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NOCA Griffintown
By : Provencher_Roy
GRANDS PRIX DU DESIGN – 16th edition
Discipline : Architecture
Categories : Residential Building / Apartment & Condo of 5 to 9 storeys : Gold Certification
NOCA residential complex: where nature is harmoniously integrated to showcase Griffintown’s industrial past
The design of the NOCA Griffintown residential project, consisting of 8 storeys and over 300 architecturally distinctive units, began after the creation of the Les Bassins du Nouveau Havre revitalization master plan project. Immersed in nature on an abandoned historic site on the banks of the Lachine Canal, formerly an important stakeholder and cradle of Montréal’s industrial revolution, Provencher_Roy’s unique concept led to the creation of a dynamic community tracing the city’s industrial past, just steps away from the downtown core.
Neighbourhood-scale architecture in harmony with the landscape
Initially, while walking around the sector, the various collaborators noticed the existence of a filter marsh on the edge of the site, covered with a wooden pontoon providing access to the Lachine Canal via Des Bassins Street. The landscape concept was therefore to extend the filter marsh into the project, as a landscape layer serving as a natural “carpet” upon which the residential complex would develop. In summer, the beckoning landscape becomes a magnificent grassy forest with an angular wooden pier passing through it – a primary source of inspiration for the angular geometry of the buildings.
Formally, the project first constituted an 8-storey block to be shaped at the corner of Parc Bassins and the Canal. The first architectural gestures were to divide the block to create a north-south diagonal visually and physically linking the Parc to the Canal, offer viewpoints, and ensure that the landscape permeates the project. This connection also serves to conserve the porosity of the sector.
Following the diagonal gesture, curvature was introduced in the block to multiply views of the Canal, the surrounding parks, and downtown, creating bold movement in the volumetry and diminishing wall views between the buildings. At the centre of the project is a semi-private green courtyard leading to the adjacent Parc via the landscape passageway and including the exterior terraces of first-floor residences.
Sculpted volumetry to accentuate the Lachine Canal
The piercing diagonal element acts as an axis along which the project’s façades, common spaces, and circulation are unified. The volumetry therefore takes the form of two angular prisms evoking sails advancing towards the Canal, a significant historical circulation corridor in the Sud-Ouest borough.
Facing the public street and the interior courtyard, the pale masonry envelope and regular rhythm of fenestration establish a visual continuum with the surrounding residential buildings of the sector. These façades are more opaque, due to their north-east orientation and proximity to other buildings. The white brick also enables light to be reflected and reach the main floor level.
Facing the Parc and Canal, the façades take on a lighter appearance, constituted of a black metallic reflective skin with abundant fenestration for capturing light. On these façades, oriented south-west to benefit from sunshine, the sliding of generously sized balconies accentuates the truncated volumes, thereby contributing to the movement of architecture and light.
The residential complex offers direct access to common spaces via entrance halls, elevators, and corridors positioned where the two buildings meet. Lit from above by a series of triangular-shaped skylights and by the adjacent halls, the common spaces include relaxation and socialization areas, co-working spaces, a fitness facility, and a gymnasium. On the rooftop of the north building, users can benefit from a common terrace with a pool and BBQ.
Ultimately, the project offers the Les Bassins du Nouveau Havre sector an audacious cohesive complex in which nature and the city cohabit graciously. Users enjoy pleasant spaces, while maintaining quick practical links with the city.
Collaboration
