Today George Brown College welcomed the Honourable Arif Virani, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, along with Julie Dabrusin, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, to launch the Canada Green Buildings Strategy.
Designed to accelerate the greening of residential, commercial, institutional and government buildings across the country, the new strategy sets out an ambitious program totalling $903.5 million in funding.
An innovative setting
Limberlost Place, the college’s 10-storey, mass-timber, net-zero carbon emission building currently under construction at the Waterfront Campus, provides a leading example of the type of green building that will result from the new strategy. Designed by visionary architectural firms Moriyama Teshima Architects and Acton Ostry Architects, and built by PCL and specialty partners, Limberlost Place offers a host of unique features including:
- A design that maximizes fresh air and natural light for students, faculty, and staff.
- The largest glulam column in North America which covers three storeys and weighs 22,000 lbs.
- Connection to Enwave’s district energy network to provide heating and cooling through its world-class, deep lake water system.
- Mass-timber construction to achieve new heights for an institutional building of its kind in Ontario.
The creation of this ground-breaking building has been supported through $5 million in funding from Natural Resources Canada and $1 million from the province of Ontario. Its construction will contribute to significant revisions of the national and provincial building codes to allow for mass-timber buildings over six storeys.
More than a space
When Limberlost Place opens in 2025 it will be home to over 3,000 students and employees who will learn, work and research in a truly state-of-the-art building. Limberlost Place will also house a new child care centre and Indigenous student space that foster connections with the local East Bayfront community.
“Limberlost Place is more than a space – it gives students, faculty, visitors and our city a tangible model of how sustainable buildings can be realized,” said Michelle McCollum, Vice-President of Facilities and Sustainability. “The college has been at the forefront of sustainable construction, and we are excited by the opportunities the new Canada Green Buildings Strategy offers to promote these techniques across the country.”
Learn more about Limberlost Place at georgebrown.ca/limberlost.
