The Forks National Heritage Site Visitor Centre
Location: 45 Forks Market Road, The Forks National Historic Site, Winnipeg, MB
Developer: The Forks North Portage Partnership
Architect(s): 1x1 architecture inc.
Size: 7,653 sq.ft.
Status: Proposed
Description: Due to the requirement by Parks Canada to not increase the built form on the protected site, the proposed Visitor Centre is located at the site of the existing orientation node, and will renovate the existing washroom / office building which consists of a circular structure constructed of tyndall stone plinths carrying a wood trellis. A major east-west axis cuts through the National Historic Site. From the west, this axis starts at the dome of Union Station, situated at the end of the Broadway promenade, continues through the centre of the orientation node and culminates at the Saint Boniface Cathedral-Basilica Parish on the east side of the Red River. This axis symbolically connects St. Boniface to Winnipeg’s downtown. The design intent was not only to maintain this axis, but to enhance it, thus the Visitor Centre was split into two buildings.
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The Forks National Historic Site of Canada is a 9-acre park situated at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers in Winnipeg, Manitoba and is dedicated to preserving and presenting the 6,000-year history of human presence and activity on the site. The site, located along the Red River, is adjacent to the Forks Market and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.
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The primary cladding material in the design is wood that is treated with a process that polymerizes the wood to resist water and insects, and will develop a natural silver finish as it weathers. The second cladding material is local Manitoba Tyndall stone that is already featured prominently throughout the site. All other materials have been selected to be durable and low maintenance.
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