January 4, 2012

In December we received the news that McFarland Marceau Architects Inc. is the recipient of an Award of Merit from the 2011 Canadian Architect Awards for the design of the North Shore Credit Union Environmental Learning Centre.

Canadian Architect’s annual awards are given for architectural design excellence. In making their winning selection, the jurors considered response to the program, site, geographical and social context, and evaluated physical organization, structure, materials, and environmental features.

"We asked McFarland Marceau Architects Inc. to design a building that responded to the ecology of the site, including the cycles of the river, the eagles and the salmon, as well as the rainforest setting," says Superintendent John Lewis. "We’re very pleased with what they’ve designed and clearly a jury of their peers agrees."

Find the full story here.  

-30-

The view from the second storey of the North Shore Credit Union Environmental Learning Centre

October 25, 2011

In readiness for the rainy season, work on the roof for the North Shore Credit Union Environmental Learning Centre (NSCU ELC) is underway. Roofers are is expected to have completed their work at the end of October, providing cover for the numerous other trades on site as they continue inside.

Wood reclaimed from the former Lonsdale and Ridgeway schools is being put to new purpose in the roof structure. Floor joists from the original schools have been re-milled to provide plank-finish ceilings in the new building.

Roofers, carpenters, electricians, plumbers and heating and ventilation mechanics are all present on the site now and working towards the building’s completion in early 2012.

-30-

A 3000 gallon holding tank for stormwater runoff for the NSCUELC is lowered into place.

July 12, 2011

The concrete structure and steel columns for the lower level of the North Shore Credit Union Environmental Learning Centre are now complete.

In August, the pre-fabricated, modular beams for the upper level will be delivered to the site where they will be bolted together and installed to complete the structure. Meanwhile, the installation of underground utilities (water, electrical and data pipes) as well as the building’s septic system are underway.

-30-

From left to right: Doug Smith, vice president, corporate affairs, North Shore Credit Union; Joan McIntyre, MLA, West Vancouver Sea-to-Sky; Franci Stratton, chairperson, North Vancouver Board of Education; Ian Abercrombie, director, facilities and planning, North Vancouver School District; Irene Young, secretary-treasurer, North Vancouver School District; Victor Elderton, principal, North Vancouver Outdoor School; Chief Ian Campbell, hereditary chief, Squamish Nation; John Lewis, superintendent of schools, North Vancouver School District.

North Shore Credit Union Environmental Learning Centre project officially underway

April 26, 2011

More than forty years ago, when green was just a colour, our School District made a commitment to providing environmental education to students that was ahead of its time. The first Earth Day wasn’t celebrated until 1970. Greenpeace had yet to be formed. The movement to combine the study of nature with conservation was in its infancy. By the time the United Nations declared that environmental education must be applied as a tool to address environmental problems, in 1972, Outdoor School was already three years old.

—John Lewis, superintendent of schools, North Vancouver School District

On Wednesday, April 20th, the North Vancouver School District hosted the official ground-breaking ceremony for the North Shore Credit Union Environmental Learning Centre (NSCUELC). This unique facility, targeting LEED platinum sustainability status, marks a new chapter in the 40-plus year history of the North Vancouver Outdoor School. With a budget of $5.8 million, the design features “built in” values of environmental stewardship as a model of sustainable building and a world-class centre of environmental education.

Local officials, school district and First Nations representatives as well as executives from the North Shore Credit Union—which provided the initial funding for the project—gathered at the Paradise Valley site to witness the progress on the project and learn more about its purpose as a place where experiential environmental education will flourish.

“The gift from the Credit Union of $1 million dollars, in 2007, was visionary and without a doubt the reason we are all here today,” said Franci Stratton, chairperson of the North Vancouver Board of Education. The generous donation“… allows us to go beyond our mandate to help provide the most enriched programs we can offer our students.”

The project is on track for a December 2011 completion date. Learn more here.

Doug Smith, the North Shore Credit Union’s vice president, corporate affairs addresses the groundbreaking gathering

-30-

February 24th, 2011

This article in the Journal of Commerce,  BC's construction trade journal highlights a number of innovative technologies that will be featured in the new Environmental Learning Centre.

-30-

January 19th, 2011

Construction on the $5.8 million, Environmental Learning Centre in Squamish is anticipated for a February 2011 start-date, following the release of the building permit for the project.

The new, main building will include classrooms and seminar rooms, gallery space, an outdoor classroom area, welcoming foyer, space for dining and food preparation. The project is targeting LEED Platinum sustainability status, and will include a new septic field, a geothermal field, an emergency generator, and a new water intake to the Canoe Pond for the fire suppression system.

Construction is expected to span 10 months, making occupancy and completion possible before the end of 2011.

-30-