Ontario Focus Spring 2023

ONTARIO

Royal Oak Dairy REDEVELOPMENT

Good planning converts derelict site to energy-efficient living units

KINGSTON FIRE MAINTENANCE GARAGE

A first for Net-Zero design

INTERVIEW

BIOPHILIC

DESIGN

For physical and mental well-being

Enbridge Gas has plans for hydrogen

Architect: WZHM Architects, Owner/Developer: Akelius Canada, General Contractor: Gillam Group Inc.

Endymion Guesthouse: Private home demonstrates cost effective ultra-low energy consumption

Biophilic Design: Advancing our physical and mental well-being

Building Lasting Change: Focus on decarbonization

Kingston Fire Maintenance Garage: A first for Net-Zero design

Dairy

Good

Interview with Sam McDermott of Enbridge Gas: Hydrogen in our energy New Global Policy Principles from World GBC: Transformative action for policymakers

Message from Thomas Mueller, President & CEO, Canada Green Building Council

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A message from Thomas Mueller, President & CEO, Canada Green Building Council

Welcome to the latest issue of Ontario FOCUS, a partnership between Sustainable Architecture & Building Magazine and the Canada Green Building Council (CAGBC). In this issue, you’ll read about exciting new projects like the Kingston Fire Maintenance Building designed for Net-Zero energy, and a heritage stable building of a former dairy converted to high-efficiency supportive housing units, among others.

I am happy to report that CAGBC’s annual conference will be returning to Vancouver. Building Lasting Change will run June 1-2, 2023 and host representatives from across the building spectrum. This year’s program will focus heavily on decarbonizing the building sector to achieve Canada’s ambitious climate targets.

This shift doesn’t alter our commitment to the more holistic benefits of green buildings. We continue to support green buildings as a way to eliminate environmental impacts, enhance biodiversity, and improve human health and well-being. However, in this critical decade for climate action, we recognize the need for decisive action – and zero-carbon buildings offer a proven solution to significant carbon reductions. Whether you are interested in new building design or retrofit, electrification or embodied carbon, green technology or sustainable finance, we hope you’ll join us in Vancouver and be part of this important discussion.

Since its creation 20 years ago, CAGBC has worked to provide the building sector with sustainable solutions that are as effective for business as they are for people and the planet. Our approach to carbon reduction builds on the industry capabilities we have nurtured since the early 2000s and now support through our Zero Carbon Building standards, Accelerating to Zero education series, and our industry-driven Accelerators and working groups.

Achieving meaningful climate action means all buildings must be zerocarbon, and deep carbon retrofits are essential. Meeting 2030 and 2050 targets will require building owners and operators to advance their assetand portfolio-level transition planning. Building owners must consider investments in carbon reduction with every planned improvement or retrofit to ensure assets retain their value in the coming years.

As the real estate sector and other companies move toward adopting Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) goals as key performance metrics, CAGBC will be ready with the tools and services needed to measure, report and achieve environmental targets. The need to recognize and report climate risk will also increase interest in third-party certifications as a tool for the real estate investment community.

Now is a critical time for the building sector, and we hope you will join us at Building Lasting Change to contribute to the discussion and learn about the transition to zero carbon.

Sincerely,

Thomas Mueller President & CEO, Canada Green Building Council

Building Lasting Change to focus on decarbonization

Building Lasting Change brings Canada’s green building community together, from engineers, architects, designers and builders, to manufacturers, real estate professionals, financiers, owners, tenants, and policy advisors.

This year, CAGBC’s annual conference returns to Vancouver on June 1-2. Canada’s building sector can be a champion for impactful solutions for climate change. To ensure it takes advantage of the opportunities zero-carbon building presents, we’re focused on maximizing the transition of large buildings to zero-carbon.

Over two days, experts in these fields will share their knowledge, explore practical solutions, and discuss the policies, standards, and strategies necessary for decarbonization at scale.

WHAT TO EXPECT

In-person attendees will join their green building peers at the JW Marriott Parq in Vancouver – a LEED Gold facility. There, they will participate in engaging sessions with Canada’s leading green building experts and attend exciting keynote sessions. They’ll also join in BLC’s networking events and celebrations, like the Gala Dinner and After Party, and take part in green building tours.

Highlights from the program include the following sessions: Factoring resilience and climate risk into decarbonisation strategies. Whether you’re a building owner, investor, or you lease a building, you’ll want to hear from this panel of experts as they share how to bridge the gap between decarbonising and resilience and address the benefits of building climate risk factors into your transition plans.

Securing stakeholder buy-in for low-carbon transition. Industry leaders will share their own lived experiences and successful strategies for getting buy-in and engagement from the boardroom to their tenants for zero carbon projects.

Upcycling existing large buildings to get to zero. This panel will explore case studies from across Canada and around the world that breathe life into buildings that are near the end of their lifespan by taking advantage of decarbonisation best practices.

Carbon as a metric in future codes and standards. Panelists will discuss how metrics in codes and standards are evolving to better capture the true impact of carbon from our buildings and what that means for future projects and transition planning.

Closing the sustainability/valuation gap for capital market investors. Examine how to unlock retrofit capital investments and ensure that sustainability strategies and objectives are included in building appraisal, valuation, and financing processes.

Interim solutions for the EPD data gap. Hear from key material associations and data users on the data challenges they face and what tools project teams can leverage to support embodied carbon targets.

BLC Building Tours. BLC attendees can experience behind-thescenes tours of buildings pushing the envelop on sustainability Among them, The Stack, Canada’s first commercial high-rise office tower to be awarded CAGBC’s Zero Carbon Building – Design Standard certification, and last year’s CAGBC Award for Existing Building winner, the Bentall Centre.

For those unable to attend in person, CAGBC is also offering an online ticket with access to all planned learning sessions. Find out more at cagbc.org/blc.

New Global Policy Principles from WorldGBC

Outlines transformative action policymakers can take to accelerate sustainability

Ahead of the G7 Ministers’ Meeting on Climate, Energy and Environment (15–16 April 2023), the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC), and its network of 75+ Green Building Councils, launched a set of principles aimed at guiding national governments to develop effective building policies and programs to accelerate a decarbonized future.

Many of the priority topics for the G7 ministers meeting can be addressed by buildings — from achieving both energy security and net zero, to advancing the transition to circular economies. Worldwide, buildings are responsible for 37% of energy related carbon emissions and 34% of energy demand (Source GlobalABC Status Report 2022). With such a significant environmental and carbon impact, leaders and policymakers must recognise the built environment as a key agent of change to close the 1.5°C gap.

WorldGBC and its network, which includes the Canada Green Building Council (CAGBC), have launched the “Global Policy Principles for a Sustainable Built Environment”, to support policymakers around the world adopt a holistic approach to built environment sustainability, and ensure that new and updated policies and legislations deliver the transformative action needed to reach the Paris Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals.

“Government policy has tremendous power to signal to the building sector and investment community its support for green building and decarbonization,” said Thomas Mueller, President and CEO, CAGBC. “WorldGBC’s Global Policy Principles provide timely guidance for all governments seeking to advance green building policies and address risks associated with “business as usual” approaches.

The primary focus must be reducing carbon emissions and increasing resilience through new zero-carbon buildings and deep carbon retrofits. However, policies also need to take a broader environmental view of the benefits green buildings can deliver.”

The principles are structured around seven key focus areas: carbon, resilience, circularity, water, biodiversity, health, equity and access. These areas are supported by detailed policy levers to show how they can be effectively implemented through regulation, information and incentives.

We know from the most recent IPCC report that current government policies will see warming exceed 1.5°C during the 21st century – causing irreversible harm to the environment and our most vulnerable members of society. Despite being the largest contributing sector to carbon emissions globally, the building and construction industry is still not on track to achieve total decarbonization by 2050 (Source GlobalABC Status Report 2022); meaning the gap between actual climate performance of the sector and its pathway to decarbonization is widening.

This creates a dual challenge for the built environment — with markets in Asia and Africa expecting their building stock to double by mid-century. Meanwhile other regions are grappling with the challenges of renovating energy inefficient buildings.

By supporting the delivery of these principles, governments will be sending a clear signal to the market that decarbonized built environments are a priority, therefore enabling industry to deliver more innovative solutions. But governments must take a holistic approach, embracing public funding and influencing financial investment decisions and tools that consider carbon mitigation, resilience, and green buildings.

Endymion Guesthouse

Private home demonstrates cost effective ultra-low energy consumption

By Jonathan Kearns

Set in the bucolic landscape of Prince Edward County, the Endymion Guesthouse is inspired and informed by nature. The 344 sq.m threelevel, multi-generational guesthouse was designed for the owners’ visiting family, friends and guests, allowing numerous configurations of visitor accommodations.

Set on a four-acre greenfield site, Endymion was designed as a rural villa perched on a knoll in the corner of a meadow, backed by woods and commanding a magnificent southern view over lavender gardens to Prince Edward Bay and Lake Ontario.

A winding driveway avoided the need to remove trees, and the knoll created around the house allows surface water from the street and adjoining properties to drain naturally around the house. The grading allows a concrete slab ground floor and accommodates a 20-metre earth tube to the ventilation system.

1. Endymion relies on the sun to supply most of the heating through a south-facing wall, therefore siting and orientation of large deep-set windows were vital to its success.

Passive house axonometry

Summer sun

Winter sun

Furred out south wall (1 m) prevents excessive solar gain during high angled summer sun however low angled winter sun is able to penetrate.

Continuous air tight and thermal insulation building envelope

Triple

high performance window

Legalett in floor air radiant heated floor slab using dhw as the heat source

Continuous air tight and thermal insulation building envelope

Thermal bridge free junction

Lavender drying shed with rainwater harvesting

2. Built with insulated concrete forms of 200mm concrete thickness plus 6” of ThermalWall PH applied to the exterior for a total of R43 to achieve thermal mass, the house is highly insulated and airtight.

3. Legalett EPS Deck insulated concrete floor and roof forms were used for the suspended floors and the flat roof. Stego® Wrap vapour barrier installed under the concrete slab provides extremely low permeability to protect against moisture vapour and soil gas transmission, and helps to protect against flooring failures.

1. Kitchen/living/dining

2. Corridor

3. Mechanical room

4. Mudroom

5. Bathroom

Fresh air intake

Energy recovery with heat exchanger (erv) ventilator

glazed

6. Bedroom 7. Patio 8. Mechanical room 9. stairwell 10. Legalett EPS Deck Insulated Concrete Floor and Roofs Forms

High performance window

Stale air exhaust to outside

Energy recovery ventilator with heat exchanger (erv)

Fresh air intake

Applying the Passive House methodology, Endymion relies on the sun to supply most of the heating through a south-facing wall, therefore siting and orientation of large deep-set windows were vital to its success.

The house can function as a large single-family home or as four separate family suites, or any combination in between. The upper two levels occupy a long rectangular plan to capture maximum solar energy and the first level bedrooms open to east and west with private courtyards.

1. Mechanical & Storage

2. Bedroom

3. Bathroom

4. Patio

5. Stairwell

6. Rainwater Storage Cistern

7. Kitchen / Living & Dining

8. Den / Office

9. Entrance Deck

10. Storage

11. Mudroom

12. Patio Privacy Screen / Storage Element

13. Hot Tub

14. Lavender Basket

Each habitable room has between one and three large, PHI-certified, triple-glazed, fiberglass operable windows or doors in the south wall, with another window in the north wall of all rooms for natural cross ventilation. The large south-facing windows allow maximum natural light and have manual shades to control the brightness. 100% of the occupied floor area is within seven metres of a window or door.

Built with insulated concrete forms of 200mm concrete thickness plus 6” of ThermalWall PH applied to the exterior for a total of R43 to achieve thermal mass, the house is thermal bridge free, massively insulated, and airtight. Large format porcelain ceramic tile cladding provides a ventilated rainscreen facade.

Each habitable room receives dedicated, highly filtered fresh air using two ERVs with MERV 13 filters. Relative humidity can be maintained without risk of condensation or mould, and can stave off airborne infections. Endymion offers enhanced physical comfort, free from draughts and noise due to the airtight, insulated seal and natural light, simultaneously heightening the inhabitant’s mood and wellbeing.

PROJECT CREDITS

ARCHITECTS Kearns Mancini Architects

GENERAL CONTRACTOR Bonwest Ltd

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT

Kearns Mancini Architects

STRUCTURAL ENGINEER

Ksander & Associates

MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL

ENGINEER Integral Group

PHOTOS Tom Ridout Photography

4. Each habitable room receives dedicated, highly filtered fresh air using two ERVs with MERV 13 filters. Active heating is supplied by the domestic heat pump hot water heater and air tubes in the first level polished concrete floor slab. The minimal ERV setting ensures minimum air changes of 0.31/hr.

5. Each habitable room has between one and three large, PHI-certified, triple-glazed, fiberglass operable windows or doors in the south wall.

6.wEndymion is a known Passive House in the community and demonstrates how a private home can be built to achieve ultra-low energy consumption and a very low carbon footprint.

The minimal active heating required for the whole house is supplied by the domestic heat pump hot water heater and the Legalett infloor air radiant heating in the first level polished concrete floor. The minimal ERV setting ensures minimum air changes of 0.31/hr. This can be increased on the ERV or local booster switch should the occupant load increase. All light fixtures are equipped with LEDs.

Through these measures, along with the highly insulated envelope and orientation on the site, the 344 sq.m building consumes 67.3 kW/m2/year for all energy needs - approximately 90% less thermal energy than a conventional OBC house.

While the design originally provided for rainwater harvesting from the roof, the realization came that the lake itself was the ultimate water storage facility. A revised strategy was developed to pump water to a cistern from the lake using overnight time of use rates to augment the onsite well and consequently never run out of water.

Black and grey water moves by gravity to an onsite septic system and percolation field where it is reabsorbed naturally into the environment. A highefficiency water pump supplies potable water from the well via particle and UV filters.

Passive House buildings are designed to last at least 100 years. Therefore, many locally manufactured, durable, long-lasting materials were chosen. Due to the efficient form factor and orientation of the building to harness the sun’s thermal energy in the winter and shading in the summer, heating and cooling systems will be taxed less and therefore last longer than traditional heating methods. Endymion’s flat roof can accommodate PV modules to make the house fully self-sufficient and off-grid if desired.

Endymion is a known Passive House in the community and serves to demonstrate how a private home can be built cost effectively to achieve ultralow energy consumption and a very low carbon footprint. Our firm has built several ‘laboratory’ projects in Prince Edward County at relatively small scale to explore and test the passive house methodology and its costs.

These projects provide us with sharable information in both the design/ build and in the operations going forward. This new build has added to our knowledge and lessons learned will be applied to future projects at KMAI.

JONATHAN KEARNS IS CEO AND PRINCIPAL IN CHARGE AT KEARNS MANCINI ARCHITECTS.

Kingston Fire Maintenance Garage

By CSV Architects

The Kingston Fire Maintenance Garage, designed by CSV Architects, is the City of Kingston’s first municipal building that produces as much energy as it consumes. The building, completed in July 2021, is designed to meet Net-Zero Energy standards, it’s fully electrified, and 100% of its power comes from on-site renewable sources. The new facility is located within Kingston’s Fire Training Complex, which is used by municipalities and organizations throughout Eastern Ontario.

The building primarily acts as the fleet maintenance garage for Kington Fire & Rescue. It contains three drive through truck bays capable of housing six full-size vehicles and has a limited crew area for the maintenance staff. Additional program requirements include post-disaster structural design, vehicle exhaust extraction systems and provisions for expansion of the office and living facilities.

The City’s first emergency service building designed to Net-Zero Energy

AN OWNER WITH A PLAN

The City of Kingston has a corporate culture of sustainability that values and promotes energy conservation and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction, from Council to senior management and front-line staff. On March 5, 2019, the City of Kingston became the first Ontario municipality to declare a climate emergency.

“Kingston is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and developing new technologies to combat climate change,” said Mayor Bryan Paterson. “We recognize climate change as a critical global issue, so we are making climate leadership a strategic priority here in Kingston.”

To demonstrate their commitment to climate leadership and set goals for GHG emission reduction, the City developed the Climate Leadership Plan. One of the first plans like it in Canada, the plan identifies actions the City and the community must take to achieve carbon neutrality no later than 2040.

To meet this goal across corporate facilities, the City has implemented an energy and asset management framework that includes an ambitious strategy to design and construct all new municipal buildings to Net-Zero standards.

1. Designed to meet Net-Zero Energy standards, the building is fully electrified, and 100% of its power comes from on-site renewable sources.

1. Projected generation

2. Compared to code compliant building using natural gas

BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE

With an eye to the future, the City viewed the construction of this facility as an opportunity to explore building techniques and practices that would inform how they think about new construction.

In addition to the functional requirements, the secondary mandate of the new building was to act as a prototype for future municipal buildings, providing a template of how to achieve a Net-Zero Energy building using easily assembled and simple building systems.

The building’s leading-edge design employs innovative solutions to reduce overall energy consumption while minimizing additional cost and complexity.

These cost saving strategies allowed the City to re-direct their funding to construct on-site renewable energy systems. The target for the prototype was to design a building that would generate its electrical need within its own footprint and eliminate the need for any natural gas use onsite.

“The City of Kingston is committed to being leaders in the community, and this project is an example of how sustainable design and innovative strategies can minimize the environmental footprint of new construction. This is climate leadership in action,” said Katie Brennan, project manager with the Construction Services group at the City of Kingston.

BUILDING DESIGN AND INNOVATION

CSV Architects was selected to design the new facility due to their experience with emergency service buildings and expertise in high performance buildings, specifically in their ability to utilize Passive House principles to achieve Net-Zero targets.

To achieve the City of Kingston’s Net-Zero target the design used multiple strategies, starting with a highly insulating enclosure. To keep construction costs down, the City was interested in using a pre-engineered building. Conventional pre-engineered structures can be difficult to insulate effectively as the systems often have significant thermal bridging required to carry the cladding on the structure.

Building section

1. RS solar glazing projects light deep into the space

2. High performance, thermally-broken R-18 overhead doors

3. Storage mezzanine contains heat pump compressors to maximize winter time efficiency

4. Radiant slab, insulated continuously to minimize heat loss

5. Insulated attic space

6. 14 foot destratification fan maximizes heat recovery when doors are opened

4. An advanced building automation system (BAS) ensures that the HVAC systems run at peak performance.

1.Continuous air barrier at entire perimeter of building

2. Suspended batt insulation

3. High density insulation sheathing

4. Loose fill attic insulation

5. 200mm perimeter foundation

6. Radiant slab

R-36 pre-engineered wall detail

1. Corrugated structural walls

2. Exterior cladding to enhance building appearance

3. High density insulation sheathing added to typical assembly

4. Minimal thermal bridging to support interior finish

5. High performance air vapour barrier

6. Maximize manufacturer’s standard insulation

Site plan

1. Solar field

2. Maintenance bay

3. Administrative offices

4. Storage + workshop area

For this facility, the design uses an innovative frameless pre-engineered structure. This system utilizes a medium weight, load bearing corrugated steel walls instead of a rigid steel frame.

The structure allows the insulation and air barrier system to be installed inside the structure, a highly efficient and effective location for the thermal and air control assemblies. This system reduces thermal bridging and permits a greater amount of insulation. Starting with the manufacture’s typical detail, the design improved on the overall performance of the wall, adding additional insulation and air control layers. Heating and cooling zones were then carefully selected to minimize demand while maintaining occupant comfort, managed by an advanced building automation system.

MINIMIZING ENERGY USE

With an improved envelope, the design team looked at ways to optimize energy use. To meet the target of providing a solar array the size of the building footprint of 730m2, the key strategy employed was to eliminate systems where possible:

• Radiant slab heating in the apparatus bay and a large destratification fan.

• Air source heat pumps reject heat into the apparatus bay, allowing them to function year-round.

• Windows with solar glazing in the apparatus bay allow daylighting to replace electric lighting.

• Active ERV ventilation in the office and common spaces.

• Passive ventilation in the apparatus bay.

• An advanced building automation system (BAS).

SOLAR PV ARRAY

To meet the Net Zero Energy targets, part of the savings on the capital cost were directed toward augmenting the budget for the supply and installation of a Solar Field. Preliminary data indicates the Solar Field produces 102% of the energy projected to be used, according to the energy model. The solar array will have a useful operating life of over 30 years and is expected to pay itself off with the reduction in utility bills after 15 years.

The solar project was a design-build by RESCo Energy. Construction on the array started early September 2022, and was completed in early January 2023. The array can generate a potential 196.2-megawatt hours, enough to power approximately 13 homes for a year, and alone contributes 3.4 tons in reduced carbon emissions each year. Not only does the Solar PV support the garage but also 3 other outbuildings, including two portables used for training, a Quonset used for storage, and exterior lighting supporting fire training props.

The array is comprised of 288 bifacial solar PV modules which can collect energy on both sides of each panel. The surface area of the array is only 666m2 fitting within the building footprint and exceeding the project objective. The result was a successful prototype for future sustainable development in the City of Kingston.

CSV ARCHITECTS IS BASED IN OTTAWA.

PROJECT CREDITS

ARCHITECTS CSV Architects

OWNER City of Kingston

GENERAL CONTRACTOR McDonald Brothers Construction

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Wentworth Landscapes

STRUCTURAL ENGINEER McIntosh Perry

CIVIL ENGINEER Forefront Engineering Inc

MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL ENGINEER Smith + Andersen

COMMISSIONING AGENT HRCX

PHOTOS Krista Jahnke

5. The Honco pre-engineered building was chosen to help meet the net zero energy performance targets of the City’s sustainability plan. During the project Honco collaborated with the design and construction team to achieve the goals of the project. The steel cladding for the walls and roof was supplied by Ideal Roofing.

Ideal Roofing Co Ltd. Is a leading Canadian familyowned steel roofing and siding manufacturer since 1929. We manufacture a wide range of products from metal roofing, steel building products, steel decking, steel shingles and have a steel service center division. In excess of over 20 profiles available in more than 50 vibrant colours. Ideal Services Ontario, Quebec, all Atlantic provinces and the Northeastern of the United States. Steel is a 100 percent recyclable product also part of Green buildings.

www.idealroofing.com

Royal Oak Dairy REDEVELOPMENT

Good planning converts derelict site to highly energy-efficient living units

By Emma Cubitt

The Royal Oak Dairy played a central role in the lives of Hamiltonians for generations. Royal Oak began processing fresh milk in the basement of founder George Hamilton’s home on East Avenue North in 1898, delivering as a one-horse operation.

By 1911 an industrial-scale dairy was operating, and Royal Oak Dairy was one of 23 dairies in Hamilton in the 1930s. After sitting vacant for many years, non-profit housing provider Indwell purchased the property in 2018 and has created 113 affordable apartments, bringing new life to the site.

1. View from the courtyard of Building A on the right on and Building B on the left separated by the terrace. Windows supplied by Inline Fiberglass.

2. The street view with Building B on the right and Building A on the left with the terrace in between.

Royal Oak had the distinction of being the last dairy to retire horses from door-to-door delivery in 1960 when they switched to electric delivery vans. Dairy operations eventually closed in 1991 after being deemed obsolete, and Silverwoods moved production to Toronto. The dairy building and stables saw many uses in subsequent years, ranging from warehouse storage to a rooming house conversion that never got building permits.

Indwell is a Christian charity that creates affordable housing communities for people seeking health, wellness, and belonging. Supportive housing combines affordable rents, accessible apartments, and individualized support services so that residents can maximize their independence. Community-led projects like this are made possible by active partnerships with government and local agencies.

The Oaks development is Indwell’s largest to-date. Indwell purchased the brownfield site in July 2018 with the intent to create affordable housing and preserve the heritage of the site as feasible. Following site remediation, construction began in January 2020 with the first tenants moving in July 2022.

The Oaks features new construction that appears as two buildings over a shared at-grade parking structure. The Dairy Lofts’ three stories echo the brick materials and detailing of the historic dairy that had stood for 100 years (it was torn down to remove industrial contamination below the structure), while Heartwood Apartments’ five stories presents a clearly modern presence on the site. Together they total 65,000ft2 and 95 apartments over the shared parking.

Site plan

1. Phase 1 - Tower B

2. Phase 1 - Tower A

3. Phase 2 - Stables

4. Swale 5. Transformer 6. Terrace phase 1

3. The former dairy building and stables in the as found condition.

7. Future Phase 3

floor plan, Tower A

Detail A (see next page)

ENERGY SAVINGS

- Modelled EUI = 50.3 kWh/m2a with solar PV, 65.9 kWh/m2a without solar PV

- Modelled carbon savings = 50% with solar PV, 34% without solar PV

- Average whole building air tightness test result was 0.042 cfm50/ft2 faç.

PROJECT CREDITS

ARCHITECT Invizij Architects Inc

STRUCTURAL ENGINEER Kalos Engineering Inc

MECHANICAL/ELECTRICAL ENGINEER CK Engineering Inc

CIVIL ENGINEER S. Llewellyn & Associates

LANDSCAPING CONSULTANT OMC Landscape Architecture

COMMISSIONING AGENT Isotherm Engineering LTD

PASSIVE HOUSE CONSULTANT Zon Engineering Inc

PROJECT MANAGER Schilthuis Construction Inc

PHOTOS Industryous & Invizij Architects

First

1. Office

2. Laundry

3. Electrical room

4. Common room

5. Courtyard

4 and 5. The courtyard serves as a communal gathering space and was designed to host events like this Iskwe concert. The restored stables are on the left.

Wall section

-

-

-

-

Zip

Air

Various dairy artifacts were repurposed in the new building, including large-scale photos of horse-drawn delivery wagons and trucks printed near life-sized. Lobby chandeliers and other light fixtures were designed by Invizij using original Royal Oak milk bottles, and signage was created based on the original fonts and iconography from the dairy.

Fold

A defining feature of The Oaks redevelopment is its energy efficiency, following the Phius+ 2018 (Passive House) standard, considered to be one of the most rigorous voluntary energy-based standards in the building industry. By following this standard, Indwell is dramatically reducing greenhouse gas emissions and lowering tenant utility costs. Improved efficiency meant it was feasible to go all-electric, with no gas service connection to the property. Overall, the EUI is 50kwh/m2a and the building consumes 50% less carbon the MNECB 2015.

Building section, Tower A N

1. Common room

2. Corridor

Detail A, Parapet at roof detail

Pre-finished stl flashing all fasteners to be concealed or vandal resistant

Parapet - zip board, 38x140 wd framing w/ mineral wool batt insulation, 16mm exterior grade wd sheathing

Sloped polyiso (for drainage)

Roof membrane

Continuous length of pro clima compego tape

Air and vapour barrier membrane

50mm mineral wool insulation Wood studs

13mm ext grade plywood

wd blocking as required to achieve slope

fill void with insulation

13mm ext grade plywood assembly secured to wd blocking

system tape

and vapour barrier membrane

up edge of roof air and vapour barrier membrane and secure to parapet bottom plate with staples; apply continuous bead of pro clima contega hf sealant.

Building section, Tower B

3. Parking garage

4. Courtyard

The building’s energy efficiency features include:

- Passive House level of whole building air tightness testing, 0.042 cfm50/ft2 fac

- A naturally-ventilated near-grade parking garage with thermally-broken structure and super-insulated deck above (R43)

- Improved above-grade wall enclosure (R-34) and roof assembly (R-44)

- Optimized window-to-wall ratio, reducing excessive fenestration

- Fiberglass window frames with triple-pane glass (wood windows in the stables)

- High-efficiency energy recovery ventilation systems for residential and common areas

- Air-source heat pump heating and cooling systems

- Hybrid heat pump domestic hot water heaters semidecentralized on each floor to reduce heat losses

- Low-flow plumbing fixtures

- Reduced lighting power density for residential, common and office spaces, and exterior lighting (Article continues on p. 27).

6. The community room of the restored Stables Building opens to the courtyard.

7. The piazza space is well-loved by tenants. Stormwater management is handled by the ACO Stormbrixx Storage System

8. Following the Phius+ 2018 (Passive House) standard, the Oaks redevelopment is highly energy efficient resulting in lower tenant utility costs.

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CFM

Residential ERVs Certified Commercial · EC Motors ·

Variable speed with Boost-mode · Plug-in or Hard Wire

The second phase of the redevelopment renovated the historic stables building. The original 2½ building featured the dairy’s boilers along with staging coolers for the daily delivery and milk wagon parking. A concrete ramp led up to the second-floor stables where the horses were kept, with a loft above for hay storage.

With some effort and creativity, this narrower building which had been unused for decades was converted into 13 studio apartments, offices, and a community room. In the end, much of the building was rebuilt while the brick façade and original horse ramp remain as reminders of the site’s history. The window placements reflect each stall’s original ventilation windows, lengthened where appropriate to meet the needs of the new residents’ homes.

The extensive work on stables building allowed for even floor heights to enable accessibility, add an elevator, install significant insulation, and air seal the envelope. With triple-glazed windows, the building, despite its age and general state of disrepair, still meets the thresholds for Passive House.

Various historic artifacts from the former dairy have been repurposed in the stables building, including a timeline collage with large-scale prints and memorable dates.

The program’s focus on providing housing for Indigenous tenants is reflected in interior designs, as well as a large mural painted by local artist Lester Coloma. The design is an interpretation of the local fauna and flora, and includes a birch bark canoe, Indigenous paddlers, and an eagle to represents courage and strength.

Supporting Indigenous tenants throughout The Oaks site, Sacajawea Non-Profit Housing relocated their head office to the renovated stables building.

A final phase is planned to complete the redevelopment at Royal Oak Dairy and will feature twenty-three apartments for families. Once complete, the original vision of restoring an ideally located yet derelict urban brownfield site will be fully realized, with Indwell providing affordable homes to 138 households. The Oaks demonstrates what is possible when good planning and design, talented builders, and a visionary owner work together in true co-operation.

9. The historic stables building was converted into 13 studio apartments, each equipped with a Renewaire SL-70L ERV, as well as common spaces and offices which have four Renewaire EV PREMIUM M ERV units. Wood windows and doors in the stables were supplied by VETTA Building Technologies, Inc.

EMMA CUBITT MARCH, OAA, MRAIC, LEED ®AP IS A PRINCIPAL AT INVIZIJ ARCHITECTS INC.

The importance of BIOPHILIC DESIGN

Advancing our physical and mental well-being

By Heather Dubbeldam

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically increased the importance we place on healthy homes and workplaces, at least from the perspective of infection control. While measures such as air filtration, sanitation and physical barriers deal effectively with physical risks to health, much less has been done to address the mental toll

the pandemic continues to exact on individuals and society as a whole. There has been no more critical time in modern history for architects and interior designers to reflect on how their work can create environments that promote occupant health and wellbeing.

On average, Canadians spend roughly 90% of their time indoors between home and office. While we have long aspired to create healthy indoor spaces, the pandemic has highlighted how critically important it is. Over the past year we have seen a mini-exodus from cities as people seek healthier environments, more space and a reconnection with nature. City parks have confirmed their importance for urban dwellers as oases of refuge that offer green spaces and fresh air. Residential architects have been busy making homes more livable and more conducive to remote working. The crisis has also laid bare the shortcomings of social housing that has largely ignored occupant wellbeing.

While corporations have often looked at the office as a real estate transaction, fitting as many people as possible into a space, they are now looking at the workplace from a relationship perspective. With the upcoming return to the office and with work practices upended, employers will need to create workplaces that are seen as both safe and enjoyable. Businesses at the forefront of workplace design are investing in biophilic design to improve employee well-being and productivity, and to attract and retain the best staff.

So how can architects and designers create environments – whether residences, workspaces or institutions – that promote positive physical and mental well-being? One approach is through the incorporation of biophilic design.

Biophilic design is often confused with biophilia or biomimicry; although they are related, they are not the same:

• Biomimicry is the design and production of materials, structures, and systems that are modelled on biological entities and processes – the mimicking of nature in manmade things.

• Biophilia, meaning love of nature, focuses on humanity’s innate attraction to nature and natural processes. It proposes that we have a genetic connection to the natural world built up through millennia spent living close to or immersed in nature. It explains why we feel more relaxed in a park, hiking in the woods or spending time at a lake.

• Biophilia also contributes positively to our health; research shows that regular exposure to green space and natural elements is associated with a multitude of positive neurological and physiological outcomes, including a reduction in blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol and improved quality of sleep.

These concepts are foundational to biophilic design, which utilizes natural materials, patterns, and sensory elements to maintain a connection to nature within the built environment.

1. Biophilic design is a human-centred approach to design that utilizes natural materials and patterns to support the physiological well-being of building occupants

This is a human-centred approach to design, integrating natural principles to support the physiological well-being of building occupants. Incorporating ‘direct’ or ‘indirect’ elements of nature into the built environment has been demonstrated to reduce stress, while supporting cognitive function, increasing productivity, creativity and selfreported rates of well-being.

'Direct' elements of nature include views to the exterior, plant material, ample natural light, and access to fresh air; ‘indirect’ elements include a sensory experience of the natural world achieved through spatial strategies, forms, pattern or materials.

Biophilic design is not simply about organic forms and green walls, it is a series of design techniques that are integrated into the built environment in a more subtle, but equally meaningful way. Successful biophilic designs are inspired by the qualities and features of natural settings without being exact duplicates. The means by which this is achieved varies from spatial strategies to visual cues to forms and materials used in the design.

These strategies can be grouped into three categories:

NATURE IN THE SPACE

The presence of nature in a space, visual, sensory or auditory, in the form of plants, water, breezes, scents, light, shadows, and other natural elements.

NATURAL ANALOGUES

The representational presence of nature using natural materials, colours, patterns, and shapes incorporated into building design, facade ornamentation, or decor, including images of nature, simulated natural light and air, organized complexity, and biomorphic forms and patterns.

NATURE OF THE SPACE & PLACE

The incorporation of spatial elements commonly found in nature including:

Prospect: Unimpeded views.

Refuge: Places for withdrawal in which the individual is protected from behind and overhead.

Mystery: Partially obscured views or other sensory devices that entice the individual to travel deeper into the environment, or a mild sense of risk - like stepping stones over a shallow pond or a double height space.

2. In the Garden Circle House, connectivity to the outdoors or to natural elements is incorporated in every part of the home.

3. A focal point of the interior is a curved central wood staircase that emulates natural organic forms.

HEATHER DUBBELDAM, OAA, FRAIC, LEED AP IS PRINCIPAL OF DUBBELDAM ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN AND FOUNDER OF THENEXTGREEN.CA.

INTERVIEW WITH Sam McDermott of Enbridge Gas

Sam McDermott M.Eng., P.Eng., Technical Manager – Renewable Hydrogen, is part of the Business Development team at Enbridge Gas Inc., helping in the development of its hydrogen framework which includes delivery of a blend of hydrogen and natural gas to reduce the carbon footprint of natural gas.

1. Just to get to the basics, what makes hydrogen a clean energy alternative?

It comes down to how it’s made. Power-to-Gas (PtG) is a process in which electrical energy is converted to hydrogen through the electrolysis or splitting of water (H2O) into its basic components of hydrogen and oxygen. If only renewable sources of electricity are used, the hydrogen produced is called renewable. If hydrogen is produced from a mix of renewables and/ or other sources with a high percentage of the carbon captured (greater than 90 or 95 percent), it’s considered low carbon, or termed blue hydrogen. Most of today’s hydrogen is created using steam methane reforming (SMR), a process that separates the hydrogen molecule fom the carbon molecule of methane (CH4). The industry is vigorously working on ways to achieve carbon capture rates greater than 90 and 95 percent.

2. What are the advantages of hydrogen fuel?

Hydrogen is a non carbon energy carrier and produces no green house gasses. If used in a fuel cell, the only byproduct is water. It is a versatile energy carrier like electricity. Hydrogen can be used to store electricity, and it can be turned back into electricity. Hydrogen is also used in a myriad of applications such as fertilizer manufacturing, food processing, methanol production, electronics manufacturing and transportation.

3. How much hydrogen can be blended with natural gas to make it a practical energy source?

It depends on factors such as infrastructure vintage, the type of pipe and fittings used, the end use applications, and the policies in place to enable its acceptance, all of which affect

blend percentages. You may hear of a blend of 18% or 20% for existing pipes, but the fact remains each gas system is different and must be evaluated on its own merits.

4. How is Enbridge getting into hydrogen production?

In 2018, Enbridge, with project partner Cummins Inc., (formerly Hydrogenics) opened North America’s first utility-scale PtG facility in Markham, Ontario. It converts electrical energy into hydrogen and was primarily used to help the IESO balance the electrical grid during system demand fluctuations. As of 2021, some of the hydrogen from the plant is being blended into the natural gas system as a pilot project to understand the efficacy of reducing carbon in the gas grid. The pilot will run for five years to provide 3,600 customers in the Markham area and insight into blending.

Also, Enbridge subsidiary Gazifere announced in February, with project partner Evolugen (a Brookfield company), plans to operate a 20-MW electrolyzer plant in Gatineau, QC by 2025. Serving about 40,000 customers, the plant will produce renewable hydrogen with the intent of injecting this hydrogen into Gazifere’s natural gas distribution network.

5. What are the next steps to move to a scaled-up use of hydrogen?

As identified in the Canadian Hydrogen Strategy, one of the main elements for the adaptation of hydrogen is de-risking of early developments via incentives such as a price on carbon, seed funding and the rapid development of harmonized codes and standards for the industry in Ontario, in Canada and the world. There is also an urgent need to have enabling policies to drive demand and bring down the cost through scale and innovation. Training and public education through awareness campaigns are vital enablers to move the industry forward and enable public acceptance. Society wants to change its energy reliance but paying for it generates pause. Unlike wind and solar, which took 20 years to realize the price points we see and enjoy today, climate change will not wait.

Since electricity can’t be stored, when there is a surplus, the electrolyzer takes electricity and uses it to split water into hydrogen and oxygen , while balancing the power grid at the same time.

The hydrogen that is produced is then stored.

A lower carbon gas is delivered to customers.

Instead of converting the hydrogen back into electricity, the hydrogen may be blended into the natural gas distribution system at a pre-determined percentage, to reduce the carbon content of the gas.

SHAPING THE FUTURE

We are guided by a responsibility and a desire to build sustainably.

Learn more about our action plan.

CANADIAN G R

BUILDING 202 3 AWARDS

Watch for the Summer issue of SABMag in June containing profiles of the 10 winning projects of the 2023 SABMag Canadian Green Building Awards. The projects represent some of the best examples of sustainable, high-performance building design in Canada.

Our jury

Roxanne Gauthier OAQ, Assoc.. Éco. LEED Green Assoc., Associate Director of EVOQ, Montreal

Vedran Škopac Dipl.Ing.Arch., M.Arch., Principal, Reimagine Architects, Edmonton

Kendall S. Taylor, NSAA, MRAIC, LEED AP BD+C, Principal, root Architecture, Dartmouth

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