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AWD Project Filler 1/16 v. gs Do you have a project of interest to our readers? If you would like your project to be considered for a future issue o...
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AWD Project Filler 1/16 v. gs

Do you have a project of interest to our readers?

If you would like your project to be considered for a future issue of Award, please email: Dan Chapman, Publisher [email protected]

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PHOTO COURTESY INFRASTRUCTURE ONTARIO

Waterloo Region Consolidated Courthouse by Christine Peets

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onstruction on the new Waterloo Region Consolidated Courthouse, located in Kitchener, Ontario, began in March 2010 and was substantially complete in January 2013. The $379-million project brings together the Superior and Ontario Courts of Justice in one facility. Previously, the courts operated from three different locations: two in Kitchener and one in nearby Cambridge. The 446,000-squarefoot courthouse accommodates 30 courtrooms, including a multi-accused, high-security courtroom and eight judicial conference rooms. The contemporary building design blends into the area, providing a new civic plaza in the heart of downtown Kitchener. The courthouse was designed to consolidate justice services together under one roof, in a modern, accessible facility that will increase access to justice. “The new building will now have the capacity for expanthroughout its lifetime,” says Angelo Gismondi, vice president of project delivery for Infrastructure Ontario (IO), the Ontario government agency overseeing the work. Integrated Team Solutions (ITS) is the consortium respon-

courthouse project. NORR Limited is the architect and structural engineer, Hidi Rae & Associates is the mechanical consultant and Mulvey & Banani International Inc. is the electrical Waterloo Region Consolidated Courthouse

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consultant. EllisDon Corporation acted as the design-buildresponsible for the design of the landscape and outdoor public space. Klienfeldt Mychajlowycz Architects Inc., the planning, design and compliance (PDC) consultant, was responsible for “The courthouse design is inspired by the geology and through the catchment area of this regional court facility,” explains David Clusiau, design principal at NORR Limited. “The river gorge theme extends from the civic plaza through the multi-storey public atrium and into the public waiting well as a character that is less intimidating than the traditional courthouse.” This design concept is expressed through both the massing and volume of the building, as well as the striated materials used in the construction of the facility including wood, stone, zinc, and custom concrete panels, plus large amounts of glass. The materials were chosen for their durability, ease of maintenance and security, forming an intehouse as a major public institution. The stone work on the project is sourced locally from the Niagara Escarpment and quarried in Owen Sound, Ontario. It is used in a rough ashlar pattern in the exterior walls

around the plaza with dark horizontal bands of Wiarton Black to recreate the layered appearance of the sedimentary river walls. It continues into the atrium in curving walls that are echoed in the terns. Deeper into the building, the public spaces and waiting rooms become more rectilinear and the stone walls become smooth-faced, honed and polished, culminating in the stone wall behind the dias in the courtrooms. This transformation parallels the journey of a court participant moving from the exterior world to the more focused and formal world of the courtroom. The three-storey glazed atrium that acts as a welcoming area for visitors is part of the seven storeys above entry level, says Julian Jaffary, consulting architect for the Ministry of the Attorney General. The atrium brings natural light into the building and provides -

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PHOTO COURTESY INFRASTRUCTURE ONTARIO

tors and main stairways. “With natural light for all workstations and some of the courtrooms, the building will be a welcoming facility for both visitors and employees,” says Jaffary. “Visitors to the building can easily orient themselves. tination quite readily.” Accessibility and sustainability were paramount in the design of the new courthouse. “The design includes provisions for barrier-free access throughout the building. Courtrooms have infrared hearing-assistance and barrier-free witness stands, jury boxes and spectator positions in all courtrooms,” Gismondi says. There is enhanced accommodation for interpretation, including one jury courtroom permanently equipped for simultaneous interpretation and three portable interpretation booths. A number of design features were Building Council’s LEED Silver designation. The environmental approach aims for an aggressive energy use reduction achieved through a number of architectural, mechanical and electrical design strategies. These include with warm-edge spacers, T5/T8 lighting with occupancy and daylight sensors, and a ventilation strategy that brings in cool outdoor air at the ceiling level, which then falls and cools occupants. The building also features a cistern for rainwater collection and other systems designed to reduce water use. Waterloo Region Consolidated Courthouse

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Indoor environment air quality is partially achieved through the selection of appropriate building materials and in the courthouse all adhesives, sealants, paints, coatings, carpets and composite wood are low in emissions (low VOC content). Over the long term, this quality will be maintained through a green housekeeping program developed cleaning products and high-recycledcontent disposable materials.

LOCATION

85 Frederick Street Kitchener, Ontario OWNER

Province of Ontario DEVELOPER

Integrated Teams Solution (ITS) ARCHITECT/STRUCTURAL ENGINEER

NORR Limited

DESIGN-BUILD-FINANCE-MAINTAIN CONTRACTOR

EllisDon Corporation

FINANCE-MAINTAIN PROVIDER

SNC-Lavalin Profac

MECHANICAL CONSULTANT

Hidi Rae & Associates

ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT

Mulvey & Banani International Inc.

MINISTRY OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL ARCHITECT

Julian Jaffary Architect PDC CONSULTANT

Klienfeldt Mychajlowycz Architects Inc. LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT

Dillon Consulting

TOTAL PROJECT SIZE

446,000 square feet

TOTAL CONTRACT COST

$379 million

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