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92 | AUGUST 2016 612 Main Street PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY KINDRACHUK AGREY ARCHITECTURE 612 Main Street by JACOB PARRY E ven after three decades as an architect, Derek Kindrachuk found it interesting to sit on the other side of the table. When his architectural firm, Kindrachuk Agrey Architecture, set out to build a new five-storey office across the river from downtown Saskatoon, he found himself in the new found position as developer, as well as his usual role. "We were an educated client, in a sense," he says, "It opens you up as a designer to see it from the owner's perspective when it comes to value engineering." The result was a 71,370-square- foot building, developed to satisfy the work place needs of Kindrachuk Agrey and the law firm McDougall Gauley through a group of investors. Situated in the eclectic Saskatoon neighbourhood of Nutana, the building is a hub for professionals in the district. It started when Kindrachuk acquired land across from their former office on Main St., and when Dave McKeague, a partner at McDougall Gauley and co-owner of Main Street Developments One Ltd., approached them and asked if they would be interested in submitting an RFP for their new office. "We got together with some more investors and eventually put together a financing structure and tendered the contract in November of 2012," says McKeague. Three years later, the law firm moved in as anchor tenant in May of 2015. Kindrachuk Agrey moved in three months later. The site previously housed an old car wash built in the 1950s. "It was a great infill opportunity," says Kindrachuk. Partners of his firm acquired the site and then added the three buildings to the east and set about planning it's redevelopment. "We wanted to construct a building that would respect the fabric of Broadway, with its one- and two-storey storefronts," says Kindrachuk. "We set about designing a building with a commercial base and upper storeys that mass together like a series of buildings, rather than one individual block," he says. The five-storey building is finished with brick masonry, composite metal panels, phenolic laminate panels, glass curtainwall and pre-finished metal cladding. Along each level a continuous band of tall windows encompass the north, south and west sides of the building. Inside, the building features attractive elevator lobbies with tile and wood accents, and a feature stair with views and daylight on all floor levels. The modern contemporary 20-feet-high entrance lobby adjoins two quiet traction elevators with high- quality cab finishes and card access control. Each suite has glass entrance doors and the building overall has 24/7 card access in the stair wells, elevators and parkade entrance. Outside, the building features 54 stalls of underground parking, 13 covered on-grade stalls and 12 uncovered stalls. Subtle landscaping accentuates the building's features, designed by landscape architecture firm Crosby, Hanna and Associates. "From the owner's point of view, low maintenance was one of the biggest criteria for them," says Marilyn Gould, the landscape architect for the project. "It's a fairly visible pedestrian zone through that area. They wanted to make sure they were able to maintain it to an appropriate level." The below-grade drip system that the firm installed is low water usage. In the exterior spaces above, the designer worked to make sure that the environment was pleasant. "Rooftops can be harsh environments especially in Saskatchewan, so we made sure we can mitigate the weather with the planting," she says. "We wanted leaf colour variation so we have pops of purple leafs and light grey and white variegated leaf plants in order to pull contrasts in." The goal, she says, was to "pop against the facade." The systems installed in the building were heavily guided by the proponent's environmental goals. "We knew they wanted a modern design that pushed the envelope of what was typically done, so the mechanical challenges were not only what could be done efficiently and effectively but also, what would allow them to have a building they were proud of," says Chris Conley of Daniels Wingerak Engineering Ltd. That included high- performance window systems for energy efficiency with triple glazed units with inert gas fill, the latest Low-E coatings and warm edge spacers. "We wanted to maximize everyone's exposure to glass and natural daylight but at the same time not impact their comfort or the energy performance of the building," says Conley. These mechanical systems include a dedicated outdoor air system and high-efficiency boilers and chillers for reduced energy costs. On the upper floors, the building uses chilled beams to provide cooling and effective ventilation distribution, and allows cooling control for each room. "The floor areas only have radiant cooling and heating, so our tempering of our environment is done without having to have big fans on all the time," says Conley. These systems are no small challenge in Saskatchewan, explains Conley. "We struggle with, or work with, one of the more extreme climates in the world. That's a challenge of right-sizing equipment that can be efficiently run, a heating system that can run and be efficient from extremely cold days to a milder day and then vice-versa on the cooling side as well, so part-load efficiency becomes extremely important," he explains. While market factors bogged it down initially, the project faced very few hickups once it got under construction – with one exception. The problem, initially, was the site itself and the remnants of the structure that predated it and needed to be dealt with an environmentally sustainable approach. "Some of the below-grade geotechnical conditions were challenging. There was a struggle getting the foundation work started but it was full steam ahead after that," says Kindrachuk. In conclusion Kindrachuk says: "It has been eye opening. We're more aware of the approach of value- managing capital investment for the greatest return in the long term whether its lifestyle, quality of equipment, passive or active detail. We have a greater appreciation for those things now." A LOCATION 616 Main Street, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan OWNER/DEVELOPER Main Street Developments One Ltd. ARCHITECT Kindrachuk Agrey Architecture GENERAL CONTRACTOR PCL Construction Management Inc. STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Robb Kullman Engineering LLP MECHANICAL CONSULTANT Daniels Wingerak Engineering Ltd. ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT PWA Engineering Ltd. LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Crosby, Hanna and Associates TOTAL SIZE 71,370 square feet (plus 20,960 square feet parkade) TOTAL COST Undisclosed

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