BANFF TOWN HALLBanff Town Hall as an “Aha” Experience.12 For her, the project acted as an eye-opener; multidisciplinary collaboration between architects, engineers, con-sultants

BANFF TOWN HALLBANFF, ALBERTA

MANASC ISAAC ARCHITECTS AND STURGESS ARCHITECTURE

Kate HarrisonM. Arch Candidate

University of Waterloo

ADVANCED STUDIES IN CANADIAN SUSTAINABLE DESIGN

Table of Contents Quick Facts Banff Town Hall: Defining the Middle Ground Recontextualizing Site and ProgrammeFloor Plans Responsive and Responsible Design Complications Environmental Strategies and Mechanical SystemsBuilding Section A Building Section B Building Section CBuilding Section D Detailed Wall Section East Facade An Estimated LEED Evaluation Looking to the Future Endnotes and Image Credit Bibliography and Acknowledgments

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QUICK FACTS

Building Name Banff Town HallCity Banff, Alberta, CanadaYear of Construction Completed in Spring 1996Architect Manasc Isaac Architects, Sturgess ArchitectureConsultants Keen Engineering, SLG Stanley, Douglas Carlyle &

Associates, Reid Crowther

Owner/User Group Town of BanffProgram Civic plaza, municipal offices and council chambersGross Area 1,600m² (17,220sf) with 800m² (8,610sf)of parkingClimate Cold-Arid (Rocky Mountain Montane Region)Aesthetics Two-storey log-trussed logia

Structural System Wood frame w/cast-in-place concrete foundationMechanical System Cooling - ground source loop; heating - radiant hot

water with heat recovery systemSpecial Construction Parkade acts as a heat sink to regulate temperature

fluctuations in the buildingDay-lighting Offices along perimeter transmit light through glass

partitions and doors and clerestories Shading 1000mm deep eaves, and spectrally specific glazing

on east, south and west façadesVentilation Hybrid “intelligent” system - operable windows and

VAV mechanical systemAdaptability Designed to be re-used as residential or retailUser Controls Offices all have operable windows

LEED Rating Silver - 38 pointsBudget $900/m² ($100/sf)Cost of Construction $2.6 Million

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BANFF TOWN HALL: DEFINING THE MIDDLE GROUND

Sustainable architecture engages a vast scope of design issues from siting, to building systems; adaptability, to the health and well-being of occupants. Ultimately, sustainability is a discourse in longevity: it is the need to ensure that society “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own.”1 Within this discourse exists a dichotomy: with the change from urban to rural setting, the sustainable strategies applied often vary drastically. In urban centres, sustainable buildings tend to be “high-tech,” employing computerized “intelligent” systems in order to regulate interior environments and mediate inside from outside. Conversely, within a rural set-ting, more low-tech strategies are engaged, relying more heavily upon passive principles that either negate or minimize mechanized intervention and artifice. Between urban high-tech and rural low-tech there is seemingly little compro-mise. However, in small centres and municipalities such as Banff, Alberta with a strong, communal vision of its past and future, it is possible to find examples of buildings that mediate these outwardly opposing branches of architectural design and establish a solid middle ground.

Situated in the eastern portion of Banff National Park, the town of Banff main-tains a population of only 7,135 permanent residents, while supporting an influx of approximately 3.6 million tourists per year.2 The residents of Banff preserve strong objectives of maintaining the town as part of a world heritage site that serves as a visitor centre for the park and maintains a “community character that reflects, and is consistent with, the environment.”3

The town has a dual understanding of the word “heritage.” It encompasses both the natural environment and the town’s history, but also outlines measures for Tunnel Mountain watches over Banff Avenue on a sunny Alberta morning.

their future preservation. As such, when the town of Banff commissioned its new Town Hall, the architectural framework was already set: not only did their new civic centre need to inform regarding the relationship between nature and buildings, but it also had to point to future directions of architectural exploration and initiative within the community.

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RECONTEXTUALIZING SITE AND PROGRAMME

The current heritage mandate of town of Banff is testament to its No-Net-Nega-tive Environmental Impact Philosophy.4 However, the town has suffered the architectural ill-effects of a federally run municipality for nearly one hundred years. Although Banff became an autonomous Alberta municipality in 1990,5 land use control still rests in the hands of the federal government through land leases. According to architectural historian and critic Trevor Boddy, Banff “…competes with Vancouver and the highway 401 suburbs of Toronto for the role of Canada’s Po-Mo capital.”6

This statement contradicts the “Parks Style” tradition of some of the original and most significant buildings in Banff, namely the Natural History Museum and the Banff Springs Hotel. However, it holds true for the city’s development throughout the greater part of the 20th century - having been punctuated with construction incited by tourism - motor courts, drive-in restaurants, suburban bungalows and would-be ‘sublime’ hotels and other accommodation pockmark the main streets.

Although much of the town’s architecture is characterized by “corporate tacki-ness and institutional neglect,”7 the new Town was quick to express their sov-ereignty after gaining local autonomy with the construction of their new civic centre. Designed in collaboration between Sturgess Architecture and Manasc Isaac Architects, and constructed in 1996, the Banff Town Hall reflects the town’s heritage directive by striving to establish a new architectural paradigm for Banff.

Senior architect and planner for the Town at the time, Douglas Leighton, envisioned a “civic precinct” away from the tourist dominated main street. The

Above: A localized site plan points to the location of the Banff Town Hall within the larger context of the surrounding area. Left: Shoppers walk along Banff Avenue searching for collectables, candy and souvenirs.

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precinct would encompass the new Town Hall, post office, library, museum, a central park and nearby popular supermarket.8 The building fulfilled the Town’s requirement to infill in the downtown core in order to avoid urban sprawl. [With a fixed boundary of 4.87 square kilometers, the Town is restricted by federal law with no option to grow outward; the local government does not have annexation or expropriation authority to expand its land base.9]

The Town wanted an “inviting public space that would lead naturally into key legislative and administrative rooms”10 while relating to the town’s historic buildings, especially The Banff Park Museum across the street. As such, the building functions as an anchor and counterpoint at the opposite end of the Lynx Street from the train station.

The building’s architecture is defined with “strong wooden influences,” embrac-ing and evoking both local history and the surrounding mountain landscape. Its main architectural feature is the “log-trussed loggia,” that follows a “reworking [of] traditional building language and spatial order in rustic materials.”11 The two-storey 1,600m² [17,220sf] structure houses municipal offices and council chambers for the Municipality of Banff. The lower basement level accommo-dates 800m² [8,610sf] of mechanical rooms, storage and parking. The small, sheltered plaza at the front of the building facilitates different sizes of gatherings - whether a small civic ceremony or to serve as a podium for larger events with street closure.

The reworking of traditional building language is evident in the spaces cre-ated in the Banff Town Hall. However, much more fundamental principles were applied to the formation of spaces that are not as apparent as the hand-peeled logs surfacing the exterior.

The integrated design approach was essential in the creation of the Banff Town Hall. The building’s engineers were fundamental in helping develop program, by participating early in the design phase to help determine from a mechanical standpoint key synergies between spaces and adjacencies in order to minimize distribution and maximize passive potential. These strategies culminated in the building’s massing, orientation, siting, footprint, mechanical strategies, choice of materials, and over all strategies for making the building adhere to the Town’s No-Net-Negative Impact mandate. With this in mind, the design team embarked upon what became a journey in establishing a new architectural heritage for the Town of Banff.

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RESPONSIVE AND RESPONSIBLE

Architect Vivian Manasc refers to the process of creating and designing the Banff Town Hall as an “Aha” Experience.12 For her, the project acted as an eye-opener; multidisciplinary collaboration between architects, engineers, con-sultants and clients is possible on all projects to create not only “striking façades and stunning interiors, [but also] long-lasting, occupant friendly, [and] energy efficient structures that bring financial [and] environmental rewards.” 13

From their previous collaboration on the Yukon Visitor’s Reception Centre, Vivian Manasc knew that both the award-winning design sense and proximity of Calgary-based Sturgess Architecture would compliment and strengthen the proposal for the new Banff Civic Centre. In late 1994, the collaborative submit-ted what would be the winning competition design. This put Sturgess in the lead for conceptual design and Manasc Isaac in the role of prime consultant.14 This permitted Vivian Manasc to coordinate various visioning exercises and client workshops allowing for hands-on exercises for staff and councillors to partici-pate in and give input for the design and use of their new space. She was also able to convene similar groups of prime consultants in order to facilitate the integrated, ‘team’ approach to the building design.

In the competition brief, the Town of Banff outlined a desire to participate in a federal government initiative called C-2000, introduced in 1993 by Natural Resources Canada’s CANMET Energy Technology Centre. The residents of Banff, and their municipal government, were committed to their No-Net-Negative Environmental Impact Philosophy. The C-2000 program well-suited this attitude by offering grants to commercial building designs exceeding the national energy standard [then ASHRAE 90.1] by over fifty percent. In addition, the buildings also had to minimize environmental impact, provide a superior

Council chambers are afforded the benefits of mountain views and natural ventilation.

indoor environment, prove adaptable, and demonstrate longevity and ease of maintenance.15 “Additional requirements included development of an Environ-mental Impact Management Plan and Occupancy Health and Comfort plan; demonstration of a long term adaptability for future occupancy changes and a lifecycle plan outlining the economy and energy efficiency.”16

With the success of the Yukon Visitor’s Centre, the architects had become renowned for their “impermeable and sophisticated building envelopes.”17 The challenge of meeting C-2000 criteria seemed easily attainable. However, as they discovered, the process wasn’t as easy as they had originally anticipated.

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Vivian Manasc now looks back on the Banff Town Hall project as “the one that taught [them] what more [they] can do.”18

DESIGN COMPLICATIONS

C-2000 funding was eliminated due to federal program cut-backs, budgetary restraints, and the realization by program directors that high-performance com-mercial buildings with integrated, sustainable designs required little to no extra

The second floor reception area opens to the staircase below, helping to orient visitors to the services provided.

cost as conventional, spec level office buildings. However, the news came at a point in the design of the Banff Town Hall when they had “added more than [they] had subtracted,” resulting in a building costing more than the Town coun-cil’s revised budget would permit.19 However, the commitment to seeing the project through as a “sustainable” building prevailed, despite the new request by the municipality to change the design to an “ordinary building.” In the end, the integrated design approached prevailed, enabling the design team to slash twenty-five percent of the overall cost, while only compromising seven percent of the building’s original design efficiency.20

Nevertheless, the cutbacks had their shortcomings. Most significantly, the building’s energy performance no longer met the C-2000 criteria; it fell just below the fifty percent improvement mark.21 Despite the shortfall of the C-2000 program, the Banff Town Hall project taught the architects the “importance of shooting high.”22 Not only could sustainable design be affordable, but with a refined palette of modest materials and simple means of construction, it was possible to achieve an interesting building that would set a precedent for the Town’s future development.

ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIES AND MECHANICAL SYSTEMS

By employing both passive principles and minimal computerized “intelligent” systems in its design, the Banff Town Hall is a hybrid between the high and low-tech. By engaging the ‘integrated’ design approach, careful consideration of building orientation and passive solar principals for heating, cooling and lighting the building, as well as resource conservation and adaptability, the architects and engineers pushed the design of the Town Hall into a league of its own.

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Electrical engineer Tony Grice, and mechanical designer Chris Jepson quickly established a set of project “economics.” Their goal was to reduce the cost of energy by reducing consumption, equipment sizes and capital costs. However, the true economy came in the process, not the individual components.24 The integrated ‘team’ allowed for a holistic approach to the design of the building and allowed for a departure from convention. For example, natural ventilation through operable windows, deep eaves and other passive solar strategies, resulted in less mechanical cooling. This reduction allowed the system to tap into the existing aquifer below grade in order to cool the building. In a conven-tional office building, a chiller would have been necessary, but the new strat-egy negated that need. Without a chiller, the size of transformer required was reduced by half. The “deliberate shrinkage of systems may seem like simple common sense,” notes Jepson, “but it’s the mirror opposite of today’s norm.”25

In order to facilitate the passive mechanical strategies, building siting, massing and orientation became crucial to the over all design, allowing for the careful sizing of mechanical and electrical systems.26 The two-storey mass of the administration offices on the east shade the plaza in the mornings. The single-storey parabolic Council Chambers admit afternoon sunlight into the plaza in both summer and winter. Deciduous trees planted along Bear Street to the west shade the plaza and west elevation of the building in the summer, yet admit sunlight during the winter months.27

Offices were located on the north and east sides of the building in order to minimize glare, while still taking advantage of maximum natural day-lighting. In turn, by relying on optimum natural lighting, operating costs were reduced. In this instance, overhangs 1000mm deep provide shade to the windows (see Figure 3), while high performance glass reduces the heating and cooling loads. In order to provide natural lighting to all interior spaces, glazed office doors and

Figure 1 (Above): Circulation throughout floor plate demostrates ease of access for public. Figure 2 (Below): Perimetre offices benefit from access to natural ventilation.

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Figure 3 (Above): Area of overhang shading the four facades. Figure 4 (Below): Diffusion of Light through floor plate; from most direct to most diffuse.

clerestory windows allow light to penetrate deep into building.

Operable windows and a controlled fan in each office achieve the building’s natural ventilation.28 Every office is its own zone with an “intelligent” system - when the window opens, the mechanical system shuts off. While cooling is provided by a combination of natural ventilation and the ground source loop tapping into the existing aquifer, heating is provided by a perimeter radiant hot water with heat recovery system. However, much of the building’s temperature is moderated by the building’s concrete parkade. As an “insulated concrete box,” it acts as a heat sink to regulate temperature fluctuations in the building by acting as thermal storage.

The building also addresses concerns for its longevity. The Banff Town Hall was planned with adaptability in mind - it is flexible enough to permit reuse as residential or retail space if the city ever decides to move elsewhere. To permit this, the roof was designed with two specific components. The ceiling over the second floor is load-bearing to provide for possible third floor development. On the flat decking of the third floor “attic” space is a torch-applied MBM air seal membrane, loose laid thermal insulation and loose laid EPDM roof membrane mechanically attached at its edges. Above this, an OSB-panel sheathed wood truss sloped roof with heavy grade asphalt shingles creates a residential type cold attic space over the second floor. This strategy not only provides for the building’s reuse in the long term, but also minimizes the volume of air condi-tioned in the two floors below in the short term.29

Included in the over all strategy for the reduction in resource consumption, a progressive mandate was employed for water conservation. The overall water usage of the building was reduced by forty percent. This was accomplished through the reduction of storm water discharge to municipal systems by diver-

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sion of storm water collected from the roof and plaza to irrigate trees on the site and small park to the north (see Figure 5). It also encompassed the reduction of sanitary waste water discharge through the use of low-flow fixtures and control devices.

Further cost reductions were accomplished for mechanical and electrical expenditures through the provision of natural ventilation to all perimeter spaces, the reduction of electrical energy consumption through the minimum use of fan and pump motors, as well as the use of high-efficiency motors on all equipment and the use of variable speed drives wherever possible. Additional reductions of waste discharge from mechanical systems were realized through the use of air-to-air and water-to-water heat exchangers to pre-heat incoming air and water.30

Throughout the design process the architects and engineers employed the energy modelling software provided by the C-2000 programme. However, it proved less utile than hoped, adding false economy to the design. “For example,” states Manasc Isaac project architect Derek Heslop, “the fact that we changed the domestic hot water system supposedly saved fifty percent on the water bill, yet municipal buildings use very little hot water.”31 Despite these false economies, design estimates of savings of over $10,000 a year in energy consumption while reducing the release of greenhouse gases and minimizing power and gas utilities were not only achieved, but surpassed.32

In conjunction with the hybrid strategies applied to the building’s mechanical systems, special attention was paid to the building’s exterior cladding in order to maximize the building systems’ performance. Drawing from the experience accrued while working with her mentor, Calgary-based Kirby Garden, Vivian Manasc knows that the most “crucial element in sustainable design [is] the

Figure 5 (Above): Architect’s detail for scupper and chain drainage from council chambers’ parabolic roof. Right: Scupper and chain detail as built, leading to gravel sump underground.

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Clockwise from the top left: the north facade with the log-trussed loggia faces a public parking lot; the east facade faces the adjacent alleyway; the west-facing parking garage entrance is adjacent to council chambers; and the loading dock off of the alleyway is tucked into the south facade.

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building envelope.”33 This attributes two basic elements to the success of “an extreme-climate envelope […]: a continuous air vapour barrier that wraps the entire building and a rainscreen - a permeable outside skin with a cavity behind that’s correctly pressurized to drain any moisture that soaks through.”34 In the case of the Banff Town Hall, a simple strategy was employed: a high-per-formance envelope consisting of a continuous, fully sealed membrane encases the entire structure. The building envelope itself contains carefully selected con-ventional materials and is assembled through conventional means. However, in order to increase the building’s performance, the wall cavity contains nearly two and a half times the conventional amount of insulation.

To compliment the strategies developed, meticulous consideration was used in the selection of building materials. The design team followed a basic set of criteria for material selection: they had to be low in embodied energy, non-toxic, be produced locally to minimize transportation and support the area economy, have a high standard of durability and be easily recyclable. Many of the build-ing components such as the wood and concrete structure, timber frameworks, insulation, roofing materials, and the quarried stone wall facing were produced locally.35

The designers opted for a minimal palette of materials, relying on textures and “borrowed views” to imply richer finishes than otherwise accommodated in a budget of only $100 per square foot.36 The simplifying of the materials also lessened the impact of off-gassing of volatile organic compounds, sulphur diox-ide, formaldehyde and other potentially harmful chemical emissions. Careful consideration of air changes, ventilation rates and air quality allowed for minimal air contamination and the reduction of CO2 levels. These same materials were chosen for their low-maintenance, and few fibrous materials with the potential for microbial contamination, and water-based adhesives were specified. For

Right: The central circula-tion staircase is surfaced with durable concrete to withstand staff and members of the public who wear hiking boots year-round.

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instance, the central staircase - surfaced with sturdy concrete to survive the constant beating of hiking boots - not only encourages exercise and interaction between Town staff and the public, but also exemplifies the careful thought put into material selection (see images left).37

The main structural materials were chosen with the same criteria in mind. The parallel floor trusses, Glulam beams, LVL beams and hand peeled exterior wood columns all come from a local renewable resource that employs little energy in the manufacturing process (compared to that of steel).38 Metal stud infill of cavity walls offered an alternative to the use of dimension lumber, and although extravagant in name, the hand-peeled logs used on the exterior of the building have less embodied energy than milled dimension lumber because they use the entire tree with little waste other than the bark. For similar reasons, large milled timbers were not used and instead glue-laminated beams and other engineered wood products were specified to avoid use of old-growth lumber. The cast-in-place concrete used for the foundation, basement and main floor structure proved highly advantageous for its fire resistance, thermal mass, longevity, strength, and transportability - although the formwork created much waste.39

Similar consideration was given to building envelope components such as the insulation. Expanded polystyrene (EPS) insulation (which uses pentane gas as the expanding agent instead of HCFCs)40 and Rockwool insulation (which is highly efficient and contains little primary energy in its manufacturing)41 were used in the wall construction. The roof and attic spaces were filled with cellulose insulation that has an R value of 50 and is made of 75-85% recycled newsprint. As additional benefits, it contains low embodied energy and non-toxic chemical additives to ensure fire retardancy, and is also biodegradable.42

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The EPDM single-ply roofing membrane was chosen not only because it is less toxic to installers and occupants than built-up roofing systems, but because it also has the potential to be recycled. This is facilitated by the mechanical fas-tening of the ballast instead of the use of adhesives. EPDM also has a proven track record for longevity, lasting in excess of 25 years.43

The materials - not unlike the strategies employed by the design team of pas-sive potentialities of building orientation, massing and its mechanical systems - demonstrate the careful considered of all facets of building design by the project architects, engineers and consultants. Quantifiable measurements of embodied energy, operating costs, durability and ecological footprint, are pos-sible to calculate in order to create an environmental “economy” when evaluat-ing the Banff Town Hall. However, the immeasurable qualitative elements of the building’s interior environment become more difficult to objectively evaluate when discussing terms such as ‘natural ventilation, day-lighting and working environment.’ Although much of the systems employed by the design team are quantifiable, a separate system of evaluation is useful in understanding many of the qualitative aspects of the design. For this reason, the LEED system of evaluation was employed in order to further evaluate the building.

AN ESTIMATED LEED EVALUATION

The LEED Green Building Rating System is divided into six separate areas with different criteria: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmo-sphere, Materials and Resources, Indoor Environment Quality and Innovation and Design Process. The system aims to be catalyst for designers, developers and engineers to “improve occupant well-being, environmental performance and economic returns of buildings using established and innovative practices,

standards and technologies.”44 Although the system tends to cater to urban infill projects, the system is a useful tool in understanding the various environ-mental strategies employed by the designers of the Banff Town Hall in making the building sustainable.

Sustainable Sites:Special consideration was given to the siting of the Town Hall in order to benefit from development within the existing urban area of Banff by using existing infra-structure and promoting density, while at the same time preserving habitat and natural resources and protecting the surrounding environment that is so dear to its residents. Preservation of the existing site was emphasized throughout the process; council chambers curve around an existing birch tree that was

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site’s landscaping is 100% irrigated with storm and grey-water.

Energy and Atmosphere:Due to the careful consideration of the mechanical systems, no chiller was needed in order to provide cooling to the building. Instead the local aquifer was used in order to provide the necessary cooling. This reduced the amount of required HVAC equipment and ducting, as well as eliminated any CFC emis-sions otherwise produced by a chiller. Unfortunately, because of the funding cut of the C-2000 grant the energy performance was cut by 7%, eliminating potential points gained for Optimal Energy Performance.

Materials and Resources:Although careful consideration was given to material selection for the use of local materials with a low embodied energy, low VOC content and few if any emissions, many points were lost in this category for three principle reasons. First, the building did not re-use any part of an existing building, nor was there any specific construction waste management program in place. Second, there were no salvaged materials used. Third, the heavy-timber and other wood prod-ucts used in the building did not come from a rapidly renewable resource (with a growth cycle of ten years or less), nor was it FCS certified.

Indoor Environment Quality:Careful thought of air changes, ventilation rates and a strict no-smoking policy assures a minimum level of indoor air quality for the Banff Town Hall. Careful selection of low-emitting materials as well as individual user controls in each office, allow occupants to easily control their own working environment. This works in concert with the intelligent ventilation system, designed to temper spaces not directly under individual control (such as shutting off VAV in offices as soon as the window is opened to maintain overall building temperature).

LEED GREEN BUILDING RATING SYSTEM 2.1 Project Checklist Sustainable Sites 6/14 Possible Points Water Efficiency 4/5 Possible Points Energy & Atmosphere 12/17 Possible PointsMaterials & Resources 4/13 Possible PointsIndoor Environment Quality 10/15 Possible PointsInnovation & Design Process 2/5 Possible Points Project Totals 38/69 Possible PointsBanff Town Hall Result Silver Status

carefully safe-guarded during construction.45 Parking below the building was designed not only to act as a heat-sink to control and moderate the temperature of the building, but it also sought to minimize the building’s footprint and allevi-ate the need for grade-level parking. A plan was implemented in order to control erosion and reduce the negative impacts on water and air quality. Storm water is diverted to cisterns used for irrigation instead of being diverted from the site and into the municipal sewer system. The Town Hall is centrally located and completes the one-stop municipal needs sector by its proximity to the other major buildings in the downtown. There are bike racks in the adjacent park to the north that cater to the needs of 60% of the population base that either bicycles or walks to work in the summer and winter months.46

Water Efficiency:Water consumption in the building was reduced over all by 40% due to the multitude of energy saving devices and systems employed in the building. The

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Innovation and Design Process:The design and strategies score well in this category because the initiative pre-cedes the LEED evaluation system. Not only is this true of the innovative appli-cation of materials and integrated design approach, but also because it acted as a point of departure for the architects, engineers and consultants involved. In an honest admission, architect Vivian Manasc describes their initial approach to the design:

“Like so many who dip a toe into this pond, we saw sustain-ability as one more alligator to wrestle rather than a new way of making it to the other side.”47

The Banff Town Hall set a precedent for process: the design team learnt from the challenges encountered, and ultimately they allowed them to achieve a high standard of design and methodology to apply to all future projects.

The integrated design approach, passive solar elements, and overall commit-ment to a high-level of interior environment and occupant satisfaction are all major contributors to the overall success of the building. The over all estimated LEED Rating for the Banff Town Hall is a formidable 38 points - qualifying the building for silver status.

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE

Through the thoughtful and inventive use of materials, careful consideration of passive strategies and their integration with advanced technological systems, the Banff Town Hall firmly establishes a middle ground in the sustainable archi-tectural discourse. Not only does it reflect and inform regarding the relationship

between nature and buildings, but it points to future directions of architectural exploration and initiative within the Town of Banff.

Recognizing the contributions that buildings make to non-renewable energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, the Banff Town Hall is exem-plary of Canadian sustainable design that embraces the idea of meeting pres-ent needs while also providing for those of future generations. Providing for adaptability, reuse and recycling of the building and its components, as well as striving for a sensitive and high-quality interior environment, all point to the success of the building. As such, the Banff Town Hall serves as precedent for other municipalities to strive for similar buildings within their cities. It is in this aspiration, that the “sensitive articulation of functional form and the intelligent integration of systems demanded by sustainable architecture will inform, rather than discourage, architectural expression.”48 As such, Canadians should look to the Banff Town Hall as a new architectural standard of intelligent sustainable design.

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ENDNOTES

1. Brundtland2. Town of Banff Website: Source Statistics Canada.3. Town of Banff Website: About Banff.4. Town of Banff Website: Special Initiatives.5. Town of Banff Website: Fast Facts - Demographics.6. Boddy, Trevor: p. 18.7. Ibid: p. 20.8. Ibid: p. 20.9. Town of Banff Website: A Unique Community.10. Manasc, Vivian: p. 24.11. Boddy, Trevor: p. 20.12. Manasc, Vivian: p. 28.13. Ibid: p. 21.14. Ibid: p. 24.15. Ibid: p. 38.16. Keen Website: Banff Town Hall.17. Manasc, Vivian: p. 24.18. Ibid: p. 24.19. Ibid: p. 29.20. Ibid: p. 29.21. Ibid: p. 29.22. Ibid: p. 30.23. Keen Observations: p. 1.24. Manasc, Vivian: p. 26.25. Ibid: p. 26.26. Ibid: p. 28.27. C-2000 Project Design Brief, 1994.28. Keen Engineering Website: Banff Town Hall.29. C-2000 Project Design Brief, 1994.30. Ibid, 1994.31. Manasc, Vivian: p. 25.32. Ibid: p. 28.33. Ibid: p. 34.34. Ibid: pp. 34 - 35.

35. Wood Works Website: Banff Town Hall.36. Boddy, Trevor: p. 20.37. Manasc, Vivian: p. 25.38. Wood Works Website: Banff Town Hall.39. Mendler & Odell, p. 152.40. Ibid, p. 157.41. Rockwool International 2001 Environmental Report, p. 4.42. Mendler & Odell, p. 157.43. Ibid, p. 158.44. LEED Green Building Rating System: Version 2.1; Foreword, p. i.45. Manasc, Vivian: p. 25.46. Town of Banff Website: Demographics - Source: Statistics Canada.47. Manasc, Vivian, p. 26.48. Kesik, Ted.

IMAGES

Titlepage AuthorPage 1 Loggia Detail: Canadian Architect January, 1997.Page 2 Banff Avenue: Banff/Lake Louise Tourism BureauPage 3 Site Image and Shoppers: Banff/Lake Louise Tourism Bureau; Site

Plan: Canadian Architect January, 1997.Page 4 Woodworks WebsitePage 5 Floor plans courtesy Manasc Isaac ArchitectsPage 6 Council Chambers: Canadian Architect January, 1997.Page 7 2nd Floor: Canadian Architect January, 1997.Page 10 Detail courtesy of Manasc Isaac Architects; Scupper: authorPage 11 All images by authorPage 12 Building Section A courtesy of Manasc Isaac ArchitectsPage 13 Building Section B courtesy of Manasc Isaac ArchitectsPage 14 Building Section C courtesy of Manasc Isaac ArchitectsPage 15 Building Section D courtesy of Manasc Isaac ArchitectsPage 16 Detailed Wall Section courtesy of Manasc Isaac Architects; Stair:

Canadian Architect January, 1997.Page 17 Stair: Canadian Architect January, 1997.Page 18 Plaza at night: Canadian Architect January, 1997.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

PUBLISHED REFERENCES

1. Manasc, Vivian. Agora Borealis: Engaging in Sustainable Architecture. Edmonton, Canada: Partners In Design, 2002.

2. Mendler, Sandra & Odell, William. The HOK Guidebook to Sustainable Design. Toronto, Canada: John Wiley & Sons, 2000.

3. U.S. Green Building Council. LEED Green Building Rating System: Version 2.1.

PERIODICALS

4. Boddy, Trevor. “The Architecture of Tourism: Banff Boulderized.” Canadian Architect. Volume 42, No. 1, January 1997: pp 18-19.

5. Boddy, Trevor. “The Architecture of Tourism: Banff Town Hall.” Canadian Architect. Volume 42, No. 1, January 1997: pp 20-23.

6. Brundtland, G.H. (Chair), “Our Common Future,” World Commission on Environment and Development, Oxford University Press, New York, 1987.

7. Kesik, Ted. “Perspectives on Sustainability.” January 2002, Canadian Architect On-line: http://canadianarchitect.com/issues/ISarticle.asp?id=70730&story_id=CA133281&issue=

01012002&SearchFor=&SearchType=all&RType=Technical&PC=

INTERNET REFERENCES

8. Alberta Architecture: Banff Town Hall: http://www.architecture.ca/firms/sturgess/banffth/index.html

9. Banff Lake Louise Tourism Bureau: Image/Video Library: http://www.banfflakelouise.com/media/newimage/

10. Keen Engineering: Projects - Banff City Hall: http://www.keeneng.com/projec

ts.cfm?action=details&id=2011. Manasc Isaac Architects: Banff Town Hall: http://www.miarch.com/12. Rockwool International 2001 Environmental Report: http:

//www.rockwool.com/graphics/Rockwool-International/Publications/Environmental-Reports/Environmental_Report_2001.pdf

13. Roofing People: What is a Single-Ply Roofing System? http://www.roofingpeople.com/Index.cfm?Page=ProductInfo12

14. Sturgess Architecture: Public Buildings - Banff Town Hall: http://www.sturgessarchitecture.com/web/nav.html

15. Town of Banff: Town Hall: http://www.townofbanff.com/banff/banff.nsf/frsBanff?OpenFrameSet&Frame=frMain&Src=_e5th62rj6conm4o

becpj2srjjconm8rr3ecnn8rrndoij4c38c5m6ofqfe1imsh3fcdqmqp beegj42tbkdt374obdcli00_16. Wood Works: Banff Town Hall: http://www.wood-works.org/woodworks/defau

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A special thank you to Vivian Manasc and Keith Annett of Manasc Isaac Architects for their help and willingness to supply information.

Documents

BANFF TOWN HALLBanff Town Hall as an “Aha” Experience.12 For her, the project acted as an eye-opener; multidisciplinary collaboration between architects, engineers, con-sultants