Sustainable architecture seeks to reduce negative impacts on the natural environment while creating healthy places to live and work. CSV is excited to announce the completion of its most recent and most sustainable project, a state-of-the art building which is the first of its kind in Ottawa. The Salus Clementine project represents a brave commitment to action and is revolutionizing the way supportive housing will be provided in Canada.
On October 6, 2016, CSV Architects and Salus Ottawa celebrated the grand opening of Salus’ newest supportive housing residence, located at 1490 Clementine Boulevard, in Ottawa’s Heron Park. This is a groundbreaking project because it extends housing to a particularly vulnerable group of clients while simultaneously setting a new standard for sustainable design in North America. This building was designed to meet both LEED for Homes Platinum and Passive House standards (both applications are pending final certification testing and approval).
Salus Ottawa is a not-for-profit housing corporation which provides community based housing for vulnerable clients living with psychiatric illness. Its purpose is to improve the life of each client thus reducing dependency on public health, emergency and social services. The life cycle benefits of providing “housing first” are enormous.
CSV and Salus have extended this “long view” approach to the design of the building itself. By optimizing the life cycle cost of the building, Salus intends to stretch precious budgets and improve service to clients with compelling need.
This 42-unit, 4-storey apartment building will operate on the same annual heating budget as a typical single family home. The building has no furnace! This extremely high level of efficiency is achieved by greatly increasing insulation, reducing air leakage, eliminating cold bridging, using high performance windows and doors, and supplying excellent ventilation for exceptional indoor air quality. The result is a building that is more affordable over its lifespan and sets a new standard for affordable housing construction. Ottawa Salus anticipates greatly reduced maintenance and operating costs. These savings will be turned directly back into rehabilitation programs and supports for their clients.
Each unit will provide a comfortable living space with natural light and views. The residents will share a large community meeting space on the ground floor and a communal garden in the back yard. Lisa Ker, the Executive Director of Ottawa Salus describes additional benefits of this project: “Typically, our clients are not affluent. They walk and use public transport. They don’t drive big gas guzzling cars! Their new home will be a model for environmental responsibility. Shedding the stigma of homelessness they can take pride in being part of the solution to global sustainability.”
More information about the building including video of the construction progress can be found at http://www.passivehouse.ca/project/salus-clementine. To support Salus Ottawa and their Capital Campaign for this project visit http://www.salusottawa.org/1267.aspx.
Upcoming tours of the building will be lead by CSV Architects with the assistance of the Ontario Association of Architects, RAIC Architecture Canada, and the Ottawa Regional Society of Architects.