Conestoga College, Student Recreation Centre
Kitchener, Ontario
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FIBA-sized Triple Gymnasium, Double Gymnasium, Track, Fitness Space, Varsity Team Rooms, Wellness Centre, Student Commons, Classrooms, Therapy Rooms, Meeting Rooms, Food Services
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Structural: Blackwell
Mechanical / Electrical: SNC-Lavalin
Civil: Crozier
Landscape: MJMA -
2017 Ontario Association of Architects (OAA): Design Excellence Award
2017 Athletic Business: Facilities of Merit Design Award
Conestoga College recognized that the 40-year-old gym and arena facility was not meeting current student requirements: a survey indicated only one-percent of students used the ice and that there was a need for new fitness and social spaces as well as a larger gymnasium that could accommodate varsity and intramural sports, recreational activities, and campus convocations.
The initial project brief called for demolition of the existing arena and a new pre-engineered building to house a gymnasium and fitness space. After extensive planning research, however, our design team arrived at a more sustainable and cost-effective solution: it involved retaining the existing double-parabola-roof complex, with the former arena space adaptively reused to create a larger, triple-gymnasium that doubles as an event space. This transformation, along with expanded program, created a vibrant recreational, wellness, and social complex.
Pre-existing Conditions
While the design retains the iconic bold form of the original parabola-roofed structure, the main entry is reoriented towards the rest of campus, and fronted by the new fully-glazed lantern-like addition that presents a lighter face for the facility.
The upper-level fitness and multipurpose studios form a canopy over a new student plaza and landscaped forecourt.
Pre-existing Conditions
The renovation and addition introduce natural light throughout the facility to greatly reduce electricity use, including in the new gymnasium and its mezzanine-level running track.
