We were honoured to celebrate the grand opening of Sacajawea’s newest building, NIH DAWIN’NAA, today. There was a Haudenosaunee thanksgiving, cedar tree planting, tours, laughter and food!

What was originally a box factory, then a faux pearl factory, and eventually a performing arts centre is now 15 homes for indigenous folks. There is also a duplex next door with two more units.

We were the architects of both buildings, along with @smoke_architecture_inc. @landwise.team were the planners through the rezoning and Tim Welch Consulting guided the project through the funding hoops. Our consultant team included Kalos Engineering, CK Engineering, and BELi for the masonry testing. And Schilthuis Construction who led the construction crews.

The building was designed to be 40% more energy efficient than code, which was improved even more during construction when we pulled the plug on fossil fuels and changed to a heat pump HWH. And it was all done (after zoning) in less than two years.

But everyone’s favourite part of the building are the beautiful woodland-inspired art panels, designed by Naomi @blacktulipdesigns. 🖤❤️ 💛 🤍 A big thank you to Melanee and Miranda for their commitment to creating housing for people who need it. We are so happy to be working on the next two projects with you now as well (Gage N. and Dundurn S.) ...

We are so happy to have school in full session this year in the new addition at Jarvis Community Christian School! This four classroom addition created a unique space for kids to learn in this growing elementary school. We love how the natural daylighting makes the classrooms feel so welcoming.

Total precast by @stubbesprecast
CM Schilthuis Construction
Photos @industryous ...

What a beautiful day for the Grand Opening of @indwell.ca Cornerstone Suites in the #Streetsville neighbourhood in #mississauga. With a combination of two heritage houses, a tight site, #passivehouse design, and a very short timeline, the project had its challenges. But in the words of Pastor Cooper, the transformation from the former group homes is incredible and “we like what you’ve done with the place.”

Big kudos to Urban Strategies, Counterpoint Engineering, Kalos Engineering, CK Engineering, Zon Engineering, OMC landscape architecture, and Schilthuis Construction for making the vision a reality! ...

Marking the next chapter for this downtown Paisley landmark. #oldisnewagain ...

We were in Woodstock today and got to make a quick stop at @indwell.ca’s Harvey Woods Lofts. The first phase renovation to the old factory was completed nine years ago, with the addition a couple years later. It is still a beautiful building, with lovely people living there, creating raised bed gardens and building restorative community. ...

We finished occupancy reviews today for Sacajawea’s newest building in Hamilton. Fifteen homes for indigenous folks who need it most, what an awesome day. ☀️ ...

Sacajawea’s Steven St. Apartments are nearing completion and the beautiful artwork by indigenous beadwork artist Naomi Smith @blacktulipdesigns has been installed on the spandrels. I stopped by at golden hour yesterday to take a peek at the progress. We love how it is all coming together!

In total, there are 15 apartments in the former Pearl Co. factory, with community space in the basement. And there is also an adjacent new duplex, in blue. There 17 homes, a mix of one bedroom and two bedroom, will provide much needed affordable housing. The units are designed to passive house and both buildings will not use fossil fuels! Low carbon just makes sense for Sacajawea and the tenants they will be supporting.

The design of the project was shared with Invizij and @smoke_architecture_inc. Rezoning was by @landwise.team, housing consulting by TWC. Stay tuned for an announcement of the grand opening in the coming weeks!
#passivehouse #adaptivereuse #ontarioarchitecture #lowcarbonbuilding #netzeroready #indigenousdesign #indigenousart ...