New Construction

Location: Templeton Avenue, Winnipeg, MB

With: Prairie Architects Inc.

Client: Brian O’Leary, Seven Oaks School Division

Value: $24 million

Size: 78,000sf, 2-storeys

Role: Lead for research and program­ming, designer & production during schematic design (propos­al, programming, collaborative/ integrated design, site analysis, schematic design)

Status: Completed 2015

Amber Trails school reflects 7Oaks’ student and community centered teaching methods. The school’s library and gym are the only ones in the community, public to all ages. The li­brary was very carefully thought through using extensive participatory research, to make sure that the space responds to an all-ages spec­trum of needs.

Newsroom and Studio - Major Redevelopment

Location: 333 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, MB
With: Prairie Architects
Value: $4.57m
Size: 19,000sf, 2-storeys plus basement
Role: Design development, contract documents
Client: Jean LaRose-CEO, Sky Bridges-COO, Dave Prefontaine-Facilities Manager

The new studio and newsroom for APTN relates the key stories of a living indigenous tradition. This major redevelopment of two existing buildings reflects APTN’s symbolic reinhabitation of colonized space. Reaching out from the building to connect with the street, the recording studio is in the shape of a drum, which represents the shared heartbeat of life. APTN captures stories important to us, and the drum represents the resonance of communication between our nations, and between people and the land. A copper ribbon unravels from the drum to link both facades; it rises and takes flight like the aurora borealis, broadcasting to the entire nation, connecting our hearts together. The copper ribbon links two dissimilar buildings into a coherent whole. Floating objects inhabit a daylit interior, separating off space for offices, recording, and other services.

Daycare – Major Redevelopment
Location: 527 Selkirk Ave, Winnipeg, MB
With: Prairie Architects, Dudley Thompson-Principal
Client: Sharon Slater, Urban Circle Training Centre
Value: $1.88m, 1-storey
Size: 6,500sf, 1-storey plus basement
Role: Project Lead (proposal, site & code analysis, rezoning application & coordination, schematic design, design development, specifications, contract documents, contract administration)
Status: Completed September 2011

Makoonsag is open to the community, but many of the parents take courses at the Urban Circle Training Centre, and was conceived as a project fully integrated into the local community, reinhabiting a retail space that itself was an amalgam of two historical homes plus additions.
Makoonsag means “little bears” in Cree. Elder Stella Blackbird’s vision included the Spirit Room, a domed structure inspired by the traditional sweat lodge. The natural playscape outside mimics the same fun experiences of a natural meadow. By redirecting the back lane, children have direct, safe access to the three formerly vacant lots. An angled north-south path continues right through the building. Skylights along this north-south line bring daylight in from above, defining open corridors that make the whole daycare feel like one space.

Bald Eagle Lodge at University of Manitoba
Aboriginal Student Centre – New Construction
Location: UofM Fort Garry Campus, Winnipeg, MB
With: Prairie Architects
Client: University of Manitoba
Value: $5.03m
Size: 8,500sf, 2-storey
Role: Proposal, programming, collaborative design, schematic design, site analysis, design development, contract documents
Status: Completed May 2008, LEED Gold Certified

A collaborative process brought together different groups from existing UofM programs for métis, aboriginal, and first nation students. The building signifies a journey, rising from the earth at the east entrance, through the daylit circle in the main lobby area, then back into the earth at the west door. Along this path are locally-harvested tamarack poles that represent the seven teachings in Anishinabe culture. The lobby features a mosaic created by students. The student lounge is sheltered by thirteen beams representing the thirteen moons or ribs of a woman. Wide south windows overlook the major pedestrian path through the university, with indigenous plants that recall students’ home communities. The circular Elders’ room on the west side partially shelters an outdoor ceremonial space.

Nursing Station and Health Professional Accommodations
New ConstructionLocation: Opipon-Na-Piwin Cree Nation, South Indian Lake, MB
With: Prairie Architects
Client Group:Michael Dumas, OPCN Jose Ferreira, Health Canada
Phillip Cesario, PM Associates
Value: Nursing Station $6.5m
Housing $2.84m
Size: Nursing Station 12,400sf, 1-storey + mezzanine
Housing – 4x2-bed, 2x3-bed, 1x1-bed
6040sf total for seven units, 1-storey
Role: Project Lead (proposal, schematic design, site analysis, design development, code analysis, specifications, contract documents, contract administration)
Status: Nursing Station Completed March 2011
Housing Completed August 2010

The design concept that OPCN chose was a mother bird sheltering
chicks. Community spaces are central, with high ceilings and
light from clerestory windows. The inside of the nursing station is
opened up with light coming in high over open hallways that have
low, interior service spaces grouped in the core. All regularly used
rooms are at the perimeter for direct daylight and views over the
lake through generous windows.

The homes behind cluster around a shared courtyard, for safety
and a community feel without fences, which was very important
to OPCN. Homes use structural insulated panel walls and truss
roofs for fast construction, excellent thermal performance, and
mold resistance. All fill for the project was from OPCN’s gravel mill, and local workers were employed throughout. A long-term building with community foremost, this is a first step within OPCN’s vision for future development.