Parks Canada Storage Facility (555, avenue des Entreprises) | Gatineau | Approved

[J.OT13]

Parks Canada unveils plans to store historical artifacts in new Gatineau storage facility


A rendering of the planned 88,000-square-foot storage facility in Gatineau.

The Canadian Press, Jul 23, 2019 1:23pm EDT

Many of the country's priceless historical artifacts – and millions of other assorted bits – will be getting a new home in the National Capital Region, Parks Canada announced Tuesday.

The federal agency responsible for managing the country's archeological heritage released the design for a new storage facility to house 25 million historical and archaeological artifacts in their care.

The collection, which encompasses 11,000 years of human history, includes historical costumes, pre-contact Indigenous hunting tools, and ancient household objects.

Most of it, though, is stone chips from tools, shards of centuries-old ceramics and glass, nails and other fragmentary material. While not particularly exciting for the public, those artifacts are a valuable resource for researchers. All told, the collection includes 31 million objects.


The interior of the planned storage facility in Gatineau.

And right now, 60 per cent of the collection is at risk, Parks Canada said.

The items in Parks Canada's care that are not already displayed in parks or historic sites are held in six storage facilities in cities across the country: Winnipeg, Ottawa, Cornwall, Quebec City and Dartmouth, N.S.

The existing facilities in all those cities except Dartmouth, Parks Canada said, do not meet the environmental and security standards set for the protection of the materials they hold.

The new 88,000-square-foot building to be constructed in Gatineau will provide modern climate control and protection, as well as easier access for researchers and the public, Parks Canada said.

The storage facility was designed by Montreal’s NFOE Architects as well as Moriyama and Teshima Architects, which has offices in Ottawa and Toronto.

The agency said the building is designed specifically to preserve the objects for the benefit of future generations.

About a sixth of the square-footage in the facility will be reserved for research and staff space, as well as for receptions and ceremonies. The purpose is to ensure Canadians maintain access to the collection after it is centralized near the capital.

The building will also be built to minimize its environmental footprint through use of energy-efficient building techniques and use of renewable energy.

Any objects currently on display across the country will stay there, Parks Canada said.

A review of the collection to determine which objects are worth moving will also take place, the agency said, while cautioning that such a review is a normal activity among collection institutions.

Artifacts will only be moved to the storage facility once it is completed, which is scheduled for 2022, Parks Canada said.

In earlier announcements, the agency had set the start date for construction in 2019, but construction is now estimated to begin in spring 2020.

https://obj.ca/article/parks-canada-...orage-facility

You can also find an article on Le Droit's website:

https://www.ledroit.com/actualites/p...3ac3f188af25ec

[J.OT13]

Parks Canada accepting bids for new Gatineau storage facility

OBJ, August 24, 2020

After years of planning and design, the federal government is inviting contractors to bid on constructing its new 88,000-square-foot storage facility in Gatineau.

After announcing detailed plans for the new building in July 2019, Parks Canada opened up bidding earlier this summer.

The new storage facility will house some 25 million historical and archaeological artifacts, encompassing 11,000 years of human history including historical costumes, pre-contact Indigenous hunting tools and ancient household objects.

Parks Canada says the new facility will help safeguard its collection with modern climate controls and protection while also providing easier access for researchers and the public.

The storage facility was designed by Montreal’s NFOE Architects as well as Moriyama and Teshima Architects, which has offices in Ottawa and Toronto.

https://obj.ca/article/real-estate/c...orage-facility

[J.OT13]

Ground breaking yesterday.

https://www.ledroit.com/actualites/l...928f3071621953

[rocketphish]

Pomerleau to build $42M Parks Canada artifact storage facility in Gatineau
Ottawa’s Moriyama and Teshima Architects and NFOE Architects of Montreal are jointly designing the new building. Image courtesy CNW Group/Parks Canada

By: OBJ staff
Published: Dec 17, 2020 4:09pm EST



Quebec-based construction firm Pomerleau has won its second major contract in the National Capital Region in the last two months ​– this one a $42-million deal to build Parks Canada’s new artifact collection facility in Gatineau.

Ottawa’s Moriyama and Teshima Architects and NFOE Architects of Montreal are jointly designing the new building, which will house about 25 million historical and archeological objects.

According to a federal government news release, the 88,000-square-foot storage facility will be specially designed to allow for the “protection and conservation of the collection under optimal storage and environmental conditions.”

Indigenous peoples, researchers, institutions and community groups from across the country will have access to the collection. Construction is expected to be completed in 2023.

“It is a privilege to construct a culturally significant piece of infrastructure that will help preserve Canada's rich and storied history,” Patrick Hebert, Pomerleau’s regional vice-president for Ottawa, said in a statement.

“As a company that has strong and deep Canadian roots, we are proud to work with Parks Canada and our partners to deliver a facility that will reflect the environmental and security demands for preserving our cultural heritage."

Last month, Pomerleau landed the contract to construct what’s being billed as the “greenest” British High Commission building in the world on Sussex Drive. The firm will be in charge of the $35-million project to replace the existing High Commission building at 80 Elgin St.

The Parks Canada project is the second major archival facility planned in Gatineau. Last year, a consortium formed of Plenary Group, PCL Constructors and Engie Services kicked off construction of a $330-million preservation centre for Library and Archives Canada.

PCL, Pomerleau and EllisDon are also in the running to construct Ottawa’s new central library.

https://www.obj.ca/article/real-esta...orage-facility

[FutureWickedCity]

Yay, another building that I might glimpse from the highway once in my life. I understand that a certain percentage of federal buildings have to be in Gatineau but the locations they're choosing for these facilities (the Museum of Nature facility on the outskirts of Aylmer), the National Archives facility (where? I've never even seen it) just ensure that most Canadians will never see these buildings they paid for.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by FutureWickedCity

Yay, another building that I might glimpse from the highway once in my life. I understand that a certain percentage of federal buildings have to be in Gatineau but the locations they're choosing for these facilities (the Museum of Nature facility on the outskirts of Aylmer), the National Archives facility (where? I've never even seen it) just ensure that most Canadians will never see these buildings they paid for.

Where would you prefer these facilities be built? I'm sure you would agree that we shouldn't be wasting prime downtown land for large storage warehouses.

The National Archives in Gatineau, along with it's u/c expansion, is situated in a prominent location in the "downtown" area of old Gatineau, near a Federal office building, the city's main performance facility and library, Cégep Félix-Leclerc, a large municipal sports complex and the new QMJHL arena. The city's largest transit station is a kilometer walk away. The area is already relatively dense with apartment towers, and many more are proposed, including a signature hotel and convention centre complex.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ga...!4d-75.6770595

[J.OT13]

Where is the Museum of Nature facility?

[Marshsparrow]

how much "stuff" from a government perspective do we really need to keep? soon we will be able to convert malls into government of canada storage facilities...

[FutureWickedCity]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Where is the Museum of Nature facility?

Natural Heritage Campus, Canadian Museum of Nature
Address: Quebec, Gatineau, 1740 Chemin Pink, J9J 3N7

I don't propose that these facilities be downtown either, not downtown Ottawa anyway. But Hull is bristling with usable space that's not out on the fringe of the city. Good luck to any employees getting to any of these locations without a car.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Marshsparrow

how much "stuff" from a government perspective do we really need to keep? soon we will be able to convert malls into government of canada storage facilities...

It's historical preservation, something that all Governments do. The collection will grow larger as time goes by. I think there's a general consensus that storage and preservation of documents and historical artifacts is a good thing.

Originally Posted by FutureWickedCity

Natural Heritage Campus, Canadian Museum of Nature
Address: Quebec, Gatineau, 1740 Chemin Pink, J9J 3N7

I don't propose that these facilities be downtown either, not downtown Ottawa anyway. But Hull is bristling with usable space that's not out on the fringe of the city. Good luck to any employees getting to any of these locations without a car.

Thanks for the address. I didn't realize there was a whole light-industrial area over there.

The Pink site is particularly out of the way and won't be seen by much of anyone that doesn't drive in that area... and even then. Highway locations are at least visible to many.

Hull has a few large vacant sites, but I would still keep them aside for something more significant. Especially Hull Island, the Ruisseau de la Brasserie and up St-Joseph.

Transit access is a legit concern, but both sites seem to be transit accessible (though counter peak).

http://www.sto.ca/index.php?id=283

[Acajack]

They all have employee work hour focused transit service similar to what you have at DND Carling or RCMP Barrhaven.

[Acajack]

Quick question - why would Gatineau accept faceless warehouses in inner urban areas of Hull that could be redeveloped for residential or commercial uses?

What kind of a way is that to build or revitalize a city?

[Acajack]

And you wonder why we wouldn't want a federal district or a merger.