prominent his- toric buildings, offering students modern places and spaces that inspire," explains Andrew Konowalchuk, the University's associate-VP of administration. "Through a combination of renovation and new con- struction, the University is ensuring our facilities meet today's technological and environmental standards, while preserv- ing and celebrating buildings with his- toric significance." Built in 1912, Taché Hall was the largest of the original campus build- ings and was built as a residence hall in the quadrangle at the heart of cam- pus. Consistent with its contemporary University structures, Taché Hall was designed in the Georgian style with two four-storey wings and a central block. The salmon-red brick, limestone detail- ing, cornices, columns and clay tile roof have all been preserved, along with the central, classically-detailed portico entrance flanked by twin block towers. Inside, the original terrazzo flooring in the public corridors has been restored and the stately wood door casings have been repaired and finished. "The updated complex reflects the juxtaposi- tion of old and new," says David Kressock, lead architect on the project from LM Architectural Group. "Original embossed wall panelling and crown mouldings on the exterior walls have been repaired and painted white to create a classic sur- rounding for the contemporary-styled, glass-enclosed music library and lis- tening room, with their crisp minimal detailing and vivid yellow accents." Structurally, the repurposing of the beautiful heritage building did present the teams with some challenges as it transitioned from dormitory to assem- bly use. "The existing floors carried a live load of 50-pounds per square foot but most assembly occupancy requires 100-pounds per square foot," says Bart Flisak, lead structural engineer on the project at Crosier Kilgour & Partners Ltd. Moreover, the masonry bearing walls supported a relatively thin five-inch con- crete slab among the multitude of small rooms of the original 144,000-square- foot floor plan. "This made it difficult to remove walls or provide large openings to combine spaces without incurring significant structural load transfer," comments Kressock. Flisak adds that select areas, such as washrooms, a few small classrooms and the mechanical rooms have had the floors reinforced on the underside with steel beams and channels to increase the load capacity. For these reasons, Taché is filled with thesis rooms and small rehearsal rooms that match the occupant live load of the original building. The Desautels Faculty of Music also needed larger rehearsal rooms and classrooms for students, so phase three, a new 52,000-square-foot addition, is under construction on the south side of the existing Taché Hall. It contains cus- tom-designed spaces for band, orches- tra, choir, opera and electro-acoustical programs, and is expected to be com- pleted in 2017. "The new addition was designed to comply with LEED Silver designation, though as an interior renovation the upgrade to Taché Hall isn't targeting LEED requirements," comments Padraic O'Connell, LEED consultant on the proj- ect from MMM Group Ltd. Given its age, it comes as no surprise that the stately Taché Hall needed some significant improvements to its mechan- ical and electrical systems, which were essentially stripped down to their shell. "Virtually nothing was salvageable from Taché's mechanical system," says Jeff Horrocks, lead mechanical engineer on the project from SMS Engineering Ltd. "The building had hot water radiation that was aged, limited corridor ven- tilation, no fire protection and no air conditioning." In order to bring the building up to code, central fan rooms were installed on each floor that provide HVAC to pub- lic corridors and common areas. The mechanical systems are fed from the University's central energy plant system for chilled water and steam, which is then converted to hot water. All radiant heat was removed and replaced with four-pipe fan coil units in each room that offer indi- vidually controlled heating and cooling. "The Desautels Faculty of Music, with its multitude of pianos and other wood instruments, had requested a humidity- controlled environment," notes Horrocks. To that end, the exterior walls were upgraded with strapping and closed-cell spray foam to provide much needed insu- lation as well as an air and vapour barrier. The upgraded exterior walls con- ceal much of the new electrical and data requirements. "Like the mechanical systems, all existing electrical services were dated and non-code compliant," states Ken Isaac, lead electrical con- struction administrator on the project at MCW/AGE. "They were all removed and stripped back to the source." Unfortunately, the site is located on a part of campus that did not have suffi- cient electrical service. "A new medium- voltage power supply and switchgear were brought in to power the Taché redevelopment," explains Jackman. The site also created challenges for the new addition. With two streets fram- ing Taché Hall to the north and west, and two existing buildings hugging it from the south, creating space for the addi- tion required the removal of some of the former residential wings of Taché. "Since the original Hall foundations consisted of spread footings and not piles, we had to ensure that renovations to the existing building and the placement of the new addition to the south would not undermine these footings or require sig- nificant underpinning," recalls Flisak. "Both scenarios would be cost-prohibi- tive." To that end, the new addition has been kept away from Taché's southern facade, creating courtyards that sepa- rate old from new. There are only three points where the new building reaches out to connect to the existing Taché Hall. "The University of Manitoba has been a leader in moving our province to the forefront of the national cultural scene," notes Konowalchuk. "The Taché Arts Project is building on this legacy by creating the best possible learning and research environment for future musi- cians, artists, theatre professionals and cultural scholars." A LOCATION University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba OWNER/DEVELOPER University of Manitoba ARCHITECTS Patkau Architects / LM Architectural Group GENERAL CONTRACTOR Bird Construction Company STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Crosier Kilgour & Partners Ltd. MECHANICAL CONSULTANT SMS Engineering Ltd. ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT MCW/AGE LEED CONSULTANT MMM Group Ltd. LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Hilderman Thomas Frank Cram TOTAL SIZE 266,000 square feet (70,000 ARTlab; 144,000 Taché Hall; 52,000 new addition) TOTAL COST $90 million (Phase two and three)