LEED® Consultant - Advicas Group Consultants Inc.

Introduction

The City of Victoria is pursuing LEED® Gold Certification for the recently completed Burnside Gorge Community Centre. This new community facility is the first public-private partnership project in Greater Victoria to pursue the prestigious LEED® Canada Gold award.

The $4 million, 1,400 square metre facility is founded on a former brownfield site previously zoned light industrial rezoned to parkland status in the newly created “Cecilia Ravine Park District zone.” The project was designed and constructed to fully integrate the building and site into the adjacent riparian, aquatic, and parkland spaces. This integration of built and natural environments was primarily accomplished by creatively positioning the building within the hillside topography, providing a publicly accessible green roof, using permeable paving, xeriscaped landscaping practices, and minimizing light pollution into neighbouring habitats.

This project demonstrates the City of Victoria’s commitment to low-impact environmental design, neighbourhood rehabilitation and regeneration, City-wide Green Building Policy, and community based incentive projects. The building boasts a wide range of sustainable features including water efficient washroom fixtures, end-of-trip bicycle facilities (storage & showers), an efficient HVAC system, and the use of Eco-Logo green power from the local landfill facility.

Project Highlights

Sustainable Sites

The project uses a combination of green roofs, infiltrating bio-swales, permeable pavers, and native plants to control, manage and filter storm water into a creek at the base of the project. This innovative storm water management system is designed to assist in the natural function of the creek but also promote restoration of the neighbouring riparian and aquatic ecosystems. The disturbed green spaces were in effect substituted with over 85% greening of the building’s roof area and native plantings on the site.

Energy Performance

The building utilized a high efficiency heating system, demand control ventilation and energy efficient lighting, and motion sensors to lighting, resulting in the building being over 50% more efficient than the equivalent Model National Energy Code (MNECB) building. In addition to the being highly energy efficient, the Owner is committed to purchasing Eco-Logo certified “green power” for 100% of the building systems’ electricity for the first two years.

Indoor Environmental Quality

Special consideration was given to design of the building to make it a pleasant and healthy place for the occupants. Most spaces have ample daylighting and views of the Cecilia Creek ravine. Interior adhesives, coatings and paints products were carefully specified and installed. A green cleaning program was implemented for this project, which uses microfibre cloths and water-based cleaning products in lieu of chemical cleaning agents.

Awards

• Green Roofs for Healthy Cities Award of Excellence - Extensive Institutional (2009)
• British Columbia Recreation and Parks Association Facility Excellence Award (2009)