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The residential scale of the interior spaces lent itself well to traditional dimensional framing – spaces were designed to evoke feelings of home, most of which are wood framed. The wood framing was combined with plywood sheathing to provide shearwalls in an economical and easy-to-construct manner.

The potential for the building to appear as a large institutional facility was mitigated by introducing traditional peak-roofed “house” forms to dissolve the large facility into smaller units. Each “house” is home to ten residents, and all of the houses are linked together to allow support and care staff access to individuals and groups and encourage healthy socialization among the residents. Prefabricated engineered wood trusses were a natural and economic fit for this residential vocabulary in an institutional setting, and the material easily accommodated complex shapes.

The client wanted the exterior of the building to relate to the adjacent residential community, helping the project to fit in with its neighbours and reduce the stigma for people entering a “hospital” for mental health care. Prefinished wood siding is a durable and attractive cladding that relates to vernacular wood sided houses in Nova Scotia – the variety of finishes and profiles available allowed the design team to further break down the mass of the project using pattern and colour.

A wood and steel hybrid system of construction was chosen to combine the ease and economy of wood construction with the longer spans of steel frame construction. The hybrid construction mirrored the hybrid program of the building: a large institutional facility that feels smaller-scaled and residential.

Wood framing was chosen for its speed of installation, stainability benefits, familiarity with material for trades and ease of sourcing locally. Shorter spans were realized by utilizing the interior partitions as load-bearing and shearwall structures – this helped simplify structural connections by maintaining consistent structural materials in these areas and minimized the depth of the roof/ceiling.

The high-pitched roof design lent itself to prefabricated wood trusses: a local product, familiar to local trades and with benefits to the schedule with their ease of construction. Pre-finished wood cladding provided residential feel to the exterior of the building, helping to relate to the surrounding community.

Steel was used to address snow loading and the weight of vegetated roofs over areas the program required to be clear span – the use of steel was minimized by using it selectively in conjunction with economical wood construction. Steel and wood were a good combination with relatively simple and common connections between the two materials, with many pre-fabricated, simple to install, solutions.

WoodWorks! Atlantic

For more information, visit our website’s Project Page.

LEED™ is a regular part of a large portion of the world of architectural design, with traditionally less representation in the world of healthcare architecture.

In this project, we focused on the LEED™ credits with the potential for the greatest impact on those living within. For example, including operable windows in what is traditionally a sealed environment, which means working closely with our Mechanical Engineers to ensure that appropriate humidity and temperature levels are not put at risk.

This project also included exterior rooftop gardens and decks in assorted sizes providing recreational and rehabilitation opportunities at many scales for the residents, visitors and staff, while encouraging closer connections with the natural world.

In addition to being lower maintenance and climate appropriate, landscape design for this project included native plants and other appropriate non-invasive varieties to contribute to familiar views for residents, improving health outcomes, and longer-term life-cycle cost benefits for the operator.

An Insulated Concrete Forming (ICF) system was chosen as a major structural component, allowing the building to take advantage of a high level of recycled content (fly ash) in the concrete mix and providing high thermal insulation values while acoustic comfort of residents was enhanced.

The LEED™ framework aligned with the team’s goal of choosing as many natural materials as possible in a healthcare setting to help reduce the institutional feel of the building and support biophilic design philosophies that a growing body of Evidence Based Design suggests enhance healing and well-being.

Congratulations to all involved with Ivany Place: Northwood at the Parks, in the Parks of Bedford West.

Client: Northwoodcare Inc.
Project Manager: Fairwyn Developments
LEED™ Consultant: Solterre Design

For more about the series of awards established by Nova Scotia’s Lieutenant Governors to recognize outstanding achievements of Nova Scotians, click here.

For more about the awards, as administered by the Provincial Association, click here.

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