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Polybel High School
By : 2Architectures
GRANDS PRIX DU DESIGN – 17th edition
Discipline : Landscape & Territories
Categories : Landscape Architecture / Landscape Architecture - Cultural & Institutional Project : Bronze Certification
Categories : Landscaping / Terrace & Landscaping for Commercial and Office Project : Bronze Certification
The Polybel High School project was part of a drive to rethink the public spaces surrounding the school, and to equip it with a high-quality visual identity, sensitive to sustainable development.
Scheduled over two phases, the project called for the redevelopment of the school’s forecourt, bus drop-off area and parking lot in order to enhance the building’s entrance within a tight budget.
Before the work, the school’s forecourt was dotted with installations, commemorative plaques and monuments testifying to student life. These installations have been preserved and enhanced in the new layout. The challenge in redesigning the forecourt was to make it more attractive, so as to encourage students to make the area their own. The 2Architectures team developed a signature design using bright colors on the ground, colorful street furniture and the creation of green spaces. To maximize the project’s impact on student life, the team worked with the school to develop an educational booklet for students, introducing them to plants and the natural water filtration cycle. Teachers will be able to use the guide to raise students’ awareness of plants, their ecological role and how to care for them.
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Sensitive to sustainable development, several actions have been taken as part of the project. Asphalt areas present in the entrance forecourt were reduced, new greening zones were created to maximize cool islands near accesses. Parking spaces were reorganized to allow for the creation of water catchment basins. These green zones helped reduce heat islands, as well as the amount of runoff water directed into municipal drains.
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At the landing stage, landscaping was designed to protect the mature trees lining the site. Ponds planted with perennial flowers and shrubs resistant to de-icing salt and pollution have been installed to capture and filter rainwater, and serve to limit the amount of wastewater discharged into the city’s sewers.
A second phase of the project is scheduled for completion in 2010.
A second phase of development is planned on the other side of the building to extend the greening of the entire site, install inclusive bicycle and scooter parking and create a student plaza.
