The Doig River Cultural Centre

 

Sustainable, high-performance building design

The Doig River Cultural Centre is Canada’s most northerly PHI-certified project and the first certified First Nations community building completed, located in Rose Prairie, British Columbia.

This energy efficient project used a combination of sustainable materials to minimize the building’s environmental footprint. The projected annual energy consumption for the building is 45.2 kWh/m2 per year, which is approximately 90% less than a traditionally designed building.

The cold climate in the northeast corner of BC requires the building to be in heating mode for almost ten months per year; however, the super insulated envelope means this can be achieved with very few electric baseboard heaters. The expansive windows provide access to ample natural daylighting and warmth, and the PV array on the roof provides up to 10kW of additional energy and further enhances the building’s passive design performance.

The exterior cladding materials comprise standing seam metal roof and wall cladding, and our composite shake product, Enviroshake, made from 95% post-industrial polymers, elastomers, and fibers. The USGBC has assessed Enviroshake as contributing 16.5 direct points and 57 relevant LEED points. Additionally, Enviroshake products are fully recyclable.

Doig River Testimonial - Peter
trustpilot
by Peter Hildebrand
Principal, Iredale Architecture
Looking forward to our next project
Enviroshake was the logical choice as we were looking for something that had the look of cedar shakes but was durable and long-lasting as well as environmentally sustainable. We think the product looks great and are really wanting to see how it looks on our next project.

Enviroshake is designed to replicate the natural appearance of cedar with the longevity and durability natural products simply can’t duplicate. Nestled into the slope in a grove of birch and aspen trees, the cultural centre complements its natural surroundings and offers a gesture of welcome at the entrance to the community.

The design of the building was intended to promote inter-generational interaction and fulfill the community’s desire for a safe and healthy space for all its members. The robust envelope and low-energy systems in this project will ensure that the Centre will serve the community for generations to come at a substantially reduced cost compared to other facilities.

Architect: Iredale Architecture // Peter Hildebrand AIBC, MRAIC, LEED AP http://iredale.ca/project/doig-river-cultural-centre/

General Contractor: Erik Olofsson Construction Inc.