UniverCity Childcare Facility at SFUProposal for a Poster Presentation for the

Sustainable Building Challenge Canada 2011

UniverCity Childcare Facility at SFU

1. PROJECT NAMEUniverCity Childcare Facility

Location: Burnaby, BC, Canada

Construction Start: October 2010

Projected Completion: October 2011

BUILDING OWNERGordon HarrisPresident and CEO, SFU Community Trust150 - 8960 University High StreetVancouver, BC V5A 4Y6604 377 6605 | 604 291 3189 | harris@univercity.ca

2. SIZEGross conditioned floor area: 550 m2

Building footprint/roof area: 457 m2

Gross wall area 684: m2

3. BUILDING TYPEThe UniverCity Childcare Center will provide space for 50 children aged three to five, and will include an Audio Video Imaging (AVI) Research Center developed in cooperation with the SFU Faculty of Education. Faculty and students in the department of Early Childhood Education will use this space for research into the provision of innovative childcare.

4. ENVELOPE CONSTRUCTIONThe building insulation values are R30 at roofs and R20 at walls. The fenestration to wall ratio is 30% with a glazing U-value of 1.8 W/m2-K. The opaque wall area is 480 m2.

5. BRIEF HVAC DESCRIPTION The HVAC strategy is to provide a net-zero energy system. In order to achieve this, the project participates in “scale-jumping.” Energy collected by a solar collector array on the roof offsets all of the energy used by the building. All of the collected solar energy is exported back to the district energy system. In-slab hydronic pipe heats the building. A high-efficiency heat-recovery unit provides supply air warmed by heat recovered from exhaust air. Natural ventilation strategies maximized by using the effects of stratification help to provide fresh air, reducing the load handled by the heat recovery unit as well as handling 100% of the cooling load through natural convection.

6. BRIEF LIGHTING / DAYLIGHTING DESCRIPTIONThe lighting system at UniverCity Childcare Facility is comprised mostly of energy efficient T5 fluorescent lamps and ballasts. Energy efficient compact fluorescents are also used for downlights and pendants. Luminaire layouts were selected strategically to minimize light-ing power densities while achieving recommended light levels. Where practical, occupancy sensors; day-light harvesting with photo-sensors; dimming controls; and zoned lighting strategies were employed to further allow users to adapt lighting to their needs, thus minimizing energy usage. The exterior lighting was a combination of compact fluorescent luminaires on photocell/timeclocks and self-contained, off-grid LED/solar landscape and egress lighting.

7. ACTUAL OR PROJECTED PURCHASED ENERGY USE BY ENERGY SOURCEThe facility is a net zero energy building and therefore will purchase virtually no energy. An array of hot water solar thermal panels will generate enough energy in the form of heat energy to offset all energy uses in the building.

8. ACTUAL OR PROJECTED REDUCTION IN EN-ERGY USE FROM A REFERENCE BUILDING EX-PRESSED AS A PERCENTAGE There was no modeling in comparison with NRCan, CEUD, MNECB’97+ CBIP rules, or other codes. The model instead focused on being net zero rather than try-ing to establish comparison with any reference models.

9. ACTUAL OR PROJECTED ANNUAL RENEWABLE ENERGY USEOne hundred per cent

10. ACTUAL OR PROJECTED POTABLE WATER USE FOR IRRIGATION AND BUILDINGThe projected potable water use for irrigation is zero. The plants specified for landscaping are native and drought tolerant. Reclaimed water will be used for irrigation dur-ing the plants’ establishment period, estimated to be two years, after which time, they will not require reclaimed water. During this two-year period, 150L/day of irrigation will be allowed for June through September.

This project was inspired by the potential of learning from children, preliminary workshops were facilitated to kick off the design process. Children were invited to share their ideas about indoor play, outdoor space, and friendship through various interactive mediums.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION UniverCity Childcare Facility at SFU

The UniverCity Childcare Centre is in the early stages of construction and its completion is

planned for the fall of 2011. When open it will provide an important model for integrated

and sustainable building. The daycare is located at UniverCity, a dense, mixed-use, transit-

oriented community currently being developed by the SFU Community Trust, in partnership

with the SFU Childcare Society and the SFU Faculty of Education, on land surrounding the

Simon Fraser University campus.

An exemplary building that unites creative pedagogy and sustainable building practices, the

centre will provide early childhood education for the community, research and training for

the University, and a city-wide model for sustainable practices. The building was designed

to meet the criteria of the Living Building Challenge, a demanding set of guidelines which

require that one hundred percent of the energy and water used in the building to be provided

on-site. In addition, one hundred percent of the project stormwater and wastewater must be

treated on-site and integrated into a comprehensive system to feed the project’s demands.

The occupants must have access to daylight and fresh air in all regularly occupied spaces

of the building. Among the program requirements for project materials is the Prerequisite

to locally source all products and materials, including many mechanical and electrical

system components, within prescribed radii. Also, the program does not allow using a set of

chemicals grouped as Red List materials which are ubiquitously used in the building industry.

The Challenge’s emphasis on the building’s integration with the natural environment also

meshes tightly with the values and teaching methodology of the childcare program it will

house. Based on the Reggio Emilia model, the program utilizes three ‘teachers’: the educator,

the environment and the broader community in which the children live. This close integration

of values and purposes results in a dynamic building that both activates and sustains the

growth of its community.

The evolving design used the children’s ideas and incorporates a multitude of indoor and outdoor spaces that will facilitate quiet play, art, drama, and physical exploration.

SITE PLAN 01

Hughes Condon Marler Architects space2place Landscape Architects

UNIVERCITY CHILDCARE PROJECTSFU Community Trust, Burnaby, British Columbia | March 2010

Log Climber

Giant Rope NestSeat

ing

Stumps

Pole

Forest

Look

out Platform

Rain

wat

er

Channel

Sand Play

Wov

en

Willo

w Huts

Step

ping

Stones

RooftopDeck

Ramp

Sand Play

Pole ForestRainwater

Channel

GiantRope Nest

WovenWillow

Huts

SteppingStones

Storage

Rain

Waterfall

Stormwater Swale

Log Climber

StoneSteps

StoneSteps

Stone Slope

Slide

space2placeSFU UniverCity Childcare Facility site plan

SolarArray

wat

er tr

ough

skyl

ight

s

Roof top solar hot water array

FSC certi�ed wood cladding

Pine beetle purlins

Locally sourced struc-tural steel frame

Outdoor play terrace run o� feeds water channel for interactive play opportunities

Interactive play

Roof run o� directed into rock pite for ground water recharge

Geothermal energy harvesting

Operable windows for daylight & passive ventilation

Water collection from roof plane forms part of the Net Zero water strategy

Concrete �oor and walls for thermal mass

Net play

Slide

08

SITE SELECTION, PROJECT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT

The daycare is located at UniverCity, a dense, mixed-use, transit-oriented community, and

is currently being developed by the SFU Community Trust, in partnership with the SFU

Childcare Society and the SFU Faculty of Education, on land surrounding the Simon Fraser

University campus. The Childcare Center sits adjacent to a university, abutting multi-family

residential units, an elementary school and a park. While the building is the heart of the

project, outdoor play space is the soul; designed to provide a range of play opportunities

encouraging physical, cognitive, emotional and social development, a safe environment in

which children can use their imagination. Local sustainable materials are used in a landscape

design that responds to the rain, the sun and the wind.

During the project planning phase, an Integrated Design Process (IDP) was used. The IDP

has three main characteristics: front-loaded design (many crucial design decisions are made

in the beginning); participation of an expanded design team including client, stakeholders,

consultants and the contractor; and workshops to achieve consensus. In the case of the

daycare, the expanded design team included children, who were invited to share their ideas

in a series of workshops about indoor play, outdoor space, and friendship through various

interactive mediums. Their feedback acted as design inspiration for the facility.

ENERGY AND RESOURCE CONSUMPTION

To meet the Living building Challenge requirements, UniverCity’s Childcare Centre will have

to be a net-zero energy and net-zero water facility. It has to treat all of its wastewater on-

site. The products and materials used in the project must be from local and regional sources

and contain none of the hazardous chemicals listed in the Red List. All wood in the project

must be either salvaged or FSC certified. All interior spaces of the building must provide

direct access to daylight and fresh air. In addition, the project team decided to achieve such

ambitious goals through a cost-effective construction process which will eventually cost less

than a conventional childcare facility.

To achieve these goals, the SFU Community Trust must innovate on several fronts. For

example, it is renting the roof to UniverCity’s neighborhood energy utility, which will install

solar thermal panels. Energy beyond what is needed to heat the daycare will go back into

the neighborhood system, offsetting the Center’s other electrical use for a Net Zero result.

For carbon neutrality, the Living Building Challenge requires a one-time purchase of

carbon offsets tied to the size of the project. Construction waste also must be diverted

from landfills. The center will be used to educate users and visitors about the innovative

technologies within.

ENVIRONMENTAL LOADINGS

SFU Community Trust is developing its Childcare Center as the first to meet the Cascadia

Region Green Building Council Living Building Challenge, the world’s most advanced green-

building standard.

To qualify, the center must meet the highest standards in seven performance areas, or

Petals: Site, Water, Energy, Health, Materials, Equity and Beauty. Certification occurs at least

12 months after project completion, so compliance can be measured, rather than modeled.

INDOOR ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

All materials used meet the stringent requirements of the Cascadia Region Green Building

Council Living Building Challenge, the world’s most advanced green-building standard.

Materials used are free of toxic materials. Every occupiable space must have operable

windows that provide access to fresh air, views and daylight.

SERVICE QUALITY

As part of the integrated design process, the Trust and the Society collaborated on three

design workshops at key stages, developing common goals and objectives. The design

team also held a special workshop with children who will be using the facility to uncover

what makes a really great play environment. This care and attention to understanding the

requirements of such a ground-breaking facility will ensure incredibly high-quality service.

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC ASPECTS

The childcare center will provide space for 50 children aged three to five, and will include

an Audio Video Imaging (AVI) Research Center developed in cooperation with the SFU

Faculty of Education. Faculty and students in the department of Early Childhood Education

will use this space for research into the provision of innovative childcare. While enmeshed

in its academic context, the facility is located at the heart of the Simon Fraser University’s

high-density, sustainable community of UniverCity; contributing to a mixed-use urban fabric

whose all amenities are within convenient, short walking distance.

CULTURAL AND PERCEPTUAL ASPECTS

The Center will use the Reggio Emilia teaching approach. Hailed by Newsweek magazine

as the world’s best pre-school curriculum, the Reggio Emilia approach has been adopted

across North America and Europe. The model emphasizes three “teachers”: the educator;

the environment; and the broader community. Learning occurs through inquiry, allowing

children to follow their curiosity as they encounter the world around them.

Thus, this facility will be a laboratory for self-directed learning, providing opportunities indoors

and out for children to explore water, light, air, gravity, vegetation and seasonal change.