YMCA Arrowsmith Child Care

Today: Yoga with Bob (and three office dogs) at Shamrock Park and a look at our most beautiful office rain garden. All are welcome to join us for yoga, every other Thursday at lunchtime , while the weather cooperates. ⭐️
#officeyogabreak #wellness #gardentherapy ☀️ ...

Impressive drone photos from Dave Povao, this time capturing the ongoing transformation of London Ontario`s former Health Services Building into Antler River Apartments! This @Indwell redevelopment will bring 96 supportive housing units to the Soho neighbourhod. Designed to meet Passive House standards, the rehabilitated building will feature triple-glazed heritage replica windows, a restored masonry façade and other historic architectural details. (Shout out to our heritage consultant, @hobson_heritage !)

Built in 1921 and designed by Watt & Blackwell, the collegiate Neoclassical building is one of three remaining structures from the former Victoria Hospital campus. It plays a key role in preserving the historical narrative of medical services in the area and received heritage designation in 2022. The name Antler River Apartments reflects the name of the nearby river, as called by Indigenous people for centuries.

This project is part of the broader SoHo Alliance redevelopment, which will create nearly 700 new homes—ranging from market-rate, affordable, to supportive housing options. Led by the by the London Community Foundation, this initiative brings together six experienced non-profit developers with the shared goal of transforming the old Victoria Hospital Lands into a vibrant community. We are excited to be a part of this first-of-its-kind collaboration in Canada! ...

Introducing 47 Maria Street! This Invizij @support_house project transformed a small group home in Acton into a fully accessible, two-storey 12-unit supportive housing development. The design includes apartments on two storeys, with parking tucked behind the building, below the second floor, and a walkout common room on the lower level. The building’s exterior is modern and fresh, with a bright orange front entrance to catch the eye.

Earlier this month we attended the Open House and Ribbon Cutting ceremony, alongside community partners, elected officials, neighbours, and supporters. Speeches at the groundbreaking reminded us once again of how important these projects are to a community’s flourishing. “Halton Hills is a stronger and more compassionate community when every resident has a safe place to call home," reflected Halton Hills Mayor Ann Lawlor. Regional Chair Gary Carr said the development reflects a “shared commitment to providing housing for those with the greatest need in the Halton community.”

Fueled by the belief that everyone has the right to housing and healthcare, Support House has provided low-barrier approaches to accommodation, healthcare and support for people experiencing housing instability since 1984. Maria Street tenants struggling with mental health or substance abuse challenges have access to on-site supportive services, and access to interprofessional primary care.

Halton Region provided $3.94 million for the project, with an additional $2 million in funding from the federal government through Reaching Home: Canada`s Homelessness Strategy. We are heartened to know that Maria Street is one step in the Region`s comprehensive plan to address the increased demand for supportive housing in Halton! ...

Today marked a milestone in Hamilton as ground officially broke at 95 Dundurn, a project dedicated to creating homes and community for Indigenous post-secondary student/ learners who are new to Hamilton. While the rain could have put a damper on the event, Dixie from the Sacajawea board beautifully reframed the moment as a “cleansing” of the land to make it ready for its future residents. Collaborating with SpruceLab for landscape design and Kalos for structural engineering, the architecture team at Invizij is creatively navigating the compact site’s steep grade changes to deliver 31 beds of affordable housing.

Designed for individuals, families, and intergenerational living, the development features barrier-free spaces, streetside plantings, and a proposed rooftop terrace overlooking Jackson Park—all shaped by ongoing collaboration with local students and Indigenous support staff.

This is one of the most complex infill project sites we have worked on to date, and it couldn’t have been possible without the stellar project team (along with many others):

@sacajaweahousing
Flourish - development consultant
@landwise.team - planning
@sprucelabinc - landscape & indigenous consultant
Schilthuis Construction
Kalos Engineering - structural
Collins Engineering - mechanical
Mighton Engineering - electrical
S. Llewellyn - civil engineer
Bruno Uggenti Law
G2S - environmental ...

The latest batch of drone photos by Dave Povao beautifully capture the progress of our @indwell.ca Acorn Flats project, as construction carries on. So lovely to see the building surrounded by lush green tree tops, against the Hamilton skyline!

This supportive housing project is the final phase in the development of the former Royal Oak Dairy site for Indwell. It is their first development for families, with two and three-bedroom units. The building includes eight total pods for23 apartments and one common room. There will be a shared playground for kids and a common room with laundry facilities for parents to build friendships and community connections.

The design of Acorn Flats was intentionally something that can be replicated on other sites, with a three storey walkup model. Each stair is used to directly access two pods, or six apartments, with a common exterior walkway to connect stairs as a secondary egress. We love that the intention of this new typology will create a different sense of ‘ownership’ from tenants, and nurture a connection to the outdoors. ...

From Switzerland, to our construction sites right here at home! 🇨🇭✈️🏗️

Our principal Emma recently had the opportunity to tour the factory of SIGA, one of the global leaders in high-performance building envelope and air-sealing systems. Hearing the story of a company so deeply committed to sustainability—and driven by the mission to “create a world of zero energy loss buildings”—was incredibly inspiring.

To make the trip even better, Emma & her family stayed at the SIGA guesthouse next door—a beautiful former orphanage that has been meticulously restored and rebuilt into an ultra-low-energy accommodation.

We love seeing this level of international climate dedication come full circle on our own active job sites. We are currently using SIGA’s high-performance tapes and membranes to achieve superior airtightness and energy efficiency on several projects, including:
🏢 Indwell’s 174 Ottawa St. Apartments: Ensuring a continuous, high-performance air seal for this crucial multi-unit affordable housing expansion.
🏥 The War Memorial Children’s Hospital Conversion (London): Bringing a 1922 Neoclassical brick landmark up to modern, near-Passive House efficiency standards through a complex, high-performance heritage retrofit.
High-level precision meets local community impact. We’re proud to build with materials that safeguard both our heritage structures and our collective future! 🌍💚
#SustainableConstruction #PassiveHouse #BuildingEnvelope #GreenBuilding #HeritageRetrofit AffordableHousing Architecture SIGA ZeroEnergyLoss ConstructionInnovation @siga_north_america ...