[Dartmouth] NSCC Waterfront Campus CBE | ? m | 4 fl | Completed

[Aya_Akai]

NSCC's new half of the Waterfront Campus, the CBE "Centre for the Built Environment"

I'm a student currently attending the Waterfront Campus, and will be for the next 2 years, so I guess I'll be the go-to guy for the SSP forum needs for this project

I've got some photos here I took today:

Prep work on the site has already begun:









Just to the south of the main building (along the waterfront towards the NS Hospital) the former Princess Alexandria Unit of the Nova Scotia Hospital has been demolished and I think the Marshall Building of the NS may be soon to go as well (not sure about that) But here is what's left of the NSH's adjacent property to the campus. (The Marshall Building is just to the left of this photo, along the still in-tact sidewalk)



Here is some info on the CBE that is available on the NSCC website:

*The CBE will act as the focal point, around which the N.S. construction industry can develop leading-edge environmental knowledge and sustainable practices that are in growing demand worldwide.

* At 120,000 square feet including an outdoor construction pavilion, the light-filled CBE features programs like Electrical Engineering, HVAC and Microelectronics.

* Large operable doors and walls will create flexible work spaces, allowing various trades to work together

* Environmental features include solar thermal panels, planted rooftops and biowalls

* Designed as a living test bed - the CBE will grow and evolve as new technologies are developed, tested and proven.

* Working with industry partners the College will develop new products, from concept through to commercial application

* A Geothermal system will meet the cooling needs of the building and provide approximately 50 per cent of heating requirements.

* The building is being designed with the capacity for rooftop photovoltaic panels (using solar energy) to generate some of the energy requirements

* Shop facilities and public spaces will use natural ventilation

* Solar wall cladding will naturally preheat ventilation air that is supplied to the building

* The CBE will feature interior biowalls, planted from floor-to-ceiling with plants that act as natural air filters

* Plans also include planted green roofs that will reduce heating and cooling costs, and storm water runoff, as well as increasing roof life

* The intent with the CBE is to maximize the use of renewable alternative energy sources to meet its energy needs

More to come when I check around with the faculty of the school to see what's going on!

[Spitfire75]

wow, sounds pretty amazing. any renders?

[phrenic]

I can't wait to see the biowalls.

[hoser111]

A couple of renderings on their web site....

http://www.nscc.ca/sites/CBE/

[Jonovision]

Just thought I'd put the renderings here. Great project by the way such a very interesting design! Does anyone know if the campus plans to expand east at all as the hospital seems to be removing buildings?

[JET]

Do you mean expand South?
Pleasant St. is on the south side of NSCC, and the Trail/Harbour is on the west side. South of the two NSCC properties is the power plant (heat/hot water) for the hospital (including the Dartmouth General). I can't see that moving, although it is an eyesore. Between the power plant and the harbour is the Hugh Bell building which has the pool and gym; can't see that changing, although it would be a good acquisition for NSCC for students.
From your photo (from the harbour side) on another thread, it looks like one of the small cottage style buildings was being demolished. It was condemned 4-5 years ago for mould. It'll be interesting to see if they uncover old tunnels (the hospital has many, most closed off) one used to go down to the harbour where there was a ferry wharf. JET

[Aya_Akai]

Originally Posted by Jonovision

Does anyone know if the campus plans to expand east at all as the hospital seems to be removing buildings?

I have no idea what is going on with the hospital properties, right now it seems as though all they are doing with the unit which has been torn down in the last week is dumping excavated material from the front of the school into a giant pile beside the school. Perhaps they are creating a hill to use as a sort of buffer against the remaining adjacent hospital property?

[Aya_Akai]

Originally Posted by JET

Do you mean expand South?
Pleasant St. is on the south side of NSCC, and the Trail/Harbour is on the west side. South of the two NSCC properties is the power plant (heat/hot water) for the hospital (including the Dartmouth General).

Pleasant street is actually to the East of the NSCC, as well is the facility on pleasant street which is actually one of the main laundry facilities for Capital Health, it provides steam and heat/hot water for the Dartmouth General as well as the remaining (occupied ) buildings of the Nova Scotia Hospital properties. Steam is also provided to the NSCC campus for heating as well.

[Dmajackson]

I've got to say I'm surprised. I always thought a lot people went to NSCC from the forum.

So has thgis project begun going up yet?

[phrenic]

I was at the finished campus the other day and the CBE has its foundations poured, and it looked like they were prepping for work on the first level. It's set to open in September 2010.

I was at a business breakfast the other day as well where Dr. Joan McArthur Blair (President of NSCC) was the guest speaker. This building is going to be amazing. From the way she was talking about the environmental features, it's going to make the existing Waterfront campus look like it was built 50 years ago.

There are going to be walls made of grass. Really.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by phrenic

There are going to be walls made of grass. Really.

I wouldn't want to have to mow walls.

But in reality, around here they will turn into dandelions and weeds within a few months anyway.

[Dmajackson]

I spent most of today around this area so I took a few pictures. Here are the ones relating to the new building (all taken by me):

[City_of_Lakes]

Hey, I go to NSCC waterfront too. It seems it's been a while since this thread was updated, and they've made a lot of progress in that time..

Perhaps I'll take some pics of my own sometime soon. NSCC is on March break right now though so it'll have to wait

[Dmajackson]

Unfortunately I didn't quite make it to the NSCC Campus on my walk today so I'll leave photo-taking to someone who attends the campus. However I did manage to snap this picture on Alderney Drive. Sorry about the slight bluriness;

[Dmajackson]

More funds go to super-green building
Province commits $1.4m to new NSCC environment centre
By DAVID JACKSON Provincial Reporter
Tue. Aug 25 - 11:56 AM

The province is passing along $1.4 million in federal money to what will be one of the greenest buildings in Nova Scotia.

The Centre for the Built Environment is under construction at the Nova Scotia Community College’s waterfront campus in Dartmouth.

The province had already committed $28 million for the $31-million centre.

Environment Minister Sterling Belliveau told a news conference this morning that the $1.4 million will buy solar panels, a solar hot water system, wind turbines, a geo-thermal heating and cooling system, and soil and plants on the roof to reduce heating and cooling costs.

The 120,000-square-foot building, which is scheduled to open next year, will be home to some of the college’s trades and technology programs, including carpentry, industrial engineering and electronic engineering technology.

The $1.4 million comes from the $42.5-million ecoNova Scotia fund for Clean Air and Climate Change. That was Nova Scotia’s share of a $1.5-billion fund Ottawa established in 2007.

The fund’s 2008 annual report said it had contributed $15.5 million to 43 projects. An Environment Department official said this morning the number of projects is now about 50, and is checking for up-to-date statistics.

Mr. Belliveau said the deadline for applications to the fund is January. The money is supposed to be spent by March 31, 2011.

He said he thinks that will happen, and publicity around this morning's announcement will help spur applications.

“I reflect back on my school days that we had show and tell,” Mr. Belliveau said.

“Today the prop is the school itself – the building. So I think we’re going to be showing and telling all Nova Scotians that this is a high-tech building and it’s going to be state-of the art, and I think a lot of people with the modern technology that is incorporated in this particular building, it’s going to get a lot of people’s attention, and people are going to buy into that concept.”

Mr. Belliveau said the building meets a target in the Environment Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act that all parties supported in the legislature in the 2007.

One of the targets was to build a government facility that in accordance with leading energy efficiency and sustainability standards by 2015.

The province is behind in some of the other targets laid out in the legislation. The government also issued its annual progress report on those targets this morning.

Only 60 per cent of municipalities are meeting provincial standards for drinking water. Mr. Belliveau said the number will be closer to 90 per cent within several months.

He said water at municipalities which haven’t upgraded their treatment is still safe. He didn’t have specific information for the new standard.

Mark Butler, policy director at the Ecology Action Centre in Halifax, said progress has been uneven on meeting the legislation's targets.

“On two of them, they’re on track, on two of them, they’re behind, and on one of them, it’s a complete miss,” Mr. Butler said.

The miss was on a requirement that all new residential buildings display an Energuide rating by 2008. Mr. Butler said displaying the rating is voluntary again, which was the case before the legislation was passed.

“We want to highlight the positive and the constructive that this (act) is actually pushing the government, and hopefully, everybody…to push forward on green matters,” he said.

“At the same time, when they start missing some of those goals, or changing some of those goals. That gives us a lot of concern.”

Chris Miller, a spokesman for the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, said he’d like to see the government move quicker on the goal of protecting 12 per cent of the province’s land by 2015. The total amount of land protected and designated for protection stands at 8.7 per cent.

“The previous government missed a great opportunity to purchase lands from J.D. Irving which for sale in the market and we just hope that the new government won’t miss that same opportunity,” he said.

Natural Resources Minister John MacDonell said earlier this month that negotiations are still on with Irving for some of its land in southwestern Nova Scotia.

( djackson@herald.ca)

[Aya_Akai]

Originally Posted by City_of_Lakes

Hey, I go to NSCC waterfront too. It seems it's been a while since this thread was updated, and they've made a lot of progress in that time..

Perhaps I'll take some pics of my own sometime soon. NSCC is on March break right now though so it'll have to wait

Going back this year? I am, haha, if you are we should meet up and discuss development stuff overlooking Halifax from our awesome cafeteria lol.

[alps]

A couple photos from tonight, sorry about the poor quality.

[Dmajackson]

^Thanks for the photos alps!

The first new ones in over a year! (other than the horribly zoomed in one from summer)

[Dmajackson]

Living wall breathes new life into community
LORI MCKAY
Halifax News Net

The first "living wall" east of Vancouver and north of New York was unveiled last week at the NSCC Waterfront Campus in Dartmouth.

The project, which includes 7,000 plants with a variety of colours, textures, flowers and berries, is on display along the front of the new Centre for the Built Environment.

Although the 24.5-metre-long garden is now visible from Pleasant Street, the building itself won't be open to students until September.

Tim Amos, faculty member with NSCC Kingstec, has been involved with the project since it began with a feasibility study a few years ago.

"We've developed the entire system from the irrigation system through to the soil, the planting bags, the grid, the baskets and the plant list," said Amos.

The wall has 17 ornamental species, such as begonias, daylilies, hostas, and seven native species, such as the horsetail, bunchberry, winterberry and some ferns.

"We've tested them all in a trial cube and so far they've got through the winter really well," said Amos. "The proof now is in the pudding. They're being planted early, so in September when the school opens, these will be full and nice. We already have bloom on some of the daylilies and hostas. So this is only a week old and the plants are settling in."

The plants are all perennials and the wall is expected to change with the seasons.

"Time will tell, just like any garden, there'll be some success and some minor failures, but we can pull plants out and put them in. It's all good. There are some plants that grow underground runners, so they'll pop up in other places, which is kind of fun. We don't know how the wall will look, but it'll morph into another look, like gardens do."

He said the wall offers numerous benefits to the community, as well as the school's students.

"Look at Pleasant Street, the people driving by are going to see this beautiful, beautiful picture on the wall," said Amos. "This will be a little wildlife corridor. It's going to cool this part of the environment, it's going to scrub the air and it's going to make people feel good. This could be a blank concrete wall, but it's actually a garden living on a vertical space."

NSCC president Joan McArthur-Blair helped students complete the wall last week.

"This living wall demonstrates the capacity of the Centre for the Built Environment to help Nova Scotians study the renewable energy and green technologies that are essential to our sustainable future," said McArthur-Blair.

"I helped propagate the very first plants for this project when it was still just an idea and now, here we are seeing it come to life," said Roelof van der Merwe, a second-year horticulture student.

This is might be the first living wall, but Amos said they'd like to build others. "You could take any concrete wall anywhere and do this," he said.

[spaustin]

I was over in this building for the first time today. They did a fantastic job. It seems like a good functional building with some neat interior space and views that absolutely can't be beat. Neat to walk across the main atrium and see all of Halifax from Electropolis on up to Brunswick towers through the big windows. Bonus points for giving the Woodside ferry an actual destination to go to on the other end! (no longer just a boat ride to a bus stop/parking lot)