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Sports Complex for the MRC des Pays-d’en-Haut
By : RÉGIS
GRANDS PRIX DU DESIGN – 17th edition
Discipline : Architecture
Categories : Public Building / Sports & Leisure Building : Gold Certification
NEW SPORTS COMPLEX FOR THE MRC DES PAYS-D’EN-HAUT
The MRC des Pays-d’en-Haut is enhancing its recreational tourism offerings by construction a new sports infrastructure that promotes physical activity and provides access to nature. The focus is on exploring the great outdoors, and the facility will be accessible to the community. The site’s topography and context were the main factors in determining the access points and ensuring a barrier-free route for universal accessibility and pedestrian safety. The building’s massing and large windows take advantage of the natural gradient to provide ample light, views, and a direct connection to the outdoors, depend on the season.
The design of the new building was guided by inclusivity and openness. The building was designed to invite nature in, welcome residents and students, and create a sense of interconnectedness among users. The goal was to minimize the building’s ecological footprint on the woodland and make an eco-responsible gesture. Complementary functionalities were grouped together to reduce the projected surface area by 10%. The compact volume that resulted confirms the wisdom of incorporating nature into the building’s design. This was achieved by strategically positioning visual openings to encourage the exterior to extend into the interior.
Once inside, the aim was to maintain the occupant’s visual link with the outdoors, regardless of their location in the building, or to recreate a sense of proximity to nature through the integration of materials such as wood. The impression of openness and communion with the environment is also supported by the generosity of the complex’s key spaces. The sports center is built around a truly luminous, warm, and inspiring heart, from which it is possible to observe the entire infrastructure offering as much as the signature Laurentian landscape. The well-being and comfort of users being paramount and considering the large enclosures likely to generate a noise irritant, an acoustics consultant was involved in the design of the entrance hall, arena and aquatic basins.
Ultimately, the new facilities offer easy access to a semi-Olympic indoor pool, water games and a “kino” river, as well as indoor ice that meets National Hockey League (NHL) standards, each with bleachers and associated facilities such as locker rooms, a dining area, offices and various storage spaces. In concrete terms, the complex strengthens the sports infrastructure of the Laurentian region and enables the programming of a wide range of community and leisure activities. It is a major asset to the recreational and educational offering of the nine municipalities and surrounding regions that make up the MRC des Pays-d’en-Haut, with facilities for residents of all ages.
