Feb 10 2010
As media from around the world descend upon Vancouver, B.C. for the 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games, they will experience in the Games’ broadcast media center an unparalleled model of sustainability. Designed by Seattle-based LMN Architects, in collaboration with Vancouver-based MCM and DA, the Vancouver Convention Centre West (VCC) has just been awarded LEED® Canada Platinum certification, the first convention centre project in the world to earn what is the program’s highest rating.
LMN Architects-designed Vancouver Convention Centre West features Canada's largest living roof
“The design goes far beyond the big box functionality and experience of a traditional convention centre,” says Mark Reddington, FAIA, LMN partner. “Instead, it offers a new vision of sustainability and a rich public experience by weaving together the natural ecology, local culture, urban context, and building program in a unified whole that functions literally as a living part of both the city and the harbor.”
A prominent feature to be recognized around the world is the centre’s six-acre living roof, which is Canada’s largest and the biggest non-industrial living roof in North America. Landscaped with 400,000 native plants and grasses, the green roof acts as an insulator to mediate the exterior air temperature, as well as contributes to the building’s stormwater utilization and integrates with the waterfront landscape ecosystem.
Highlights of the building’s green features include:
- Restored marine habitat that is part of the building’s foundation
- On-site black water treatment and desalinization systems that are projected to reduce potable water use 60 to 70 percent over typical convention centers
- A heat pump system that takes advantage of the constant temperature of the adjacent seawater to produce heating and cooling
- Extensive use of local materials, including Douglas fir and Hemlock wood finishes harvested from Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast
- Energy efficient fixtures and advanced energy management systems
- Natural daylighting and ventilation
Located on one of the most visible civic building sites in North America, the Vancouver Convention Centre sits on the on the northern waterfront edge of downtown Vancouver with spectacular views of mountains, ocean and parks. It occupies what was the last undeveloped section of the city’s waterfront and completes the public realm on the waterfront.
With this year’s Olympic Games being touted as the greenest Olympics to date, the VCC serves as an icon of that vision, with a wealth of innovative green features that educate as well as inspire. The new 1.2 million square foot world-class venue is the west companion to the existing facility, tripling the total square footage of convention centre space and providing an unprecedented range of flexible and functional spaces for meetings of any size.
Detailed information about the Vancouver Convention Centre West project, as well as a downloadable press kit can be found on the LMN website.
The convention centre is a project of BC Pavilion Corporation (PavCo), a Crown Corporation of the Province of British Columbia.
Source: http://lmnarchitects.com/