Adcock is new Vancouver GM of buildings, licensing

Jessie Adcock has been appointed to the position of general manager, development, buildings and licensing at the City of Vancouver. She is currently the chief technology officer.

Adcock joined the city in 2013 as its first chief digital officer and was the first individual to hold such a role in a Canadian public sector organization. In that capacity, she was responsible to lead the implementation of the city’s digital strategy and also provided leadership to the 3-1-1 contact centre.

In 2016, she took on the expanded role of chief technology officer (CTO), including a mandate for the transformation of the information technology function.

“Jessie has had many accomplishments in her current role as CTO, and I believe her clear communication style and leadership ability, as well as her expertise in service management and technology implementation, will serve the city and her new division well,” said Sadhu Johnston, city manager. “We conducted a thorough search to fill this role, and are always happy to promote from within when it’s the right fit.”

The development, buildings, and licensing division at the city supports the development of vibrant communities, ensures the quality and safety of buildings, and leverages the use of permits, licences and enforcement to advance council priorities.

The division steers policies and services to shape how people build, work and live in Vancouver and engages with a diverse group of customers and stakeholders, including developers, architects, small and large business owners and residents.

“Development, buildings and licensing is an organization with tremendous transformation potential from a technology and service delivery perspective. Having worked through and led transformation initiatives and managed complex operations in multiple sectors, I look forward to this opportunity to further improve how we deliver services and value to our community,” said Adcock.

Adcock will assume her new duties on December 2, 2019. She is filling the position previously held by Kaye Krishna, who left the city in January to take on an assignment with the Province of British Columbia as Deputy Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

BCCA launches mortgage solution for workers

The BC Construction Association (BCCA) has launched a mortgage investment corporation (MIC) to make securing a mortgage easier for B.C.’s skilled tradespeople, medical care providers, educators, and emergency responders.

Despite their in-demand skills, steady employment and higher than average wages, thousands of essential workers in B.C. cannot afford a home near their workplace. Often, they must either commute long distances to work, live in unreliable rental housing, or move elsewhere.

Lisa Stevens, BCCA’s chief strategy officer, and Peter Elkins, co-founder of Capital Investment Network, had previously looked to a MIC as a possible solution for the southern Gulf Islands, whose communities have trouble finding service providers who can afford to live there. When Stevens joined the association, she saw the same need, but on a much larger scale.

Unlike banks and credit unions, MICs are not subject to the federal mortgage stress tests which thousands of B.C. workers struggle to meet. Additionally, shares in MICs are eligible for government deferred and tax-sheltered savings plans such as RRSPs, RESPs, RRIFs, TFSAs and RDSPs. While MICs typically generate revenue by attracting higher-risk customers willing to purchase higher-rate mortgages, this MIC sought to be an impact-investment that would thrive by offering tradespeople and other gainfully employed essential workers the competitive-rate mortgages they couldn’t get from a bank or credit union.

“Our goal is to create a social impact investment vehicle that offers value for investors while also helping tradespeople and other professionals to establish roots in B.C. communities,” said Stevens. “Guiding our approach is the belief that these highly skilled and hard-working earners should be able to afford housing, and organizations that employ and represent them are willing to invest in a financial vehicle that helps them succeed.”

To help address this complex challenge the BCCA team partnered with the Gustavson School of Business at UVic to create a capstone project for the school’s 2019 MBA program. That work became the foundation of the business case for the Impact MIC, Canada’s first impact-investment mortgage fund.

Whereas MICs typically offer higher mortgage interest rates, shorter terms for fixed rates and lower loan to (home) value ratios compared to banks, as a fund dedicated to helping essential workers, the Impact MIC will offer more favourable terms by roughly matching bank mortgage interest rates and term lengths for fixed rates, while also offering longer amortization periods (25-40 years) and a higher loan-to-value ratio (up to 90%).

“The BCCA board has approved funding to move the Impact MIC forward,” confirms Chris Atchison, president, BCCA. “We’re proud to pioneer an affordable housing solution with the potential to improve the quality of life for thousands of skilled tradespeople and other essential workers across the province, benefitting every B.C. community.”

BCCA is planning to make mortgages from the Impact MIC available as of April 2020. For more information, contact Peter Elkins at 778.966.1250 or [email protected]. Visit https://www.bccassn.com/resources/mortgage-investment-corp/

Inside OCAD University’s first off-campus outpost

Upon encountering OCAD University’s ‘tabletop’ structure that sits above McCaul Street in downtown Toronto, most people’s initial reaction is, ‘What on earth is that?’. Designed by architect Will Alsop in joint venture with Robbie/Young + Wright Architects, the Sharp Centre for Design, or the ‘tabletop’ as it is known, is disguised as a walking, pixelated creature that looms over the school’s main campus building and Butterfield Park below. The black and white structure, with its 12 multicoloured steel legs, has become a defining symbol for the third largest art and design university in North America.

Spending most of its first 100 years as a fine art school led by Group of Seven icons such as George Reid and Arthur Lismer, the school has evolved and expanded its offerings to include 17 undergraduate and seven graduate programs, with a student population of 4,700. By changing its name to the Ontario College of Art and Design in 1996, and then OCAD University six years later, the educational institution hinted at revolutionary changes, both philosophically and physically. The Sharp Centre, completed in 2008, clearly signalled to the world this was a place that took creative expression seriously.

With its most recent addition of CO, short for ‘company,’ OCAD University has ventured for the first time beyond its main campus located within the neighbourhood of Kensington-Chinatown. According to CO, there’s a lot in just two letters, which express collaboration, community and co-design. This executive studio uses creative problem-solving to drive change, offering creative knowledge and capabilities to industry leaders and their organizations. CO is helping them to future-proof themselves and de-risk innovation opportunities.

CO is also home to the Imagination Catalyst, an entrepreneurship and commercialization hub that supports emerging companies committed to design-driven products and services. By offering the value of its design-thinking to the business market, OCAD University is ensuring its ability to grow and thrive in a time when government support has become unreliable. Since opening in 2018, CO has beaten budget projections by three times. The facility is expected to generate 15 per cent of the school’s operating budget by 2023.

The university’s latest venture is located in Daniels Waterfront City of the Arts complex on Queen’s Quay, which combines residences with arts-based businesses and non-profits. At just under 14,000 square feet, the space is relatively small considering its objectives; however, its proximity to like-minded organizations, fully glazed windows that reveal breathtaking views of downtown and the lake, and abundance of natural light made the location appealing.

OCAD University asked Toronto-based architecture and interior design firm, Quadrangle, to create an interior with flexible features that can be adapted to a variety of activities and change with CO’s business model over time. The firm went beyond this to bring the character of the iconic ‘tabletop’ into the design.

The playful, architectural solution provides a series of spaces that can be treated as modules to accommodate everything from intimate, individual work to large-scale public events. The long and narrow space has four ‘innovation studios,’ seven open collaboration spaces and six closed meeting spaces for up to 22 people. There is a dedicated audiovisual equipment cage and a large workspace for CO staff that overlooks the soon-to-be completed east-west pedestrian mews, known as the City of the Arts ‘Yard.’

Lowered fluorescent bulbs provide ample lighting for open-concept work spaces, while flexible cable conduits from the ceiling allow users to rearrange the furniture without losing access to power. Photo by Adrien Williams.

Level with the steady stream of traffic along the eastern Gardiner Expressway, CO feels urban and connected to the city. As visitors step off the elevator onto the fourth floor of the building, their gaze is channeled to the interior by a warm wood wall treatment that transitions to an orange, sculptural punctured ceiling. The threshold from this intimate entrance to the wide-open transit space is populated with counters in varying heights for both functionality and accessibility. A deep blue kitchenette forms a natural hearth for the open space, with its bright red cappuccino maker inviting visitors to linger and sip a cup of coffee.

Flooded with natural light, the Transit Zone can comfortably accommodate large groups; folding partitions can also transform it quickly into a suite of smaller innovation studios. Photo by Adrien Williams.

The character of the ‘tabletop’ is felt through strong colour blocking, as well as in the details, such as the black and white pixelated patterned tile in the washrooms and on the code-required vision strips. The colours also help to demarcate various meeting areas as most of the users are new to the space. The almost 16-feet high ceilings provided the opportunity to create areas of intimacy and grandeur, depending on the location.

An intimate ceiling height can be found at the entrance and in small rooms, such as phone booths; a median height was used along the long connecting spine to accommodate centralized lighting, mechanical equipment and cabling lines; and the full height was kept in large studios and transit space to allow for the maximum amount of natural light. Floating wood ceilings in the innovation studios keep voices isolated within each space and discretely integrate audiovisual, mechanical equipment and lighting.

This innovation studio offers generous built-in audiovisual equipment. Carpeting and a wooden drop ceiling muffle noise and give the room a softer feel, conducive to calm, focused work. Photo by Adrien Williams

Maximizing flexibility, three southern studios are outfitted with operable walls that allow the rooms to be combined with the open collaboration zone, which comprises 75 per cent of the overall facility, into a single event space more than 165-feet long. Carving two feet from the base building mechanical and electrical rooms allowed for the creation of wall niches with drop-down desks for private or shared study.

The design thinkers and researchers who now call CO home are convinced the striking new interior is a key factor in the success of their new businesses. Their clients, leaders in private development and public policy, consistently note the interior balances both creativity and professionalism. These same clients acknowledge the positive outcomes of their facilitated sessions are enlivened by the nature of the space.

Caroline Robbie is a principal at Quadrangle, where she is responsible for the interiors and content media teams. Caroline’s relationship with OCAD University began in 2000, when she was the lead interior designer on the Sharp Centre for Design. Quadrangle is one of Canada’s most dynamic design and architecture firms. In February, it joined forces with leading U.K. practice BDP to broaden its expertise and resources, and fuel further client value, growth and development.

Feature photo by Adrien Williams: Upon entering the space, users are greeted by the letters CO, seven feet high and bright pink against the cityscape.

The effect of sit-to-stand workstations

The technology that is used in modern workplaces has changed, allowing the workforce to rethink how and where work is completed. With the rise of co-working spaces and the ability to hold an office in the palm of your hand, we have shifted the workplace out of the traditional office. By doing so, however, we have also increased the frequency of musculoskeletal injuries, including “texting thumb” and “text neck,” caused by the impact of our new technology on our bodies.

Along with the increases of different types of workplace injuries, the term “sitting disease” began to emerge around the year 2010. Since the 1950s, the amount of time that people sit each day has progressively increased, mainly due to transportation, communications, the reduction of manual labour and the use of computers. By increasing the amount of time an individual sits each day, the risk of cardiovascular disease and premature death also rise as muscular strength falls. Even if a person lives a healthy, active lifestyle, the more that they sit in one location, the greater the risks to their health.

To combat the epidemic of sitting for too long within the office environment, workplace designers have been looking at new options to help increase activity within the workplace. This includes changing the functional layout of the office to include different types of meeting locations, such as lounge chairs or coffee bars, as well as the rise of the sit-to-stand and standing workstation.

The purpose of the standing workstation is to potentially reduce the negative effects of sitting all day in a static position. These standing workstations provide many different benefits to the user, including the ability to shift and move their body while on the computer, and allows the opportunity for two or more people to meet at a standing workstation to collaborate and share information.

With the increases in standing workstations in the office environment, a recent study (Finch et al.) explored whether standing desks increased task performance and employee engagement. The study recruited participants to complete a series of reading and creativity tasks while both sitting at a computer workstation and standing using a sit-to-stand workstation.

Researchers found that body position (sitting or standing) did not affect reading comprehension or creative tasks and participants did not experience any difference in satisfaction when completing tasks while either sitting or standing. However, the study found that participants experienced greater engagement in the tasks they were completing while standing, which was measured by their reported interest, enthusiasm and alertness. However, participants reported more discomfort standing than sitting.

Based on this study and others examining the performance benefits of sit-to-stand workstations, neither only sitting nor only standing is the right answer. To truly improve performance, employees require a blend of both. When employees are provided with a sit-to-stand workstation, they have the option to use both settings, which other studies have found increases caloric expenditure and blood flow while reducing the amount of sitting time and musculoskeletal discomfort, fatigue and stiffness.

One of the biggest benefits of being able to choose whether to sit or stand is the psychological impacts on employee engagement. Sit-to-stand workstations provide employees with the choice of how they want to complete their work, which ultimately increases employee engagement, job satisfaction and performance. In addition, by providing employees with this choice, it demonstrates that the organization considers the importance of employees’ needs and health in the workplace. This contribution to improving the well-being of the workforce helps improve the overall employee performance.

There are many different opportunities to boost organizational performance and the use of sit-to-stand workstations is one such method. The most important opportunity is through a leadership commitment to health, safety and employee well-being in the workplace. Focusing on the needs of each employee provides the greatest benefits to workplace performance and injury reduction.

Reference: Finch, L.E., Tomiyama, A.J., & Ward, A. (2017). Taking a stand: The effects of standing desks on task performance and engagement. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 14(8): 939. Retrieved from https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/14/8/939/pdf.

Aaron Miller is a Canadian Certified Professional Ergonomist (CCPE) and an ergonomic consultant based in Kelowna, B.C. He can be reached at [email protected].

MacEwan University welcomes kihêw waciston Indigenous Centre

The kihêw waciston Indigenous Centre at MacEwan University in Edmonton is officially open.

Considered a “home away from home” for the school’s indigenous students, kihêw waciston, means “eagle’s nest” in nêhiyawewin (Cree). The space is one where students can grow in an environment that honours the distinctive knowledge of Indigenous peoples. The Indigenous Centre, which is open to anyone in the MacEwan community, offers cultural support with two full-time Knowledge Keepers for one-on-one sessions and group discussions.

As architect of the project, DIALOG worked closely with kihêw waciston leadership to understand their needs and teachings. As a result, the design references indigenous building traditions across Canada through the creation of a series of round and rectilinear gathering spaces within the larger area. One space contains an abstracted tipi form to create a sense of welcome. Another allows for the teaching of stories of the night sky through a fibreoptic lighting installation.

The use of natural materials and traditional colours reference indigenous teachings and natural landscapes. The landscape architecture beyond the building allows for a teaching healing garden and space for gathering and ceremonies, including a tipi and permanent fire circle.

Bottom photo: DIALOG

Feature photo: MacEwan University, Twitter

Ontario to scrap obscure rental housing statute

An obscure rental housing statute is set to be wiped from Ontario’s law books. The Residential Complex Sales Representation Act is among dozens of statutes and regulations tagged for revision or outright repeal in Bill 132, omnibus legislation dubbed the Better for People, Smarter for Business Act, introduced in late October.

“Decades of government regulation have resulted in rules that are duplicative, outdated or unclear, causing businesses to spend time and money complying with rules that simply could be better,” asserted Prabmeet Sarkaria, Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction, in reference to the 80 initiatives in Bill 132, which relate to 14 provincial ministries.

The Residential Complex Sales Representation Act, under the auspices of the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services, pertains to vendors, vending agents and prospective purchasers of multifamily buildings or mobile home parks with at least six units. It clarifies that purchasers will not acquire entitlement to occupy a unit — unless it is a condominium or co-op unit, or a unit in a rental building that the vendor will be vacating — and that vendors can not advertise or imply that such an opportunity exists.

The legislation, which the Ontario government now terms “outdated” and “a barrier for people to easily understand the protections that apply to them”, includes penalties of up to $50,000 for individuals or up to $100,000 for corporations that contravene it. However, legal practitioners note that other stringent consequences are in play.

“The Residential Tenancies Act sets out clearly the circumstances — limitations and restrictions — in which a purchasing landlord may exercise a right of possession to a rental unit in a building. Any agent who misrepresents to a purchaser the rights of possession is liable to be sued for negligence and breach of contract, so purchasers are fully protected in that regard,” observes Joe Hoffer, a partner and specialist in residential tenancy and municipal law with Cohen Highley LLP. “The statute has been virtually ignored since it was enacted and is functionally obsolete.”

New technology detects airborne chemicals

A new portable device can quickly identify various airborne chemicals and gases harmful to human health, according to scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore).

The new prototype provides real-time monitoring of air quality in events like haze outbreaks, and assists in the detection of gas leaks and industrial air pollution. It can identify hazards like sulphur dioxide and larger compound molecules, such as benzene.

The new technology, reported in the science journal ACS Nano in September, was developed by a research team led by Associate Professor Ling Xing Yi, head of the Division of Chemistry & Biological Chemistry at NTU’s School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences.

Current methods of identifying gases in the air use a laboratory technique called Gas Chromatography – Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS), which is reliable but requires tedious sample collection and takes between a few hours and a few days to obtain results from air samples.

Emergency scenarios require a fast and ongoing analysis of potential air contamination, such as following a natural disaster, chemical spill or illegal dumping of toxic waste, so that emergency responders can take appropriate action.

The new device uses a small patch made of a special porous and metallic nanomaterial to first trap gas molecules. When a laser is shone on it from a few metres away, the light interacts with the gas molecules, causing light of a lower energy to be emitted. When analyzed, it gives a spectroscopic readout in the format of a graph chart.

The spectroscopic readout acts like a “chemical fingerprint” corresponding to various chemicals present on the patch. The whole process takes about 10 seconds to complete. These chemical fingerprints from the sample are referenced against a digital library of fingerprints to quickly determine what chemicals have been detected.

Known as Raman spectroscopy, this is a long-established technique for identifying chemical substances. Typically, it has been used only on solid and liquid samples, since gaseous chemicals are too dilute for the laser and detector to pick up. A special nanostructure was made from a highly porous synthetic material known as a metal-organic framework, which actively absorbs and traps molecules from the air into a ‘cage’.

“Our device can work remotely, so the operation of the laser camera and analysis of chemicals can be done safely at a distance. This is especially useful when it is not known if the gases are hazardous to human health,” said Ling.

The device can also detect PAHs at parts-per-billion (ppb) concentrations in the atmosphere as well as performing continuous monitoring of the concentration of the different types of gases like carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, which could be a useful application in many industrial settings.

Through NTUitive, NTU’s innovation and enterprise company, the team has filed for a patent and is now commercializing the technology for use in pollution monitoring, chemical disaster response, as well as other industrial applications.

Don’t flush money down the toilet

It is estimated that 20 to 25 per cent of all toilets in North America are experiencing leaks at any given time, making toilet leaks the number one cause of water loss in multi-unit residential buildings and resulting in the loss of billions of dollars in Net Operating Income (NOI) each year.

Toilet water usage in apartments and condominiums accounts for 34 per cent of total water consumption. With toilet leaks contributing an extra 8 to 10 per cent on top of that, almost half of all water consumed by residential tenants comes from toilet usage.

Just one leaky toilet can waste up to 20 cubic metres a day, or up to 600+ cubic metres a month, and cost approximately $80 and $2,400 depending on the size of the leak. Calculate those losses over one year, and one leaking toilet can account for upwards of $30,000. Multiply that by 20 per cent of your total number of units, and you can understand the impact water leakage has on your assets, NOI, and capitalization rate.

With so many multi-unit residential buildings still equipped with older and more traditional toilets, water leak detection becomes that much more critical as older components begin to degrade and malfunction over time. That said, even buildings that have had their bathrooms retrofitted with newer water efficiency toilets still experience toilet leaks.

The undetectable damage

Water damage as a result of leaking and flooding continues to be a major source of financial loss for commercial and residential property owners. As dwellings and infrastructure age, so does the potential for plumbing, toilets, and waterlines to break down. The problem with leaky toilets is that they are often undetectable, and as a result, can cost property owners thousands of dollars monthly.

While some toilet leaks are truly undetectable, tenants seldom report minor toilet leaks to management for a number of reasons. Firstly, tenants do not typically feel a sense of ownership for their apartments, and secondly, tenants do not pay for their own water usage. Similar to our current health care system, neither patients nor tenants ever see their medical or their apartment utilities bills, so they remain unaware of their water consumption footprint.

How do we address and fix this problem?

In multi-unit apartment buildings, trained professional maintenance workers may be able to conduct regular building-wide toilet inspections — however, this type of intervention is extremely costly. It is also an inefficient use of time and a major disruption to tenants.

We already know that many leaks are undetectable, therefore, simple inspections may not uncover silent leaks. More comprehensive inspections and testing are both cost prohibitive and time consuming. Furthermore, because toilet leaks can begin at any moment, inspecting tenants’ toilets even once per month may not necessarily guarantee that those same leak-free toilets today won’t be leaking tomorrow.

Alternatively, and depending on budget constraints, rental property owners can choose to make a rather substantial capital expenditure to replace all tenant toilets. However, this still does not address the potential for future leakage, or even poor installation.

Toilet leak sensors

Standard toilets have many different components that may cause leakage, making it that much harder to detect and accurately diagnose. The most efficient and cost-effective way to monitor and detect toilet leaks in multi-unit buildings is to install toilet leak sensors in each bathroom.

An example is Sensory Industry detectors (SI Toilet Sensors), which immediately detect leaks and transmit real-time alerts to designated contacts through mobile devices, emails, or pagers. Sensory Industry detectors track, measure, record, analyze and alert key individuals as leaks are happening. This immediate detection is the only way to effectively, efficiently, and proactively manage multiple toilets, while minimizing the unforeseen costs of toilet leakage.

Toilet leak sensors are a cost-effective solution to track and notify property owners of water leak loss. SI-Toilet Sensors can potentially save property owners thousands of dollars monthly, or even hundreds of thousands across large portfolios in Net Operating Income.

For more information, contact Lorenzo Digianfelice at [email protected] or visit www.wccltd.com

Housing Vancouver reports need for stronger rental focus

In a recent Q3 update, Housing Vancouver revealed the need for a stronger focus on rental units, with purpose-built rental approvals currently below the 10-year 20,000-unit target set by the City of Vancouver. To address the shortage, the government says it will be focusing efforts on incentivising the creation of much needed rental stock in the coming months.

In the first three quarters of 2019, the City approved 2,987 units of housing, including: 601 townhouse units; 364 laneway houses; 529 social and supportive housing units (427 of which are located on City land, and 300 of which are in partnership with the Vancouver Community Land Trust); and 649 purpose-built rental units, most of which were approved through the city’s rental incentive programs.

Over half of the new housing units approved were family-sized, containing two-plus bedrooms, as part of dedicated programs to encourage larger family-oriented housing.

According to the Q3 update, the period saw fewer purpose-built rental projects coming forward for council approval than in previous years, as well as fewer social and supportive housing approvals.

Approvals for housing that meets the needs of households earning under $80,000 per year are also below Housing Vancouver targets. This level of affordability typically requires partnerships with other levels of government and the non-profit and private development sectors.

Next steps

To deliver more rental units and better meet targets, the City plans to focus its efforts on the following steps:
• Rental Incentive Program Review to explore the effectiveness of the programs in delivering new purpose-built market rental housing;
• Implementation of the Moderate Income Rental Housing Pilot Program (MIRHPP), with 4 applications (approximately 240 rental units and 61 MIRHPP units) anticipated to reach Public Hearing in winter 2019;
• Major Project sites anticipating submission of rezoning applications to deliver additional social and below-market and market rental housing, including Heather Lands and the Oakridge Transit Centre;
• Additional city land sites to be developed in partnership with the Community Land Trust for social and co-operative housing;
• Launch of newly approved Community Housing Incentive Program (CHIP) which will provide capital grants to non-profit housing providers developing their land with a focus on deepening affordability in social housing projects;
• Ongoing Broadway Planning process which includes exploring opportunities to enable more social, market and below-market rental housing close to transit and amenities;
• Expo Line Station areas from Nanaimo to Boundary Road to be explored as an early planning initiative under the Vancouver Plan planning process to enable delivery of social, market and below-market rental housing choice
• Development of an Affordable Housing and Community Spaces Incentive Program to create opportunities for additional non-market housing.

Full reporting on progress towards targets for all of 2019 will be presented to Council early in 2020 through the annual Housing Vancouver Progress Report and Data Book.

As the City of Vancouver’s 10-year housing strategy, key priorities for Housing Vancouver include: creating 72,000 housing units over the next 10 years, and prioritizing rental housing to meet the greatest need.

IWBI launches The Well Conference

The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) has announced a collaboration with the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) on a new conference. The WELL Conference is slated for April 2020.

The WELL Conference will be designed to offer a rich, experiential opportunity for attendees from across multiple sectors—the traditional architectural, design and engineering communities, but also real estate developers, corporate officials engaged in advancing best practices in environmental, social and governance (ESG) protocols, public health practitioners, and technology companies who are playing an ever-greater role in the real-time monitoring of building and community infrastructure performance.

“At the center of this entire process is the critical role of design – design of space, materials, forms, processes, protocols – design matters in every part of our lives,” said ASID CEO Randy Fiser, Hon. FASID.

“Design professionals ensure interior environments protect those who inhabit the spaces where we live, work, and play; now it’s incumbent upon us to encourage greater levels of health and well-being interventions. We are strong believers in WELL, its scientific integrity, its rigor and the opportunities it offers to recognize the critical role of the design community in every market sector. The WELL Conference will help us take that message forward further and faster.”

IWBI Chairman and CEO Rick Fedrizzi added, “This second wave of the sustainability movement focuses on improving human performance, building on the work done over the past 25 years to improve building performance. We intend this event to be a jaw-dropping, immersive experience that reminds people of why they have taken up the cause to make our buildings and communities work for our health every day.”

Continuum REIT sells GTA high-rise portfolio to Starlight

Continuum REIT, an affiliate of Q Management LP, and Starlight Investments have entered into an agreement whereby Starlight will acquire the REIT’s multi-residential portfolio for a gross purchase price of $1.732 billion.

The portfolio is comprised of 44 high-rise concrete buildings located primarily in the Greater Toronto Area, and contains 6,271 rental suites.

“We filed an amended and restated prospectus with the Ontario Securities Commission on October 21, 2019 with the intention of completing an initial public offering (“IPO”) of the Units of the REIT,” said Dan Argiros, President and CEO of Continuum. “Since filing, senior management has been marketing the IPO in Canada and the United States, which has resulted in an order book of over $1.0 billion.”

According to Arginos, during the marketing process Starlight approached Continuum to acquire its entire portfolio and made an offer that was superior to the IPO opportunity, which would have been priced between $15.50 to $16.50 per unit.

“As a result, we have elected to proceed with the Starlight offer to acquire the portfolio and we will be withdrawing the IPO,” he said. “We are very proud of the superior performance of the REIT since inception and we thank all of our investors for their support.”

“The opportunity to acquire a 44-building, concrete, multi-residential high-rise portfolio located in the Greater Toronto Area is an extremely compelling opportunity to continue Starlight’s strategic growth,” said Daniel Drimmer, Chief Executive Officer and President of Starlight. “We look forward to completing this significant transaction and integrating the portfolio into our multi-residential platform as we continue addressing Canada’s rental housing shortage.”

The transaction is expected to close in December, 2019. Desjardins Capital Markets and CIBC Capital Markets are acting as financial advisors to the REIT and Gardiner Roberts LLP is serving as legal counsel in connection with the transaction. Bloom Lanys Professional Corporation is acting as lead legal counsel to Starlight together with Wildeboer Dellelce LLP.

Continuum REIT is an affiliate of Q Management LP, a real estate asset and property management entity that is actively engaged in the multifamily residential sector in Ontario. In addition to the REIT, Q Management LP manages two private equity multi residential funds in Ontario consisting of 5,234 (owned and under contract) suites in 45 buildings.

With the addition of this portfolio, Starlight portfolio now consists of approximately 36,000 multi-residential units across Canada and the U.S. and over 6.2 million square feet of commercial properties.

Stovel Block in Edmonton designated historical resource

The Stovel Block, an Edwardian-style commercial building in The Quarters neighbourhood of downtown Edmonton, has been designated as a Municipal Historic Resource.

The brick building, currently undergoing a restoration, was named after its original owners who were active in the city’s burgeoning commercial industry in the early 1900s. James Stovel was one of the first hardware merchants in Edmonton and his wife Mary Stovel supervised the construction of the Stovel Block.

The Stovel Block was constructed in 1912 as two separate structures and housed various local businesses. The three-storey main building is located on the corner of 97 Street and 103A Avenue. The annex building to the south is two storeys.

“The Stovel Block is a somewhat rare example of commercial architecture in the Edwardian style in the The Quarters/Downtown,” said David Johnston, principal heritage planner with the City of Edmonton. “It’s tied to the early entrepreneurs who made their mark on Edmonton in the early 20th Century. The building has been an important part of The Quarters neighbourhood for over 100 years.”

The Stovel Block has a flat roof with a shallow parapet that originally had decorative brick dentilation and a matching arched pediment, most of which has been replaced by concrete. Building restoration is set to be completed in the last quarter of 2019 and will reintroduce these elements. The building’s original metal fire escape has been removed and replaced with small balconettes. A ghost Army and Navy sign is featured on the east elevation.

The Heritage Resources Reserve will provide a grant of $645,792 to assist in the rehabilitation of the historic elements of the building. The overall cost of the renovation totals about $1,356,000.

The City’s Historic Resource Management Plan outlines the City’s mission to identify, protect and promote the preservation and use of historic resources. The Plan contains 24 policies and 88 action items that direct how Edmonton’s heritage should be preserved and celebrated. Since the plan was initiated in 1985, 158 properties have been designated as legally-protected Municipal Historic Resources with more designations planned in the future.

Vancouver adopts new Rain City Strategy

Vancouver recently approved an ambitious green rainwater infrastructure initiative called the Rain City Strategy.

The strategy will use green rainwater infrastructure to absorb and clean rainwater, thereby improving water quality in the natural environment and resilience to climate change, and also enhancing the city’s natural ecosystems.

Another goal is to better manage water accumulation during extreme rainfall to reduce flooding and improve water quality, moving toward the overall goal of capturing and treating 90 per cent of Vancouver’s average annual rainfall.

The strategy also sets new design standards for green rainwater infrastructure practices, doubling the minimum volume of rainwater managed through green rainwater infrastructure from 24mm per day to 48mm per day and establishing a target to manage rainwater volume and water quality for 40 per cent of Vancouver’s impervious areas by 2050.

Vancouver currently has more than 240 green rainwater infrastructure assets in its streets and many more in parks and other public spaces. One example is a blue-green roof pilot at Helena Gutteridge Plaza at City Hall. The new demo project looks at the benefits of rainwater capture on four types of roofs: conventional, green, blue and blue-green.

“As residents of a coastal city in a temperate rainforest we have a deep connection to water in all its forms,” said Mayor Kennedy Stewart. “However, as we grapple with climate change and Vancouver continues to grow in the decades to come, charting a new course for the way we manage rainwater will be vital.”

Edmonton facilities get energy efficiency upgrade

Two Edmonton facilities have undergone renovations to improve energy efficiency.

The City said that Mitchell Transit Garage and Westwood Fleet Services will now operate with a much lower ecological footprint.

“Buildings and facilities are responsible for approximately forty-nine per cent of the City’s corporate greenhouse gas emissions,” said Paul Ross, branch manager of economic and environmental sustainability. “The energy efficiency upgrades to these transit facilities will help reduce our emissions and make Edmonton more climate resilient.”

Detailed energy assessments were completed for each facility and identified Energy Conservation Measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the amount of energy required for building operation. The facilities received energy efficient heating and ventilation systems, upgraded HVAC equipment, occupancy controls, repairs to the buildings’ envelopes and redesigned lighting with LED lights installed.

Funding support for these projects was provided by the Municipal Climate Change Action Centre through their Taking Action to Manage Energy Program (TAME+). The TAME+ program provides tools and funding to help municipalities understand how energy is used in their buildings, identify key savings opportunities and implement retrofit projects.

Cintas accepting nominations for Everyday Impact Hero Contest

Cintas Corp. is accepting nominations for its third annual Everyday Impact Hero Contest.

The award program, established in 2017, honours facility professionals who go above and beyond to provide a better customer experience and improve their workplace.

Cintas will accept nominations from residents in Canada and the United States, excluding Quebec, until December 31.

Ten finalists announced later this year will be featured in the 2020 Design Collective by Cintas catalog. In addition, all finalists, plus their manager and a guest, will receive a complimentary trip (airfare and hotel) to a celebratory event hosted at Cintas’ Chicago offices

For more information on the Everyday Impact Hero Contest and to nominate someone, please visit: www.cintas.com/everyday-impact

Former property owner fined for environmental contamination

A former gas station property owner was recently convicted of nine violations under the Environmental Protection Act related to petroleum hydrocarbon (PHC) contamination on-site and potential hydrocarbon migration off-site to neighboring properties and groundwater.

The property, on Highway 6 in South Bruce Peninsula, has been abandoned for several years. Owner David Sutter was living in New Brunswick at the time of his conviction.

In 2017, the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks issued an order and an amendment to Sutter, resulting from ministry concerns.

The orders required him to complete several items including hiring a qualified consultant to complete a written report detailing the extent of hydrocarbon impact, along with remediation recommendations and a detailed schedule for the implementation of recommended measures. He did not complete any of the requirements on the orders and at the time of conviction, continued to be in violation of the requirements.

In addition to his conviction, Sutter was fined $45,000, plus a victim fine surcharge of $11,250. As part of sentencing, he was issued a Section 190 Court Order which requires that he meet the demands of the original ministry orders.

According to the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, PHC is one of the most widespread soils contaminates in Canada. They consist of a wide range of organic compounds found in or derived for geological sources such as oil, coal and bitumen, including a variety of raw and refined fuels and lubricants.

PHC contamination can cause a wide variety of problems, including potential for fire/explosion hazard, toxicity to some degree for human/or environmental health, transportation of lighter PHC by groundwater or air, persistence of larger branched-chain PHC in the environment, aesthetic problems such as offensive odour, taste or appearance in air and water, degradation of soil quality that interferes with water retention and flow of nutrient supplies to plants.

Standard aims to protect iron water pipes from corrosion

ASTM International has published a new standard that aims to improve the reliability and sustainability of iron water pipes that provide clean drinking water. The organization’s corrosion of metals committee developed the new standard.

According to ASTM International member Mike Horton, a senior process engineering manager at U.S. Pipe., there are many standards (related to coatings and cathodic protection) that help protect steel pipe but those standards aren’t always applicable to iron pipe.

“The metallurgy, chemistry, physical properties, surface composition and texture, coating requirements, and electrical continuity of standard production ductile iron pipe are significantly different from those of steel pipe,” he says. “The purpose of the new guide is to summarize publications, case histories, and studies available regarding cathodic protection installations of polyethylene encased ductile iron pipe to give users guidance on this unique method of protection.”

He says the new standard provides basic information that could be helpful to engineers, asset owners, water companies, corrosion consultants, ductile iron pipe manufacturers and others who have an interest in providing underground corrosion protection to iron pipes.

The undetectable damage

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