Construction Business Magazine - May/June 2011

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May/June 2011 Vol. 8 No. 4

Dee Miller, JJM ConstruCtion

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Jim Pattison Outpatient Care & Surgery Centre

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Cheryl Mah

Courtney KachurDiana KleinTodd KruszewskiDirk LaudanDerek LoganJ. Marc MacEwing Joanne PerdueJohn PitreTammy SampsonDoug SandersGordon StewartJoe Y. WaiMike WeinmasterFiona Zawadzki

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May/June 2011 | Volume 8 No 4

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Construction Business is British Columbia and Alberta’s construction magazine. Each issue provides timely and pertinent information to contractors, architects, developers, consulting engineers, and municipal governments throughout both provinces. Complimentary copies are sent bi-monthly to all members of the Architectural Institute of B.C., B.C. Construction Association, B.C. Roadbuilders and Heavy Construction Association, Consulting Engineers of B.C., Construction Specifica-tions Canada — B.C. Chapter, Greater Vancouver Home Builders’ Association, B.C. Ready-Mixed Concrete Association, Independent Contractors and Businesses Association of B.C., Urban Development Institute of B.C. and Vancouver Regional Construction Association.

Inside

Industry Focus17 roadbuildingSafety for All Roadway Workers Concrete IntersectionsBuilding the Future

22 roofingARCA Celebrates 50 YearsThe Values of Roof Consulting ServicesInnovative Fabric Roof

26 building greenA Roadmap for Climate ActionLiving WallsGreen Education Innovative Greenhouse Heating

Departments04 Message from the editor

34 the legal fileAlberta Master: Security in Builders’ LienReleases of ClaimsIndefinite Definitions

37 architect CornerRevitalizing Vancouver’s Chinatown

38 industry news

06 ConnectionsDee MillerDee Miller, the new chair of Canadian Construction Association, has been actively trying to influence positive change in the industry for more than a decade.

12 Feature ProjectJim Pattison outpatient Care and surgery Centre Located in Surrey, B.C., the new 345,000 square foot healthcare centre will be a leading facility in the delivery of outpatient services.

Cover PhotoJim Pattison Outpatient Care and Surgery Centre. Photo courtesy Kasian Architecture Interior Design and Planning Ltd.

MARCH 20 & 21, 2012

NOVEMBER 8 & 9, 2011

Dan GnocatoTel: 604.739.2115 ext. 223

FEBRUARY 8 & 9, 2012

construction business May/June 20114

Editor’s Note

Change is Inevitable

Change is inevitable. This is true in life as it is in business. Successful people and businesses are those who are will-ing to adapt to change. And change is

the biggest issue facing the construction industry and overcoming the challenges that come with those changes will be critical in the years ahead.

After more than 10 years of reporting on the construction industry, I’ve seen my fair share of changes — procurement methods, technol-ogy, regulations, trends and more. Most stake-holders cite the changing demographics of the workforce as the biggest change and challenge for the industry.

Dee Miller, JJM Construction vice president, agrees. We chat with the new chair of the Cana-dian Construction Association about her career, the industry and how her own family owned company has had to adapt to change. One big

change for the B.C. heavy civil sector in recent years has been the growing prominence of con-tracts being delivered as public-private partner-ships (P3) projects. This means mid-sized con-tractors have had to adapt including JJM.

A prominent P3 project that recently opened was the Jim Pattison Outpatient and Surgery Centre. Located in Surrey, the centre is B.C.’s first stand-alone outpatient facility which will be a pioneering model for health care delivery in Canada.

Also in this issue we take a look at how the University of Calgary is spearheading green ini-tiatives through its Climate Action Plan; how urban walls can be transformed into lush vertical gardens and how Green Bricks is engaging youth in sustainable land use and development.

In our roofing feature, Alberta Roofing Con-tractors Association’s executive director Bren-

wyn Cooley shares some thoughts on ARCA’s 50th anniversary. We also spotlight the innova-tive fabric roof used for the South Campus Light Rail Transit station in southwest Edmonton and the importance of roof consulting services.

Finally, in our road building section, you will read about the West LRT, the largest infrastruc-ture project for the City of Calgary; efforts to en-sure the safety of traffic control persons and the benefits of concrete for roads.

Cheryl MahManaging Editor

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Connections

Building the Road to Success

Dee Miller has come a long way from her farming roots in Claresholm, Alberta. Although she never planned a career in construction, she is now a 40 year in-

dustry veteran with a long list of accomplishments. The most recent is being appointed as chair of the Canadian Construction Association (CCA).

“I was surprised by the invitation. It’s a huge honour,” says Miller, vice president of finance, administration and human resources at JJM Construction.

CCA serves more than 1.2 million Canadi-ans in the non-residential construction industry, making it one of — if not the largest — indus-trial employer in the country. “We’re 6 per cent of Canada’s GDP. We’re an enormous associa-tion representing 17,000 member firms. I’m very excited about the year ahead,” says Miller, who joined the CCA board in 2003 and became a member of the executive committee in 2006.

She estimates 40-50 per cent of her time will be spent on the road as CCA chair, “It’s a huge commitment when you volunteer at the national level to be chair. I will be working on rolling out our strategic plan across the country.”

Top concerns include infrastructure deficit, funding pressures and a skilled worker shortage.

“Our Canadian immigration system doesn’t make it easy for new immigrants to come in, un-less they have a high academic which is fine for the project management side but not so good for manpower requirements. It’s going to be one of our biggest challenges,” she says.

Miller is no stranger to association circles, hav-ing worked passionately for more than a decade

to influence positive change. Prior to joining CCA, she served as a director of the BC Road Builders and Heavy Construction Association (1996 — 2002). In 2001, she was elected as the organization’s first (and to-date the only) woman to serve as chair.

She was also instrumental in the founding of the BC Road Construction and Road Main-tenance Safety Network in 2001. It has since merged with the Construction Safety Associa-tion of BC to form the British Columbia Con-struction Safety Alliance.

Safety has always been a passion for Miller, who is also president and CEO of F.A.S.T. (First Aid and Survival Technologies), the province’s largest manufacturer of safety and emergency preparedness products.

During her term, Miller says her priorities will be to focus on the changes facing the construc-tion industry and the challenges that come with those changes.

“Projects have become larger and more com-plex. More risk is being downloaded to the con-tractors in terms of environmental, safety and technical requirements. There’s change happening everywhere — how contracts are let, technology, the demographics of our workforce and even the competition has changed. As an association, we have a big role to play and to help smaller firms.”

As an owner of a third-generation family busi-ness, Miller understands firsthand the unique challenges that small and medium-sized firms face.

JJM Construction specializes in heavy civil, struc-tural, road building as well as marine construction and dredging. Over the last few years, B.C.’s heavy

BY CHERYL MAH

civil sector has undergone many changes, primar-ily with contracts being delivered as public-private partnerships (P3) projects. This means mid-sized contractors have had to adapt including JJM.

“It’s very different today. In some cases instead of being the prime contractor, we’ve had to sub-contract to the large multi-nationals. So for us, that is quite a change,” notes Miller. “We prefer to operate as the prime but when the contract gets to be too large then we just can’t. We’re trying to focus on our niche and what we’re good at versus always getting into a bidding war — a chase to the bottom with 20 bidders on a contract.”

Adapting to change is not new to Miller, who was first introduced to the cyclical industry when she married her husband John in 1971. She spent 15 years dispatching out of her home for Miller

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Connections

Contracting, originally started in the late 1940s by her in-laws. In 1988, following her own entrepre-neurial dream, she started F.A.S.T. with a partner. She bought out her partner three years later.

“I’ve always wanted to own my own business from the time I was very young,” says Miller, crediting a strong work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit to her farm roots.

At the same time her husband had ventured out to start his own company JJM Construc-tion, eventually purchasing Miller Contracting in 1991. In 1993, she rejoined JJM Construction in her current role as vice president. The first aid firm, also family owned, is located next door to their Delta head office.

She has worked with her husband her entire married life and both their sons Peter and Mat-thew are also involved in the company.

“It’s not a job. It’s my life,” says the 64-year-old, who has no intention to retire any time soon. “We work long days but it’s not really work. It’s fun. Every day can be different. I enjoy the variety and opportunities and working with people.”

Since 1991, JJM has grown and diversified aggressively. Today it operates out of its 4,000 square foot head office and a 10,000 square foot works yard. Predominantly serving the public sector, projects have involved highway construc-tion and maintenance, ICI vertical construction, infrastructure improvements, pipeline installa-tions and gravel operations. Nearly 80 per cent of their projects are performed with their own equipment and manpower.

JJM employs up to 200 employees and has an annual volume of $40-50 million. Shares are family held and an executive committee oversees strategic planning and goals.

Miller says her best and toughest decision was staying in the family business.

“I had opportunities and offers to work for other organizations. But I chose to see what we can really do here and grow our own dream and you can’t put a value on that,” she says. “It hasn’t

always been an easy journey. Starting a company with nothing in 1988 was tough.”

What is the key to JJM’s success? Miller believes the company’s unwavering commitment and a fo-cus on their core expertise have served it well.

“JJM is well known for handling technically challenging niche projects that combine land and marine construction such as the Delta-

port expansion…a $20 million project that we completed on budget and ahead of schedule,” she says. “JJM has a solid reputation in the marketplace with a trusted name and depth of experience. We know what it takes to succeed and to survive.”

The recent recession not only caused a slow-down in volume for the industry but also in-creased competition.

“There’s much more competition for the type of work we do and with more competition, we have to work harder,” explains Miller. “Since ‘08-09 a lot of the private development work dried up and so those companies that used to supply the private developer market have now come into the public market which is where our focus has always been.”

Although she’s confident they will make their targets for this year, it’s taking more of a “focused effort.”

Current projects keeping crews busy include the South Fraser Perimeter Road (interchange, underpass), Oliver pump station and Cariboo Hwy No. 97, Prince George south weigh scale.

“One of the most challenging projects that JJM has ever undertaken is a seismic upgrade for the Coquitlam Dam,” notes Miller. “We have a strong technical department and many of our projects are complicated — working in or around water.”

JJM also strives to stay ahead of environmental requirements, which have become the norm in business today.

Miller believes the company’s

unwavering commitment and a focus on their

core expertise have served it well.

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it’s a staggering statistic: In a survey conducted by the US-based National Safety Council, 89 per cent of respondents had seen someone at their company violate proper PPE requirements. Though conducted a few years ago, the survey still puts some hard numbers to a grim reality: even

though it’s no secret that work-related deaths and injuries are completely pre-ventable, many are not taking the necessary precautions to stay safe.

Despite regulatory requirements, company policies, and jobsite programs, falls are still the number one killer in B.C. construction when it comes to trau-matic incidents. While we cannot measure the human toll of any workplace tragedy, we do know that each fall in our sector costs an average of $38,000 and 72 days of lost production time. Statistically, falls are not only the most expensive accident-type in our industry, but also the most common . In B.C., jobsites are required to use fall protection if a possibility exists of falling 10 feet (3 meters) or more. Without the proper fall protection system, even for short distances, a worker may still suffer serious injuries if they land awkwardly or on something like concrete or rebar.

Safety should never be a reaction to incidents or penalties because prop-er prevention practices avoid them in the first place. Careless safety prac-tices cost money: In one recent instance of non-compliance, WorkSafeBC fined a roofing company over $145,000 because the jobsite had no fall protection in place. Another company was fined for unsafe practices when their workers were wearing fall protection harnesses but were not tied off.

There’s a myth out there that safety systems negatively affect produc-tivity or the bottom line. The truth is that companies need to invest in the appropriate safety system to maximize profits and productivity. A lifeline and a harness may be the cheapest fall protection system avail-able, but it may not be the most effective solution for your jobsite in terms of safety or production. It’s all about finding what’s right for the job and the options have greatly improved over the years.

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Like any other workplace safety issue, preventing falls requires team-work and cooperation from all corners of the company. Investing in workplace safety means not only that every worker comes home unin-jured at the end of their shift, but also delivers better business practices that save you time and money in the long run.

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Connections

“We sold off most of our older heavy equip-ment last year and we’re evaluating newer envi-ronmentally friendly equipment in terms of best productivity and meeting CO2 emission require-ments that are coming at us,” says Miller.

Although many would consider her a success-ful role model, Miller is quick to downplay her own personal achievements: “I don’t think of myself as successful because I don’t see life as a

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destination. It’s a journey. We learn to grow and the more challenges we have the more opportu-nities we have to prove ourselves.”

And Miller has certainly proven herself in an industry where women remain a minority.

“It’s an area where we could do a much bet-ter job — encouraging and recruiting females to consider the construction industry…because it is very welcoming and full of opportunity,”

says Miller, noting she has never encountered any negativity.

Her hope is that one day women can compete on a level playing field and “be recognized and celebrated on performance and not gender”.

When she’s not working, Miller and her husband enjoy traveling and cycling. They celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary this November and will become grandparents for the fourth time in October.

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feature Project

a unique new outpatient care centre in Surrey is redefining health care de-livery for Canada while improving access to services for families in the

Fraser Valley.Officially opened on May 30, the Jim Pattison

Outpatient Care and Surgery Centre is B.C.’s first stand-alone outpatient facility. What makes the centre unique is that it offers a range of out-patient services including day surgery, diagnos-tics and imaging (MRI, CT, scans, biopsies) with community services (specialized clinics and pro-grams) all within one building.

“Research from across the world shows that moving outpatient or day treatments including day surgery outside of a hospital environment can deliver efficiencies and improve access, qual-ity and safety in health care. This new centre is an example of how Fraser Health is taking inno-vative steps to provide the best in health care,” says Dr. Nigel Murray, president and CEO of Fraser Health.

The facility consists of 4.5 storeys above grade with 3.5 levels of underground parking for 615 vehicles. Lab, office and training space are on level one with digital imaging on level two. More than 80 exam and treatment rooms are on level 3 while level 4 is comprised of six operating rooms and 10 procedure rooms.

Outpatient services (not requiring overnight stay) will be transferred from Surrey Memorial Hospital to the centre. In addition, a number of new programs will be offered such as a breast

health clinic, a blood clot prevention program, and a HIV/AIDS/Hepatitis C clinic.

This will centralize outpatient services, mean-ing faster diagnosis, reduced wait times, and bet-ter health management and recovery.

“This project will be a very positive addition to the City of Surrey. As a one-of-a-kind facility it enhances Surrey’s reputation as a regional centre for excellent healthcare,” says Mayor Diane Watts.

The project was built and delivered under a public private partnership (P3) between Fraser Health and BC Healthcare Solutions (BCHS) consortium. BCHS is responsible for the de-sign, building, financing and maintenance of the facility. Bird Construction and Bouygues Inter-national acted as design-build contractor on the project. Bird was responsible for construction.

Ground was broken in August 2008 with substantial completion in December 2010. The $239 million project was completed on budget, three months ahead of schedule and with zero change orders.

“We worked closely with Fraser Health, did a lot of engineering cost savings and it resulted in zero change orders — that speaks volumes. That was a first,” says Bird project manager Loi Huynh, who has worked in the industry for 11 years.

The original fast track schedule (and hard dead-line of March 31, 2011) was challenging enough but Bird managed to pull it off in 28 months.

“We poured the first concrete slab in January 2009 and had the roof on by June 2009,” says Huynh, noting manpower peaked at 250. “Five months to do basically eight floors.”

one-of-a-Kind facilityBY CHERYL MAH

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604 734 8822glotmansimpson.com

Nature gives us superb examples of creatures working together to build structures for their common good. Public/Private Partnerships ( P3s ) are being recognized as the smartest way for us to follow Nature’s lead. Glotman .Simpson brings an historically collaborative approach to solving P3 structural problems. We also combine high-level analysis with state-of-the-art 3D modeling. Our recent work on the Surrey Outpatient Care & Surgery Centre is a good example. This P3 required a fl exible and open interior space,

with unconventionally wide spans. We answered the architect’s vision with innovative and economical solutions. The Surrey Outpatient Care & Surgery Centre is just one of a number of leading-edge structural solutions that we’ve recently developed. To fi nd out more about Glotman .Simpson’s approach to engineering, please visit our website. You’ll see a number of our collaborative structural solutions there.

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feature Project

It’s an even more impressive accomplishment since this was the first P3 project for many of the project team members including Bird’s Vancouver office.

“It was quite a learning experience,” says Huynh. “A medical care facility is not a big box — demands high quality. This was definitely a highlight in my career.”

Medical facilities are already one of the most complex building types. Being a P3 project adds to the complexity of the job from the number of stakeholders to the extra documentation required.

An initial challenge was explaining to the Eu-ropean consortium partners about the different Canadian requirements and local building codes, according to Huynh. “Also with a P3, we have to think of lifecycle and is this the best product for next 30 years, which was challenging because tech-nology is constantly changing. We have to make sure at the end of the day, it’s a win-win for the end user, client and facility management people.”

The 345,000 square foot structure consists of 188,400 squ are feet of clinical space, 140,000

square feet of underground parking and a 25,000 square foot mechanical penthouse.

It required 200 tons of structural steel and 17,000 cubic meters of concrete (enough con-crete to fill seven Olympic swimming pools).

Designed by Kasian Architecture Interior De-sign and Planning Ltd, the centre will be a model of best practices and clinical integration by tak-ing a holistic, patient-centred approach to care.

“The project itself is a huge innovation in terms of the clinical operation and perfor-mance,” says Wojciech Brus, Kasian principal and project architect.

According to Brus, key design drivers were: expandability, flexibility and adaptability. To meet future demand for services, he explains the building has been designed on a special grid to be adaptable and flexible so rooms can be modified to serve multi-functional uses.

In addition, all mechanical services are located outside of the building, allowing the reconfigura-tion of departments or floors without affecting the main services.

“This project also has full flexibility on the site not only inside the building. It has been designed for future expansion — other build-ings will be built and planned in the form of a campus,” says Brus.

The layout of the six acre site and modular design of the building will allow for 30 per cent expansion capability to the east.

Located adjacent to the Green Timbers Urban Forest, the building is designed to offer a healing environment inspired by nature.

“The main theme and design of the building was to connect it with the outside — with the Green Timbers Forest,” explains Brus. “The main entrance to the building is extremely transparent and is visible from everywhere upon arriving on site. You can also see through the building to the other side.”

Good wayfinding is critical for health care facilities and the design goal was to make it as intuitive as possible with simplified circulation routes, visual cues and colours.

“Good wayfinding is when you don’t see any signs — it’s intuitive, you know where to go. Intuitive wayfinding…that’s always the most dif-ficult part to achieve in any health care facility,” says Brus. “The building has clear and separate circulation for patients, staff and services. Pa-tients arrive at any floor through only one entry. There’s only one choice and that clarity in circu-lation was one of the key components.”

Every floor has also been designed around the theme of a tree with its own distinctive colour palette.

“You are greeted on every level by a different tree theme: cherry, cypress, maple… and the co-lour scheme matches the tree. So on the maple tree level, you will find a kind of rust colour of falling leaves and cherry blossoms on the cherry level,” says Brus, who has 20 years of experience in healthcare design.

Sustainability was another key design driver. Targeting LEED Gold certification, the range of features include recycled materials including 2,200 tonnes of pine beetle wood, low flow fix-tures, and natural daylight throughout.

The construction waste management plan suc-cessfully diverted 79 per cent of construction waste from the landfill.

The facility boasts passive thermal and indoor air quality control using a high performance en-velope and energy efficient heat recovery/reclaim

Good wayfinding is critical for health

care facilities and the design goal was to make it as intuitive

as possible…

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BEING POWER SMART MAKES BUSINESS SENSEWhen the expanded St. Mary’s Hospital in Sechelt opens in June 2012, it will be a showcase of the latest in safe patient care, where every patient will have his or her own room and bathroom, there will be separate sinks for staff, and everyone will benefit from maximum natural light and fresh air.

“St. Mary’s will be a model for how best to control diseases that can be transmitted from patient to patient,” says Dave Mackintosh, Director of Capital Projects for Vancouver Coastal Health. “At the same time, though, we wanted to make sure this expansion was energy efficient, because the more we can reduce our operating costs, the more we can put back into health care.”

By working with BC Hydro’s New Construction Program to computer-model the expansion, Dave and the project architect, Peter Busby of Busby Perkins + Will, were able to see exactly which energy-efficiency measures will save them the most.

“The energy modeling showed that we could reduce energy consumption by more than 360,000 kilowatt hours a year,” says Peter. “An added benefit: St. Mary’s will also be eligible for BC Hydro incentives to help with the cost of creating a high-performance building.”

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systems. It has been designed to use 54 per cent less energy than the Model National Energy Code. Water consumption will be reduced by 30 per cent over a conventional building.

Specialty mechanical systems include a large medical air/ gas system, process chilled water sys-tems, process steam systems (for humidification and sterilization), and a blended propane/ natu-ral gas fuel system with on site storage to allow

feature Project

the facility’s mechanical systems to continue to operate in the event of utility service disruptions.

“This building is designed for post disaster so in case of power failures, we have secondary ser-vice. We have two generators and propane stor-age for no disruption,” says Huynh.

The mechanical system, built by Daryl-Evans Mechanical Ltd., is also capable of supporting a 30 per cent future facility expansion.

The building envelope is highly energy effi-cient, adds Huynh, explaining 11 inches of insu-lation (combination of spray and semi-rigid) was used to help achieve energy targets.

“We also put in a substantial cistern under-ground which will be used for irrigation on site,” he says.

As often is the case, the fast track nature of the project was one of the main challenges, requir-ing constant co-ordination and collaboration between all parties to ensure a successful project.

The procurement method was a learning curve for everyone, says Brus, noting this was Kasian’s first P3 project in B.C.

“It added complexity to the process of delivery — that was a challenge. Usually we have one cli-ent but we had multiple clients and had to meet compliance with clinical and operational perfor-mance. We learned our lessons on this project which we will apply to others,” says Brus, describ-ing the project as “one of the most intense design processes ever but rewarding.”

The landmark facility is not only garnering lo-cal attention but international interest as well.

“Countries like India, China would be ex-tremely interested in this kind of facility. Costs are much lower building a facility like this [in-stead of a hospital] no matter what kind of pro-curement and it can service a lot of the popula-tion. Every community could have an outpatient clinic,” he says.

By 2020, the facility is expected to accommo-date about 600,000 visits annually.

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May/June 2011 construction business 17

Roadbuilding

flagging is an important and demanding job that ensures the safety of workers and the traveling public. It is a high-risk job that requires specific training and

the cooperation of the public. Standardized certified training of all traffic

control workers in B.C. was introduced in 2003 to minimize work zone accidents.

Traffic control people (TCP) must undergo the extensive two day training required by the prov-ince in order to become certified. Once completed the TCP must then take on their employers train-ing program where they may work on many dif-ferent job sites including paving, utility construc-tion, heavy underground and electrical sites such as intersection black-outs. TCPs are required in most cases where road construction is being per-formed to set-up the site or detour, to maintain the site and to warn traffic of the dangers ahead. The duties don’t stop there either. TCPs must also be familiar with the workings of the site and co-ordinate earth moving machinery and trucking to and from the site. More advanced TCPs will also get involved in the planning stages of a project supplying city planners with Traffic Management Plans for permit approval. In order to ensure one’s own safety and the safety of the site the TCP must be clearly identified on a site by way of a yellow/lime green vest or overalls, reflective wrist and an-kle bands, hard hat with reflective tape, stop/slow paddle, illuminated traffic wand and steel toed safety footwear.

Despite a decline in fatalities since 2003, injury claims for flag people have remained relatively steady.

Since 2008, two flag people have been killed and another 40 flag people have reported injuries in B.C. as a result of collisions with motor vehicles

traveling through construction zones, and no few-er than three motorist fatalities occurred in con-struction zones in the Lower Mainland in 2010.

The BC Flagging Association (BCFA) is a community network that was created to enhance safety awareness in all roadway construction sites and as a result of numerous accidents resulting in death or severe injury around the province. BCFA hopes to create a safer working environ-ment for all workers and minimize death and injury to the traveling public. The association’s mission is to educate the public on safety in construction work zones on roads, freeways and highways. The long term effects of this awareness campaign will result in safer roads.

Most recently, BCFA have started discus-sions and have commitments from RCMP and Commercial Vehicle Inspectors to conduct their own investigations by way of targeting distracted drivers/speeders and issue maximum fines. Local authorities have held five counter attacks at dif-ferent locations around the province; the num-bers are staggering and continue to rise. In lieu of these ever rising numbers, the BCFA represen-tatives are now asking British Columbia’s Minis-ter of Transportation to increase the minimum penalty to $400 for speeding through a construc-tion zone. This means... as soon as a driver see’s a “CONSTRUCTION AHEAD” sign they must adjust their driving to the posted speed limit and obey the direction of the Flag Person. This asso-ciation is the first of its kind and is bringing the world of “Road Building” together one member at a time.

Penalties for speeding in construction zones range from a minimum fine of $196 to a maxi-mum fine of $483 and seven day vehicle im-poundment. The penalty for failing to obey a

Safety for all Roadway Workers BY TAMMY SAMPSON

flag person is $196 and/or $368 for driving with-out due care and attention.

TCPs must also do their part to ensure their own safety. They should participate in daily safety meetings that will include the planning of escape routes for each project. At the end of each shift they must inspect all traffic devices and ensure they are in good working order, clean and with good reflective material. A TCP’s caution level goes up dramatically when working with greater speed limits like the Trans Canada Hwy for ex-ample. This situation will call for less flagging work and more preparation such as larger advance warning signage, more signage, longer taper/tran-sition areas and actions like remaining inside the fog line or better yet in the lane closure vehicle. When sitting in the lane closure truck it is recom-mended you wear the seat belt, turn the steering wheel away from traffic and keep a watchful eye in those rear-view mirrors so you may warn the crew ahead of a potential impact.

TCP’s from all over the province are banning together to make a difference on B.C.’s roadways large and small. They are uniformly trained yet encounter the opposite when it comes to drivers. TCPs work a highly dangerous job and take on a daily task to make their crews and the public safe from things like low hanging wires, dips on roadways due to preload piles or excavation and potential work zone hazards. We are there for your safey so next time you encounter a work zone, slow down and give us a brake.

Tammy Sampson is operations manager at BCRS Road Safe Inc. and a founder of The BC Flagging Association. Show your support for the BC Flagging Association by becoming a member at www.bcflaggingassociation.com.


Roadbuilding

in Alberta, as in most provinces across Can-ada, severely rutted asphalt intersections caused by high traffic loading, material com-position and environmental effects are an all

too common and frustrating problem. When these asphalt pavements fail, the intersection can become extremely rough and even dangerous.

Road authorities have traditionally addressed the issue by using an asphalt overlay or a “mill and fill” approach, which can improve the ap-pearance of these intersections, but does little to correct the problems that caused the failure in the first place. As a result, in many cases, the rutting reappears within a few years and the cycle begins all over again, wasting time and tax dol-lars. It was to put an end to this situation that the Alberta Transportation Department sought out concrete solutions. Concrete’s durable sur-face withstands the rigour of our climate and is not affected by the weight of heavy trucks in the springtime, making potholes and ruts virtually non-existent.

Since 2005, Alberta Transportation has re-paired over a dozen deteriorated asphalt inter-sections by either applying a bonded concrete overlay or constructing a new full-depth con-

crete pavement. These concrete options provide a proactive, sustainable pavement maintenance and rehabilitation strategy that will last longer at a reasonable cost. For the high traffic, heavy truck volume, severely rutted intersections, the department chose to remove the failed asphalt and replace it with a new concrete pavement. For other intersections, the preferred method of re-

pair was a thin bonded concrete overlay. In each case, the goal was to break the cycle of ongoing maintenance.

Examples of full-depth concrete solutions in Alberta include the intersection approaches of the Trans-Canada Highway in Medicine Hat and at Highway 43 in Grande Prairie. For both of these projects, the existing asphalt concrete pavement

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Roadbuilding

and a portion of the underlying granular base course were removed to accommodate the new concrete pavement section. The new concrete sec-tions were 230 mm to 240 mm thick with some edges thickened at the transition between the new concrete pavement and the existing adjoining asphalt pavement as required. The minimum 28-day unconfined compressive strength was approxi-mately 32 MPa and epoxy coated dowel bars were used between concrete panels.

Two of the bonded concrete overlay projects include turning lanes on 51st Street in Camrose and at Highway 4 in Lethbridge. In order to ac-commodate the new 125 mm concrete overlay, an equal amount of in-place asphalt concrete pavement was removed to provide an inlay for the concrete. The concrete was hand-placed one lane at a time and saw cut into longitudinal pan-els 1.5 meters in length. Typical of thin bonded overlays, no dowel bars or tie bars were neces-sary. Minimum 28-day unconfined compressive strengths were in the 30 to 35 MPa range with placement slump of 100 mm +/- 20 mm. The concrete construction was completed in just a few days while traffic was easily rerouted around the construction.

beyond Concrete intersections The advantage of concrete pavement for typical highways and roads is increasingly being recog-nized. For example, in Ontario, the Ministry of Transportation has selected the concrete pave-

ment option for all 10 most recent alternate bids it has tendered for its 400 Series Highway projects, based on the low 50-year lifecycle cost of concrete pavement. And in Quebec, Transports Quebec designates concrete for several sections of its road-ways, based on truck traffic and other factors.

Looking beyond highways, a new independent study carried out in Ontario by the engineering firm Applied Research Associates (ARA) has es-tablished the lifecycle cost advantage of concrete pavement for municipal roadways. It shows that a typical municipal road built in concrete re-quires less repairs and is generally more economi-cal than one in asphalt.

The report, Methodology for the Develop-ment of Equivalent Pavement Design Matrix for Municipal Roadways, was commissioned by the Cement Association of Canada and the Ready Mixed Concrete Association of Ontario to pro-

The advantage of concrete pavement for typical highways

and roads is increasingly being

recognized.

vide municipalities with the reference informa-tion they need to effectively compare the costs of concrete and asphalt pavements of equivalent design over their respective lifecycles.

It’s the first study to provide municipal trans-portation agencies and roadway consulting en-gineers with a comprehensive matrix of equiva-lent concrete and asphalt pavement designs for various truck traffic levels and subgrade strengths and identify the anticipated maintenance and rehabilitation requirements for the pavement structures over a 50 year service life evaluation period, with corresponding lifecycle costs.

The pavement designs presented in the study were developed using the Mechanistic Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG) and soft-ware, a design procedure that takes detail traffic data, environmental data and material properties of the concrete, asphalt and base / subbase ma-terials to evaluate the performance of identified asphalt and concrete structures over an initial design life of 25 years.

Concrete pavement clearly presents a compelling solution not only for Alberta’s intersections, but also for highways and municipal roads across Canada.

Todd Kruszewski is director, markets and tech-nical affairs for Cement Association of Canada. Methodology for the Development of Equivalent Pavement Design Matrix for Municipal Road-ways is available at www.cement.ca. For more in-formation, please contact [email protected]


Roadbuilding

it is the largest and most ambitious construc-tion project ever undertaken by the City of Calgary. The $1-billion-dollar budget, 8 km-long construction site snakes its way out

of the downtown from the west, traversing el-evated platforms 12 metres above the streetscape and 15-metre-deep tunnels below future Transit Oriented Development sites. Related projects include a major interchange and a new LEED Silver candidate high school, which will open its doors this fall to up to 1,800 students. When completed West LRT will carry more than 40,000 Calgarians per day between downtown and the western communities.

The West LRT project, which employs hun-dreds of people, is Calgary’s first new light rail transit leg in over 20 years. Once complete, it will represent the final piece of an expansion pro-gram which has doubled the length of the LRT network in just over a decade. This investment in Calgary’s transportation system will ease road congestion while facilitating easy access to down-town and to schools, postsecondary institutions, libraries, shopping centres and recreation facili-ties within the catchment area.

Now in its second year of construction, the West LRT project received council approval in November 2007. The city undertook an exten-sive public engagement process with residents

and businesses in the catchment area of the new line. This input shaped the final design of the line, modifying the proposed plans for the align-ment, station design, and urban design around each of the stations.

The city worked with Hatch Mott MacDon-ald (HMM) to develop procurement docu-ments. A new design-build agreement for the city was created by a team including the law department, finance & supply, and HMM. This agreement is the new standard for future design-build city projects. In 2009, the city is-sued a Request for Proposals, and in October 2009, the design-build contract was awarded to SNC-Lavalin.

At this time, the decision was also made to incorporate some related projects into the con-

struction, in order to reduce costs and minimize traffic disruptions. An interchange at Sarcee Trail (located along the LRT alignment) which had been planned for several years was incorpo-rated into the project. Ernest Manning High, an older school located on what was planned to be a future Transit Oriented Development site, was slated for decommissioning, and a new, larger high school, West Calgary High School, was integrated into the planning process and constructed under a separate contract.

2010 marked the official kick-off of West LRT construction. The first major undertaking of construction was the relocation of utilities located within the LRT right-of-way. Affected utilities included water, sewer, telephone, fibre optic, and electric cabling —TELUS, for exam-ple, relocated more than 23 kilometres of cable for the project.

The second major undertaking was construc-tion of the elevated guideway. A specialized launching truss was trucked in from Seattle to build the 1,5 km-long structure. Once assem-bled, the truss raised 300 precast concrete seg-ments into place in the elevated guideway in just 10 months, completing the guideway in May 2011. The use of this piece of equipment greatly reduced potential traffic disruptions, as well as the amount of labour required.

Building the futureThe West LRT is the largest infrastructure project for the City of Calgary.BY GORDON STEWART

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Roadbuilding

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With the development of Transit Oriented Development sites like Westbrook Village (a private development on the Westbrook Sta-tion site, built to facilitate everyday living using transit rather than an automobile), the imple-mentation of the West LRT will encourage peo-ple to consider transit as a more comprehensive transportation option rather than just a com-muting option.

The improved transit access, both within the catchment area and to and from other points of interest across the city, will benefit all members of the community, including residents, school-children, and businesses. Business centres along the line will be patronized by transit users, creating a self-reinforcing cycle wherein more businesses are established at these sites, causing increased density of amenities, attracting more people to move to the area in order to access these amenities, and expanding the community as a result.

In addition to the social benefits the line will provide, the West LRT will also realize huge im-provements for sustainability. Not only will the line result in increased use of transit over single-passenger car use, but the project will also facili-tate other sustainable modes of transportation. Many station sites are equipped with multi-use pathways and bicycle parking, rather than Park and Ride facilities, in order to encourage patrons to choose sustainable methods of transport, such as walking and cycling.

In the second quarter of 2011, construction on the line is more intense than ever as crews work on roads, utilities, guideways, stations and track all at once. Several of the stations have already had supporting arches and roof-ing installed and are beginning to resemble the architectural renderings of the finished construction.

As the project looks forward to the remain-ing year and a half of construction, the city is optimistic that this project will continue to be the gold standard for future major construction projects.

Gordon Stewart is director of transportation infrastructure at the City of Calgary.


Roofing

established in 1961, the Alberta Roof-ing Contractors Association’s (ARCA) mandate is to serve the Alberta roof-ing industry by providing leadership

through the development and promotion of standards, education and professional delivery of roofing services.

Brenwyn Cooley has been ARCA’s executive director for 12 years. CB speaks with her about the association’s “golden” anniversary and its achievements.

CB: The ARCA is celebrating 50 years, what does the anniversary mean to you?

BC: There are not too many associations that make it this far. I think it’s a huge milestone for the members and they’ve worked hard to estab-lish themselves as the standard resource for roof-ing in Alberta.

This is a small organization and that means many hours by a considerable number of board members and committee members over the years to keep ahead of the ever growing number of roofing applications and making sure that they work here in Alberta.

CB: What is the association doing to mark the occasion?

BC: We’ve put together our own 50th anniversa-ry edition called From the Top — documenting the past, what’s coming up in the future and also some profiles of our members.

At our conference at the end of June we’re hav-ing a large celebration and special events. We’ve invited all of our past presidents and we will be honouring them at the Presidents dinner.

CB: Why is the ARCA an important association?

BC: It represents a very significant trade in Al-berta. Our members are primarily involved in commercial, industrial roofing. Our members (ranging from small to large) are responsible for about 70 per cent of the commercial roofing in Alberta. We currently have 33 contractor mem-bers and 60 associates.

Approximately one third of these roofs are covered by the ARCA warranty, which is a work-manship warranty. And we now have a 5-10-15 year program, which was unveiled in 2009.

CB: What do you feel has been key to the as-sociation’s success?

BC: Developing the standards for commercial roofing in Alberta — that’s what created this organization and that’s what continues to be our focus.

the aRCa celebrates 50 years

CB: What have been some important achievements?

BC: ARCA has established a reputation with government as being the go to organization when it comes to roofing. Also ARCA has created a standards manual that details the application of ARCA approved roofing mem-branes and products — it is a comprehensive living document.

The warranty program is definitely one to be proud of — there are two other sister organiza-tions in Canada that have warranty programs. Only three provinces that do this and they are much larger than we are.

It’s significant because with the revenues gen-erated we have the opportunity of building a training centre that houses the apprenticeship program for roofing in Southern Alberta. We’re currently expanding the facility and adding an-other training component to the building be-cause it’s so in demand.

CB: What are some initiatives the association is working on now?

BC: Most of our focus is directed at training. That’s one of the reasons why we’re expanding the training centre. The expansion completion is expected by October 31 and we’ll have a total of 10,000 sq.ft of training space.

Roofing has become very complicated. It used be tar and gravel, now it’s SPF, PVC…heat weld-ed, torched down, mechanically fastened…All kinds of products these days with new products coming out all the time. Education will be a big direction for the board this fall once the centre is completed.

CB: What are some major issues facing the roofing industry?

BC: Generally the economy was certainly an is-sue these last couple of years but that has eased up somewhat in Calgary. It’s still very competi-tive in the northern part of the province.

Also finding skilled workers — that’s a huge is-sue. People are retiring and not enough people are coming up the ranks to fill those shoes.

CB: What does the future hold for the association?

BC: My wish for them is that they continue to put the kind of time and effort that they have into the organization. I know it’s a big commit-ment for people but it’s their livelihood and their industry. I hope they use the past as the footprint for opening the door to the future and that they have the courage, passion and drive to do that.

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Roofing

as technical issues have become more complex, there are today several important reasons to have a roof consultant as part of one’s team.

building owners PerspectiveFor owners to effectively manage their buildings or components they first have to know how much roof they have, what it consists of and its general condition. A professional roof consultant can inventory and develop an identification system for the complex, keeping in mind that the roof as-semblies may be different for each section of roof. With this information the roof consultant can assist the owner in developing a long-term solution of their roofing needs.

The services of a roof consultant can be especially beneficial to the owner in the implementation of roof replacement and maintenance projects. The quality of a roof replacement or major maintenance project is dependent on the appro-priateness of the remediation, the quality of the roofing specification, the work-manship and quality control of the contractor and finally the field inspection of the consultant. This ensures the final product meets specification.

While many owners fully understand the value of the above-mentioned services, they may worry that these services will place additional burden on their limited budgets. A competitive tendering process overseen by a roof consultant can yield benefits that can more than offset the fees charged to the owner by the consultant. The elimination of so called grey areas can be accomplished, while many surprise “extras” can be discharged.

With the consultant preparing specifications, conducting tendering meetings and inspecting field workmanship, it is unlikely that the owner

will face roof performance problems with the new roof assembly. Should problems arise, however, the consultant is well positioned to protect the owner’s interest in getting the problem addressed.

A professional consultant will have made the owner aware of the warran-tee advantages/disadvantages of various products and with the help of clear and concise specifications, will allow the contract documents to underline the warrantee and contractor obligations.

roofing Contractors PerspectiveAs noted above, it would seem that some added value is observed with own-ers employing professional consultants. Simply put another way, every roof-ing project requires three fundamental characteristics:

• Proper technical design• The right choice of materials• Quality application

Roofing contractors are to be regarded as professional constructors and product applicators, not as licensed or registered consultants (carrying E & O insurance) responsible for overall roof design. Dilemmas over drainage or wind uplift for example, are critical roof design elements. Drains, scup-pers and roof slope must be properly designed to provide adequate drain-age, minimize ponding water, meet required codes and comply with the selected roofing manufactures warrantee requirements.

Code compliance in most aspects (not all), may be beyond the con-tractors area of expertise. An independent professional source should be responsible for meeting such provincial and national codes, which may in-clude requirements for:

• Wind uplift• Thermal insulation• Fire resistance requirement• Slope• Drains and overflows• Safety and Insurance issues

For contractors, having well defined bidding documents and an orga-nized pre-bid meeting can be seen as first “comfort zone” step in ensuring a successful roofing project. Clean, unbiased and knowledgeable specifi-cations enable the contractor to perform the work in a spirit of mutual co-operation.

John A. Pitre, RRC RRO, is standing president of RCI — Western Canada Chapter. RCI Inc. presents education programs for all levels and backgrounds. The programs are designed to demystify and explain the practical applications of roofing waterproofing technology www.rciwesterncanadachapter.org.

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Roofing

transit riders are still complimenting the elegant design of the South Cam-pus Light Rail Transit (LRT) station in southwest Edmonton, even two years

after it opened. The station features a white fab-ric roof supported by a single intermediate line that lets through daylight while naturally chan-neling the seasonal winds to protect passengers.

Edmonton-based engineering firm Stantec served as sub-consultant on the project for lo-cal design team ONPA Architects, which came up with the single scheme for the roof. From the start, the goal was to create something that cap-tured the eye of the transit rider.

“If you look at Vancouver or Calgary, each station is unique,” says project engineer Simon Chan of Stantec. “One station would have a flat roof, another would have curved glass, another would mix together different material like tim-ber and steel. Generally a station is a long piece of cover so it can be very boring, so each station now tries to be unique and have its own identity.”

The 600-metre South Campus terminal and ap-proach sit between provincially-owned land and the south expansion for the University of Alberta. The station connects with the university’s renowned Foote Field and the Saville Sports Centre, the largest curling and tennis centre in Alberta. The station is intended to be an “organic” structure that reminds visitors of a cloud floating above a line of trees, says Daryl Procinsky of ONPA Architects.

“To us, the roof is more like a kite or a canopy,” he says. “It literally floats. It captures light and it

captures wind so the shape not only directs the way we want light to work but also directs the way we want the wind to work. We wanted to make sure you could experience nature while [the roof was] also protecting you.”

The roof is made of durable, treated fabric pulled in four directions to obtain its strength and stability. A centre line of concrete columns with exposed glue-laminated beams is the only means of support for the curved roof, which in turn is twisted to such a degree that it creates a helix. The result is a roof with an opening larger at one end than the other, creating an overhead funnel that directs a wind draft upward and then gently moves it out and away from people stand-ing on the platform.

ONAP Architects researched several material options before selecting a Japanese manufacturer that delivered a light, durable roof fabric. The choice was not only innovative but also less ex-pensive, says Chan.

“Usually with a roof you have a membrane with insulation, some base shielding and then a structural system. But this is just a single scheme so it’s more economical,” he says.

Chan added that by using less material from a single scheme structure, the roof also increased the life of the rest of the structure from the pillars down to the foundation.

“There is definitely some cost saving for being so light,” says Chan. “If you used a heavier mate-rial, you would have had to beef up the design and that would create more stress.”

Still, the curved roof design posed some unique engineering challenges. Accumulated snow and run-off are the bane of roofs in northern climates. Even a fabric roof can be vulnerable to stress and leakage if engineers do not properly examine its load patterning, or how water and snow collect and run off the roof ’s surface.

“Because the roof is curved, there is a differ-ent load pattern that we have to deal with,” Chan says. “We have to look at a snow loading on one half of this roof and one half at the other end. The shape of the roof is dictating what sort of load pattern we’re dealing with.”

Fortunately, the fabric roof has proven durable enough to endure the heavy snow that blanketed Edmonton last winter. At the same time, the sta-tion’s ability to capture and reflect artificial light onto a snowy landscape over winter helped give Edmonton transit riders a sense of security in the station, says Procinsky.

“Because it’s so bright under that canopy, you feel safe even though you’re out in the middle of an exposed field. When you see people there, they really enjoy it. This is the epitome of being under a cloud.”

And according to projections, more riders will soon experience that sensation. A recent count by the City of Edmonton found south LRT rid-ership surpassed the projected goal of 100,000 weekday riders. Eventually, the station will serve students attending University of Alberta’s future south campus.

Innovative fabric RoofBY DEREK LOGAN


Building green

a Roadmap for Climate actionStrategies and Results at the University of Calgary BY JOANNE PERDUE

like many large building portfolio hold-ers, the University of Calgary (UofC), faces a complex challenge in advancing climate action in the context of 8.9 mil-

lion square feet across 115 buildings and a com-munity of more than 35,000 students, staff and faculty. Familiar hurdles include inefficient older buildings, financial constraints, operational staff occupied with keeping things running, and the challenge of engaging people in new ways of thinking and doing. How, then, does an organi-zation define a roadmap for climate action and undertake the organizational development re-quired to implement and sustain change?

The new Energy Environment and

Experiential Learning building is on

track to be 60 per cent more energy

efficient than a comparable building.

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Building green

Challenges inspire us.Levelton is providing Quality Assurance on

behalf of PavCo.

ABBOTSFORD CALGARY COURTENAY EDMONTON KELOWNA NANAIMO RICHMOND SURREY VICTORIA

www.levelton.comBC PlacePhoto taken by Grant Mattice

in developing a new ongoing re-commissioning protocol for all buildings.

occupant engagementIn order to affect a large scale of engagement, a “train the trainer” has been developed with the model based on principles of community based social marketing. Forty coordinators are assisting with departmental engagement for energy con-servation and promoting other strategies such as responsible purchasing and waste reduction. The

program includes building-to-building competi-tions, and a consistent suite of communication and engagement tools. The most recent competi-tion generated a 47,000 kilowatt hour reduction over a three week period. Purchasing practices are also playing an important role. For example, desktop computing equipment standards require Energy STAR and EPEAT silver ratings. The use of multi-functional printing and scanning devices has replaced multiple plug load devices resulting in both power savings and substantial reductions in copy paper use.

As an organization dedicated to learning and research, the UofC Climate Action Plan also en-compasses institutional priorities in curriculum and research. Students place significant value on cor-porate social responsibility, and many students are preparing for careers in which energy expertise is in-tegral. What is most exciting is the students’ passion for learning and their desire to put their knowledge into action. The UofC’s student-led Solar Decath-lon Team placed 6th in the international 2009 Solar Decathlon — an international competition to de-sign, build and operate a solar-powered house. The UofC team is the only Canadian team shortlisted in the 2011 competition. The 2010 student solar car team also designed, built and raced their solar-powered car to a 6th place finish in the 2010 North American Solar Car Race.

The UofC is on track to meet the 2015 target of 45 per cent reduction in GHG emissions. The Cli-mate Action Plan provides a framework for a holistic approach, but in the end, change happens through a series of incremental steps. The common denomina-tor to success is investing in organization develop-ment at each step — building the knowledge and leadership skills of our staff, facilitating cross depart-mental collaboration, and providing the inspiration for personal and organizational success.

Joanne Perdue, architect AAA, LEED AP (BD+C), is University of Calgary’s director of sustainability. For more information on the University of Calgary Climate Action Plan and broader sustainability programs please see www.ucalgary.ca/sustainability.

For more than a decade, the UofC has been engaged in incremental change including energy retrofits and transportation demand manage-ment strategies. In 2008 the UofC became a sig-natory to the University and College Presidents’ Climate Change Statement of Action and began a more holistic planning process. Formally ad-opted in 2010, the institutional Climate Action Plan confirms a target of a 45 per cent reduction in annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2015, a further 80 per cent by 2050, and has identified key strategies to deliver on these tar-gets. Following are some of the building related components of the plan.

energy supplyGiven the predominantly coal-fired energy source of the provincial power grid, a critical step to re-ducing GHG emissions was to rethink energy supply. The recently completed retrofit of the cen-tral heating and cooling plant to a 12 megawatt co-generation system provides the UofC with the capacity to co-generate approximately 60 per cent of power demand and 80 per cent of heating de-mand. At an incremental cost of $18 million, the upgrades provide an annual cost savings of about $3.5 million and 80,000 metric tonnes of annual GHG emission reductions. The UofC’s LEED Platinum Child Development Centre is also home to a 65,000 kWh photo-voltaic array, one of the largest building-based installations in Canada.

buildingsOver the past decade the UofC has expanded by 30 per cent with each new building contributing to energy demand. To limit emissions growth from new buildings, design standards specify minimum energy performance requirements — currently 60 per cent more energy efficient than a comparable building. The new Energy Environ-ment and Experiential Learning building is on track to meet this requirement.

The greater challenge, however, is improving energy performance of existing buildings. The re-cently completed Phase II of a multi-phased En-ergy Performance Initiative (EPI) delivered a suite of lighting and mechanical system upgrades. The total investment of $15 million is expected to pro-vide annual savings of approximately $3 million and 29,000 metric tonnes of GHG emissions.

Phase III of the EPI focuses on optimizing build-ing operating hours. By consolidating after-hour class locations and matching HVAC system oper-ating hours with core occupancy hours, the UofC anticipates an annual cost savings of $1 million. Savings from Phase III are being invested into a re-volving energy fund dedicated to energy demand reduction projects. The first project in this program focuses on optimizing energy use in approximately 1,000 laboratory refrigeration units. Resultant sav-ings will be re-invested in future projects.

Phase IV, the most current phase under plan-ning, includes energy use assessments of 35 buildings and 22 building envelope studies. Out-comes will be used to inform a long-term build-ing renewal program. Findings will also assist

The UofC is on track to meet the 2015 target of 45

per cent reduction in GHG emissions.


according to a United Nations forecast 70 per cent of the world population will be living in cities by 2050. Such a major shift away from rural and natu-

rally vegetated areas to the polluted, noisy and crowded concrete jungle of modern cities is and will continue to be profound. We must find new and innovative ways to better integrate nature into our ever expanding cities. Green roofs and parks are one way to do this but there are sub-stantial amounts of vertical space which for the most part have been underutilized. Living walls not only bring nature back into city life, they do so in a way that is accessible to everyone.

Currently living walls are at the cutting edge of interior and architectural design trends but they are also being integrated into sustainable building design for their numerous environmental benefits.

living walls DefinedThe terms living wall, green wall, plant wall, biow-all or vertical garden are used interchangeably but appertain to the same general concept. From here on they will be referred to simply as living walls.

Building green

living WallsTransforming urban walls into lush vertical gardens.BY MIKE WEINMASTER

Numerous living wall technologies have ap-peared in the last few years but can be broken down into two main categories: hydroponic systems and modular boxes. Some also put green facades (e.g. ivy walls) into this group; however they should be in a class of their own as the tech-nology is vastly different.

Living walls are self sufficient vertical gardens that are attached to the exterior or interior of a building. They differ from green facades in that the plants root in a structural support which is fastened to the wall itself. The plants receive water and nutrients from within the vertical sup-port instead of from the ground.

The Semiahmoo Library and

RCMP Facility is currently

the largest vertical garden in

North America.


Building green

technologiesThere are two main types of technologies: hydro-ponic living walls (i.e. soil-free) and modular box green walls.

Hydroponic living wallsThe hydroponic living wall system closely mim-ics how plants grow vertically in nature, such as on cliffs, next to waterfalls or on tree branches. It allows plants to grow to their full potential, with-out space limitations.

The system is unique on the market as it can accommodate hundreds of plant species; from ground covers to larger perennials, bushes, shrubs, and even small trees. These larger species are typi-cally allowed to grow 6 to 7 feet out of the wall.

The system consist of a frame, waterproof pan-els, various rooting layers, an automatic irrigation system, lights (for interior walls) and of course the plants.

The frame is built in front of a pre-existing wall and attached at various points. Waterproof panels are mounted to this frame; these are rigid, provide structural support and are root-proof. They are made of 100 per cent recycled, recyclable and environmental friendly polymer, similar to what is used in beverage containers, milk jugs and plastic bags. There is a layer of air between the building and the panels which en-ables the building to ‘breath’. This adds beneficial insulating properties and acts like rain-screening to protect the building envelop. Three layers of rooting materials are attached to the panels. The first layer is a rooting layer which is where the strength of the system comes. The roots of the plants grow into this layer and form a strong ma-trix so over time the system actually gets stronger. The other two layers, which are made of recycled fibres, deliver the moisture and nutrients to the roots of the plants.

An automatic irrigation system is installed which provides the plants with their ideal re-quirements. Rainwater harvesting or the use of grey water is encouraged wherever possible. The system can also be coupled to a fish pond where the waste from the fish is used a nutrients for the plants; in turn creating a balanced ecosystem.

Due to the fact that no substrate or soil is used, hydroponic living walls are by far the lightest, at a mere 3 to 4 lbs per square foot which includes the frame and mature vegetation.

Modular box green wallsModular green walls are similar to planter boxes that have been turned on their side. They are typi-cally made of plastic or metal and provide cells or slots for the plants to grow in. Substrate such as peat moss, coco coir, potting soil, etc is used to fill the boxes prior to planting. These systems are re-stricted to using small perennials or ground covers as there is a limited space for root development. This drastically reduces the diversity of plants that can be used; typically five to 10 species.

The weight of these systems tends to range from around 30 to 50 pounds per square foot. There-fore, the structural capacity of the building must be checked prior to installing one of these systems.

Boxes are typically pre-planted in a greenhouse and slowly tilted to a vertical position for three to six months prior to being hung. ‘Do it yourself ’ modular box kits can also be found for small balcony gardens.

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A framework is attached to the building that allows for the boxes to be hung. Special water-proofing of the building is usually necessary. Automatic irrigation is installed which normally requires drip lines feeding each individual box.

ecological, social and economic benefitsLiving Walls provide the following benefits:

EcologicalReduce Urban Heat Island EffectStorm Water ManagementIncrease Urban BiodiversityReduce Noise PollutionImprove Indoor Air QualityGain Potential LEED Credits

SocialHealth & WellnessImprove Acoustics

EconomicEnergy SavingsBuilding ProtectionMarketable Green Feature

Mike Weinmaster is chief designer at Green over Grey, a leading design firm that focuses on the creation of spectacular and eye-catching green walls. The company offers a compre-hensive list of services including consultation, design, installation and full maintenance pack-ages. www.greenovergrey.com


in Western Canada we have become aware that we need to live a more sustainable exis-tence. The building industry is responsible for significant contributions to issues that

affect all of us on a global scale. According to Canadian Green Building Council, buildings consume through their construction and opera-tions: 38 per cent of total secondary energy use, 40 per cent of raw materials consumption, 16 per cent of fresh water withdrawal, and 40 per cent of municipal solid waste, and generate 30 per cent of Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, new structures built on green space in the Lower Mainland and worldwide are causal to urban sprawl, which is another contributor to excessive energy use and demand on resources.

The building industry is responding by finding solutions to transform and encourage responsible land use and sustainable construction design. This is playing out in Port Alberni, B.C. where the local secondary school is being replaced with a school that is being designed and built to a LEED Gold standard. Schools are a place of learning but in this B.C. island community, it will soon be a living example for students to investigate first hand how the picture of energy, materials, and water use can change for our future. Highlights in the new building include geothermal exchange for heating; a comprehensive lighting strategy

utilizing photo sensors and motion sensors to maximize natural daylight and minimize the use of electricity; xeriscaping to eliminate the need for water use for landscaping; and restoration of exist-ing wetlands and creation of a natural wetland to clean and manage rain water on site.

Alberni District Secondary School invited Green Bricks into the existing school to work with the grade 10 classrooms over a two-day period; students had a chance to explore, brain-storm, and understand all the features that are being employed in their new school.

Green Bricks Education Society (www.green-bricks.ca) was founded in 2007 with the creation of a grade 10 curriculum connected student program, Green B10cks, with a goal of engaging youth in sus-tainable land use and development. Green B10cks, generously sponsored by BC Hydro, Vancity, the Real Estate Foundation of BC, and City of Surrey reached more than 150 classrooms in many com-munities in British Columbia this past school year including Vancouver, Surrey, Burnaby, Richmond, Vernon and Port Alberni. This interactive work-shop, offered free to schools across B.C. thanks to the generous support of the funders, encourages students to search for practical solutions for green building design, allowing them to work towards a more sustainable future. Participating youth develop transferable skills that will benefit their communi-

Building green

green EducationBY DIANA KLEIN AND FIONA ZAWADZKI

ties, as they engage friends and family in discussions surrounding more sustainable behaviour choices with respect to buildings and houses.

Green Bricks is also the sustainability consul-tant working closely with the new school’s design and construction team to explore green strategies and solutions that will fit with the local environ-ment and to achieve LEED Gold certification. Green Bricks is planning to visit Alberni District again next school year and include a tour of the new school site under construction; students can take what they explore in the Green Bricks work-shop and see a live example in their community. The LEED Gold Alberni District Secondary School is scheduled to open September 2012.

The design build team led by Yellowridge Con-struction includes: Meiklejohn Architect, Atelier Pacific Architecture, Read Jones Christoffersen, MCW Consultants, Jarvis Engineering and Rod Maruyama & Assoc, and Chatwin Engineering.

The Green Bricks founders are Diana Klein, LEED AP, P.Eng, of Eco-Integration (www.eco-integration.com) and Fiona Zawadzki, B.A.(Hons), B.Ed, of Skye Consulting (www.skyeconsulting.net). For more information on the new Port Alberni Secondary School or Green Bricks Education Society, please contact Diana Klein at [email protected].


Building green

innovative upgrades to Vancouver’s Sunset Nursery will see waste heat from the adja-cent Sunset Rink transferred directly to the nursery’s greenhouses. It is expected to serve

as a model to follow for municipalities across North America.

The nursery, located on East 51st Avenue near Main, is one of 36 city facilities that received $16 million in energy conservation upgrades and is expected to experience one of the most signifi-cant greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions as a re-sult of the change.

The multi-facility project started in January 2006 and completed in April 2011.

“Reducing our city’s greenhouse gas emis-sions by upgrading facilities like the Sunset Nursery is an important step to us becoming the world’s greenest city by 2020,” says Mayor Gregor Robertson.

The Sunset Nursery project saves energy by capturing waste heat from the rink, where the refrigeration plant used to release the heat re-moved from the ice into the atmosphere. New

Innovative greenhouse heating

heat pumps in 12 nursery greenhouses now transfer this previously lost heat from the rink to heat the greenhouses.

This measure, along with the replacement of two boilers with high efficiency condensing units, will reduce nursery emissions by 52 per cent, or 268 tonnes a year; the equivalent of re-moving 51 cars from city streets. The upgrades were all achieved without any cost to taxpayers.

The upgrades were funded with capital that was borrowed from internal funds to be paid back with interest over a 20-year period using guaranteed utility savings.

According to the city, greenhouse gas emis-sions were 18 per cent lower in 2010 than they were in 1990 despite a 44 per cent increase in to-tal area for city facilities. Further reductions are expected throughout 2011.

Ameresco, an energy management company, was hired to recommend energy-savings, design and measure the GHG reduction initiatives, as well as provide performance guarantees. The company will monitor the actual results of the

project and remit any shortfall to the city if actual savings are less than the guarantee.

“Our local team has enjoyed working with the city’s staff through all phases of this project and the growth of our Vancouver office since the project began is just one example of Vancouver’s expanding green economy,” says Mario Lusi, president of Ameresco Canada.

Existing buildings, and their potential for en-ergy efficiency upgrades, represent the greatest opportunity to reduce building emissions.

Under B.C.’s Climate Action Charter starting in 2012, B.C. municipalities will have to become carbon neutral or purchase carbon offsets to meet the carbon neutral requirement. Offsetting GHG from building emissions represents the majority of this cost.

In Vancouver, GHG have been reduced to 1990 levels and the city is on track to meeting the Kyoto target of six per cent below 1990 levels by 2012. Vancouver has the lowest per capita GHG emissions of any major city in North America at 4.6 tonnes per person.

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legal file

the recent Alberta Master’s decision in Zahmol Properties Ltd. v. Rich-ardson Bros. (Olds) Ltd. is the first reported analysis of section 48 of the

Alberta Builders’ Lien Act (BLA), which al-lows an owner to post security to discharge a lien from title. The case confirmed the require-ment that any such security must represent an adequate replacement for the land itself. Most significantly, Master Laycock rejected the usual practice of fixing the costs portion of the secu-rity in a builders’ lien application at a further 10 per cent to 15 per cent of the sum to be posted and instead held that a “genuine calculation” of anticipated costs was required.

backgroundThe respondent contractor, Richardson Bros. (Olds) Ltd. (Richardson), contracted with the applicant owner, Zahmol Properties Ltd. (Zah-mol), to supply labour, equipment and materials for road building, gravelling, levelling and land-scaping on Zahmol’s development site. After a dispute arose over the balance payable, Richard-son registered a builder’s lien for C$953,492.45 against 22 of Zahmol’s development lots.

Pursuant to section 48 of the BLA, Zahmol applied to discharge the lien prior to trial. How-ever, rather than post security to stand in place of the land, Zahmol argued that the lien should be discharged from 21 of the development lots and that one of the lots would provide adequate security for Richardson’s lien.

Master’s DecisionThe court reaffirmed that section 48 of the BLA provides the mechanism by which security may be paid into court to remove a lien from title to land prior to trial. Master Laycock noted that this issue had never been the subject of a written decision in Alberta and went on to consider the intention of the legislature in allowing an owner to post security to discharge a lien. The court cited with approval the following principles re-garding the adequacy of security paid into court to discharge a builders’ lien:

In order to balance the interest of the lien holder with those of the owner, and to allow s. 48(1) to act as an alternative to immediate liti-gation on the lien, the interest of the lien holder must not be prejudiced by the security.

The lien holder should not be put in a less fa-vourable position by having its charge against the land changed into a different form of security, and this factor outweighs the inconvenience to the applicant owner.

Cash, a letter of credit and a lien bond are all equivalent forms of security and are generally interchangeable, but only if the method of pay-ment has no effect on priority.

Where a lien bond is offered as security to discharge a lien, and there are concerns regard-ing the viability of the surety or the bond that may jeopardize the lien holder’s position, then an alternative form of security may be required.

In addition to the foregoing, the court rein-forced that the security contemplated by section

alberta master: Security in Builders’ lienBY COURTNEY KACHUR

48 of the BLA is for “the amount of the lien and any costs that the court may fix.”

Given these principles, Master Laycock held that reducing the amount of land secured by the lien from 21 lots to only one lot would prejudice Richardson. In rejecting Zahmol’s argument, he reinforced the principle that general liens may at-tach to multi-lot developments in order that lien claimants are not forced to identify specific indi-vidual lots or locations to which their labour or materials were ultimately supplied. Since each lot bore its proportionate share of the work, reducing the amount of land secured by the lien would have jeopardized Richardson’s position. Section 48 of the BLA is not intended to allow a lien to be dis-charged from a portion of the land or to have only some of the land stand as security for the lien.

This case is perhaps most significant for Master Laycock’s determination of the costs to be includ-ed as part of the security to stand in place of the land. He rejected the usual and accepted practice in Alberta in builders’ lien applications of setting costs at 10% to 15% of the value of the lien claim. Instead, he held that counsel should determine whether the lien claim will be summary in nature or a fully contested proceeding and then make a “genuine calculation” of the anticipated costs. The security paid into court to discharge a lien should then include both an amount in respect of the lien claim and an amount for such anticipated costs.

ConclusionThe Zahmol Properties case reinforces the principle that the position of the lien holder generally out-weighs the convenience of the owner when an ap-plication is made by the owner to provide security to discharge a lien prior to trial. In particular, a portion of the land cannot stand as a substitute for the secu-rity provided by all of the land, and security cannot be substituted to the lien holder’s detriment.

Most significantly, Master Laycock has pro-vided clear direction on how security for costs is to be calculated in such applications. The ef-fect of allowing costs to be fixed based on an estimated amount, rather than on an arbitrary percentage as was previously the accepted prac-tice in Alberta lien claims, may be a boon for lien holders and a cautionary item for owners. Fixing security and discharging liens before trial may now cost owners significantly more while providing lien holders with increased motiva-tion to pursue their claims if increased costs must be posted by owners. It remains to be seen whether this decision will be followed by other masters, in higher Alberta courts or in builders’ lien disputes in other provinces.

Courtney Kachur is an associate in the Litigation & Dispute Resolution Group at Blakes, Cassels & Graydon LLP in Calgary. www.blakes.com


legal file

whether or not legal action was commenced, when a construc-tion dispute is settled, a party should put its mind to the issues

surrounding obtaining and/or signing a Release of Claims as one of the settlement requirements.

A Release provides contractual confirmation of the abandonment of a defined claim or claims. In addition to releasing the claims which fall within its scope, a Release can be significant for identifying claims or possible claims which are not released.

The following are issues which should be as-sessed in negotiating the giving or getting of a Release:

is a release necessary? Yes, if legal action was not commenced, and probably, if it was. A paying party in a settle-ment wants confirmation in writing of the claims which are satisfied by the payment. If necessary, it wants to be able to tender the Release in de-fence of any future attempt by the other party or anyone else claiming through it to resurrect and prosecute further the settled claims. If an action was commenced in the dispute, it is common practice to supplement the dismissal or discon-tinuance of that proceeding with a Release. A Re-lease is more critical if no action was commenced, since it may be the only document which ex-pressly evidences the abandonment of the claim.

is a Mutual release necessary? Yes, if a counterclaim was asserted, and possibly even if it wasn’t. Whether or not in a legal action, if both parties to a dispute make claims against each other, they will each want the protection af-forded by a Release when the dispute is settled. Even if no counterclaim has been articulated, set-tling parties often seek the other party’s release of defined possible claims, even though that may seem unjustified in the context of the settle-ment of the only existing claim. Subject to giv-ing due consideration to the scope of the release given, a party which does not have any claim in mind may be prepared to give the requested re-ciprocal release in order to wrap up settlement.

what should be the scope of the release? This is the most critical and often difficult aspect of negotiating Releases as part of settlement. Parties to a dispute sometimes attempt to use its settlement to obtain prospective relief from a wide spectrum of possible future claims which are not on the table at the time of the settlement. A typical construction dispute involves a claim for payment of a construction debt and a coun-terclaim for construction deficiencies, delay or other breach of contract. The usual settlement arrangement is that in return for payment of

Releases of ClaimsBY J. MARC MACEWING

the settlement amount, the creditor releases the debtor from all claims specified or which other-wise arise from or relate to the contract or to the project. In return, the debtor releases the credi-tor from all claims identified or pleaded in the dispute, and probably also for any other claims of which the debtor is aware as of the date of the settlement. The intention is that the settlement will in effect wipe the slate clean between the parties as of that date. A construction creditor should have no further claims against the debtor after being paid the settlement amount. In con-trast, an owner under a general contract or a general contractor under a subcontract will not want to include in the scope of a release which it gives possible future claims for defects or defi-ciencies which have not yet revealed themselves.

should an agreement not to sue or an indemnity also be given? In addition to a party’s release of its own claims,

it may be asked by the other settling party to agree not to pursue claims against any third party who may in turn claim against the other settling party and/or to provide an indemnity against such claims. Except in special circumstances, it is suggested that such requirements do not logical-ly belong in a settlement of a discrete dispute be-tween two parties, which should not necessarily entail a commitment to provide additional pro-tection against claims which arise from a settling party’s other legal relationships. Because of the unknowable and uncontrollable contingencies, a releasing party should very closely consider the benefits vs. the potential legal exposure from giv-ing such a commitment.

when is a release not appropriate? In certain circumstances involving the possible joint liability of Defendants for negligence or other torts, there is the potential that giving a full release of claims against one of those parties might release all of them. Out of an abundance of caution, if settlement is finalized with some but not all allegedly liable parties, a claimant may wish to negotiate its provision of a Cov-enant Not to Sue rather than a Release. This should suffice for the other party, particularly if it is accompanied by a dismissal of an existing action as against it.

J. Marc MacEwing is with Shapiro Hankin-son & Knutson Law Corporation Barristers and Solicitors.

…a Release can be significant for identifying claims or possible claims

which are not released.


legal file

lawyers love definitions. Nowhere is this more evident than in the myriad of defi-nitions that surrounds completion under the Builders Lien Act. This is crucial as

it is generally the trigger for the time frame for filing liens (45 days) and starts the clock for hold-back release (55 days).

Completion means “substantial completion”. It is not always clear when a contract or project is actually substantially completed. To provide clarity on when liens may be validly filed, and when a holdback may be released, a contract or subcontract may be certified to be complete (ac-tually defined as substantially complete) by the issuance of a certificate of completion (which actually certifies substantial completion) Some other provinces actually use the term “Cer-tificate of Substantial Performance”, but that would be too simple. The date of that certificate generally starts the applicable lien and holdback payout periods for the contract or subcontract, and for all parties below. There are potentially other triggers if, for instance, the general con-tract can be shown to have been completed, abandoned or terminated, or the entire im-provement has been completed or abandoned, but the most common trigger by far is the cer-tificate of completion.

A certificate of completion is issued by the payment certifier. The payment certifier is the architect, engineer or other person iden-

tified in the contract or subcontract as the person responsible for payment certification. Substantial completion means that the work to be done under that contract is capable of completion or correction at a cost of not more than 3 per cent of the first $500,000, 2 per cent of the next $500,000, and 1 per cent of the balance of the contract price. To make an accurate calculation, it is essential for the payment certifier to include any proper de-ductions for deficiencies and additions for au-thorized extras. The certificate of completion takes effect from the date it is issued. Neither the date of the inspection nor the date shown in the certificate (if any) is relevant. The date of issuance is what counts.

To be effective, a certificate of completion must be validly issued. The courts in British Co-lumbia have been strict in how they apply this. Not only must the certificate of completion be factually correct, but the Notice of Certification of Completion (a specific form) must be correct and be correctly posted and circulated. Here are some examples of cases where certificates of completion were invalid, and did not start the lien or holdback periods, even though in each case the payment certifier did issue a certificate that seemed to refer to the work in question:

Where a certificate referred to a project or portion of a project, not a specific contract or subcontract.

• Where the certificate or notice of certifi-cation was not in the official form under the regulations.

• Where the notice of certification was posted in the wrong place (the site office rather than on the work itself ).

• Where the certificate did not clearly refer to the contract that was complete.

• Where the certificate did not clearly contain the name of the payment certifier.

• Where the contractor did not make a formal request to the payment certifier to issue the certificate.

The holdback payout period begins to run when the certificate is issued and expires 55 days later. If no liens arise in the meantime, the hold-back may be released after the holdback period has expired. If there are liens on title or if there are back charges contemplated against the hold-back, legal advice should be sought. Also, the person retaining the holdback may want to con-duct a litigation search to as to whether a lawsuit has been started by someone claiming an interest in the holdback. That can have the same effect on the holdback as filing a lien on title to land.

British Columbia has a multiple holdback system, and the general (or head) contractor must retain a holdback from most subcontrac-tors. A certificate of completion of the general contract will trigger the lien and holdback re-lease periods for all subcontracts of any tier be-low that general contractor. However, a subcon-tractor can require the payment certifier to issue a certificate of completion for its own subcon-tract. Once the holdback period has passed after valid certification of a subcontract, if no liens arise, the subcontractor may receive its hold-back. At the same time, the general contractor is entitled to an equal amount from the hold-back under the general contract. This is known as the “progressive release of the holdback”. The lien periods for the subcontractor, and anyone engaged under the subcontractor, also run from that early certification. The same procedure works for early-completing trades in construc-tion management structures.

Certification of completion can be a pow-erful tool in permitting the orderly release of funds into a construction project. It must, how-ever, be used carefully. An owner or contractor releasing the holdback early based on an invalid certificate can be left without the security for builders liens claims that the holdback is in-tended to provide.

Dirk Laudan is a partner with Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. Doug Sanders is a part-ner and professional engineer with the firm. Contact them at (604) 687-5744.

Indefinite definitionsCertification of Substantial Completion in B.C. BY DIRK LAUDAN AND DOUG SANDERS


in April 2011, Vancouver City Council re-solved to accept its staff ’s recommendations for a slight increase of height allowance in Historic Chinatown Zoning HA.1 and

HA.1A. This was done after five Public Hearing sessions and over 150 speakers. Obviously, there was serious support and serious opposition.

The opposition, led by the Downtown Eastside Neighbourhood Council, contended that such in-creases would further the gentrification process and out price the low income residents already living in the Historic Area. What’s more, they contended that Chinatown South (HA.1A) is a low income district. There were also the academics from SFU and UBC, along with professional planners who were insistent on a Local AREA Plan of the whole East Side before allowing any height increases. They do have a point as this District, DEOD, has not had a thoroughly revised zoning review since 1982. However, as we all know, while this may be logical it would take many years…again.

The irony is that the City had been working with the Chinatown Revitalization Committee (VCRC) since 2001 on a Chinatown Commu-nity Plan. This included 26 public consultation sessions on the “Visioning” of the priorities for this Historic Area. Other work, such as a hous-ing study sponsored by the City, was completed in 2004 and the community plan for whatever reasons had not been reviewed by Council when City Planning unveiled its HAHR (Heights review) Consultants’ Study in 2009. The study advocated for three 300 ft. towers in the HA.1/HA.1A District and up to 200 ft. limits on Main Street from the Viaduct to Pender Street.

If adopted, this would forever eradicate, “Chi-natown” as we know it. The VCRC, among oth-er groups such as the newly formed Alliance to Conserve Historic Chinatown (composed of the eight largest Chinatown Associations), protested loudly over three public information meetings and council rejected these plans in January 2010. It also directed city Planning to revise the plans with incremental increases instead. This time, all

the Chinatown organizations and associations were united in support of the city’s recommen-dations, subject to more stringent guidelines and vigilant monitoring of the approval process.

the rationale is manifold:

1 The outright increase is already achievable un-der “conditional approval” at 90’ in HA.1A,

and the increase from 65’ to 75’ in HA.1 would not necessarily open up new higher buildings be-cause of the narrow 25’ lots and the ownership pattern. Since the last increase in 1994 from, “50’ to 65’ conditional”, there has been one develop-ment which replaced a burned building.

While reward of the Community Amenity Cost (CAC) to the Historic Area may be difficult to be achieved, it is, nevertheless, an incentive for restoration and redevelopment. Some additional buildings have taken advantage of the City’s Heri-tage Facade Grant in the restoration of the valued heritage buildings, most more than 100 years old.

2 Chinatown has been in a downward state for about 25 years, for several obvious rea-

sons. Many retail businesses and restaurants have left for other regions of the city, mostly because of the issues of the adjacent neighbourhood. Even fundamental security has been required for the past 15 years at a considerable cost to the local merchants. The need for revitalization is obvious if “Chinatown” is to remain a viable community. This does not mean high-end retail or condo-miniums. This means a variety of commercial ac-tivities and a variety of options for housing. Lost in the debate are about 350 units of social hous-ing for the low income residents which have been included in this neighbourhood over the past 13 years. (Our small firm has been responsible for the design of about 250 of these units.) That is a significant percentage of the residential units within the HA.1 and HA.1A zoning.

In response to the priorities of the Historic Area, the VCRC has been waiting for the city to act as they had already completed their work six years ago. Any revitalization of the area would

Revitalizing Vancouver’s Chinatownarchitect Corner

need these initiatives to move forward. Thus, if these recent city recommendations are delayed for “further consultations”, then it will ensure the continued deterioration of “Chinatown”.

These city recommendations of zoning revi-sions may or may not be the cure for Chinatown’s issues, but they provide an opportunity for revi-talization and a return to a vibrant community.

3 Finally, whether it is height or density, the is-sue is more fundamental. “Chinatown” has

existed for about 125 years, parallel to Vancouver’s existence. For the first half of its existence, it was the defacto ghetto, for the Chinese were not allowed to live elsewhere and were not citizens. The evolution of this community based on its social configuration acquired the character that is “Chinatown”. It had a spiritual and functional identity. As events and our society have evolved, so has the functionality of “Chinatown”.

The demographic evolution over the past 30 years has changed the very social and economic structure of our region and, of course, “Chinatown”. If we all as a society are interested in continuity, heritage and character, then we would be in favour of allowing “Chinatown” to retain and evolve its spiritual and functional identity. The community has historically had an inclusive approach to its residents. It still has such a spirit. In order for it to function, it needs some variety in its commercial and residential facili-ties. Having such variety would allow Chinatown a much better chance to survive its recent and current downturn and evolve as a community, once again in its revitalized spiritual and functional identity. It will once again emerge as a vibrant district with its distinct character in our diverse city.

Joe Y. Wai, MAIBC, FRAIC, has been in-volved locally with historic area issues for the past 40 years. His projects include the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, the Millennium Gate and a variety of social and seniors housing. Recently, he has been active in assisting the Chi-natown Associations in the City Council Public Hearings on the Historic Area Heights Review.

The historic area height review BY JOE Y. WAI


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Industry News

a wortHY CauseThe VRCA held a special event on June 16th to recognize industry contributors to the Hon-our House project. With the broad support of the construction industry, the vision for Honour House has become a reality in New Westminster. More than a million dollars in cash, goods, services and products have been raised for the project. Honour House, a home for first respond-ers and Canadian Forces in need of medical care, is the first facility of its kind in Canada. Other similar projects are now underway or in the planning stages across the country.

feDeral buDget The Canadian Construction Association wel-comed the federal government’s announcement in Budget 2011 of its intention to strengthen public infrastructure by introducing legisla-tion to formalize the current $2 billion annual Gas Tax Fund transfers to municipalities and to work with provinces, territories, municipalities and other stakeholders to develop a long-term plan for public infrastructure that extends be-yond the expiry of the Building Canada Plan. CCA has been a strong advocate for perma-nent federal funding for the modernization of national, provincial and local infrastructure as-sets. As an export-driven nation, these assets are critical to Canada’s future competitiveness. With many of Canada’s international competi-tors investing billions of dollars to modernize their infrastructure, it is imperative that Canada continue to support the modernization of these assets to ensure it remains globally competitive. CCA also welcomed the announcement of $148 million over the next five years to repair interna-tional bridges, a commitment of $1 billion for the Windsor-Essex Parkway P3 project, funding for Research Chairs at colleges and polytechnics, as well as the extension of the Tuition Tax Credit to cover occupational trade examinations.

ContraCts awarDeDStuart Olson Dominion Construction Ltd. (SODCL) has been awarded $117 million in contracts in Western Canada. SODCL has been appointed construction manager of the $55 mil-lion expansion and revitalization of the Vancou-ver Aquarium. Construction is expected to start in the fall of 2011 with project completion ex-pected in three to four years.

In Alberta, the company has been awarded con-tracts for the construction of a post-secondary edu-cation building in Lethbridge and a seniors’ home in Calgary with a combined value of $33 million. Both projects are expected to begin construction in late 2011 and to be completed in mid-2013.

new gMKen Gilles is the LMS Reinforcing Steel general manager in the Calgary office. He will work with LMS vp operations, Greg Hubbard, on LMS’ op-erations in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. With an extensive background in reinforcing steel sales, Ken will play a central role in developing new business opportunities for LMS in these markets.

golDer MergerEngineering firm Golder Associates has merged with HB Lanarc Consultants, a full-service con-sultancy that specializes in planning and design for sustainability. Adding to Golder Associates’ core ser-vices in earth and environment, HB Lanarc brings long-established expertise in planning, design, and engagement efforts for urban, suburban, and rural settings. The union boosts Golder’s market position in the real estate, transportation, waste, and power sectors. HB Lanarc will retain its existing locations in Nanaimo, BC and Vancouver, BC.

green wareHouseConstruction has begun on Stoney Warehouse 4 in Calgary. It’s the fourth building in the Stoney Indus-trial Warehouse complex. Seeking LEED certifica-tion, the project will be the largest LEED certified building in Canada at 430,000 square feet.

The Stoney Industrial Centre is the first phase of the StoneGate Landing project, an area of 10 mil-lion square feet of industrial space, along with retail space, offices and hotels. Located at the corner of Deerfoot Trail and Country Hills Boulevard, Stone-Gate Landing is expected to be complete by 2021.

water tunnel awarDeDAecon Group and McNally International Inc. of Hamilton, Ontario in a joint venture have been awarded a project with Metro Vancouver for the construction of a water supply tunnel under the Fraser River in Greater Vancouver, B.C.

Under the contract, Aecon will sink two shafts and excavate 1,000m of EPB (earth pressure bal-anced) tunnel with precast segmental lining un-der the Fraser River from Surrey to Coquitlam. Work on the project which also includes the set up of two shaft sites, installation of welded steel pipe lining and construction of two valve cham-bers will begin immediately. Completion is ex-pected in the summer of 2014.

The new tunnel and water pipe will replace an existing, older pipeline under the Fraser River.

britCo saleWesternOne Equity Income Fund is in the process of acquiring the assets and business of Britco Struc-tures LLP and Britco Leasing Ltd. for $93 million.

The move is being made so that the equity fund can gain market access to the energy and mining sector in British Columbia and Alber-ta. The addition will establish WesternOne as an integrated construction and infrastructure services provider.

Britco is one of the largest Canadian designers and manufacturers of commercial portable and permanent modular buildings and owns one of the largest rental fleets of modular buildings in Western Canada with about 1,200 buildings.

Rick McClymont and David Taft, who have built Britco into an industry leader over the past 34 years, will remain as consultants to facilitate the transition.

Britco executive vice president Mike Ridley will assume the role of president of Britco once the acquisition is complete.

Britco employs more than 300 people and is headquartered in Langley, BC with branch of-fices in Nanaimo and Kelowna and a sales office in Calgary, Alberta.

new gas faCilitYFortisBC has completed construction of its $200 million Mt. Hayes Natural Gas Storage Facility, located outside of Ladysmith. Construction at the site began three years ago, and the facility will come into service by late 2011.

The facility will store 1.5 billion cubic feet of liq-uefied natural gas to serve FortisBC’s Vancouver Is-land customers when the facility comes online.

File: 289CB_8.75x12.25-RCABC.indd Client: RCABC Pub: Construction Business

design one Size: 8.75” x 12.25” Date: March 14, 2011

CYAN MAGENTA YEllow BlACk

ROOFING CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

9734 201st Street | Langley, BC | V1M 3E8 Tel 604 882 9734 Fax 604 882 1744 Email [email protected]

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Documents

Construction Business Magazine - May/June 2011