The National Urban Design Awards selected two projects by Diamond Schmitt Architects among this year’s winners in the bi-annual program that recognizes design achievement. North Vancouver City Library won the Medal for Excellence in Urban Architecture. One Cole condominium in Toronto received the Certificate of Merit in the same category.
The awards are administered by Architecture Canada | RAIC, the Canadian Institute of Planners, and the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects in cooperation with Canadian municipalities.
The jury cited the North Vancouver library as “an attractive civic building and plaza that significantly contributes to (the city’s) identity and quality of its public realm.” Other features the jury highlighted were the way the building invites the general public to move freely through its spaces, the generous atrium space and a rooftop garden with views toward Burrard Inlet and the North Shore mountains. The library is a joint venture with CEI Architecture Planning Interiors and is the recipient of numerous other awards for library design and architecture.
One Cole condominium is the first market housing in Toronto’s revitalized Regent Park neighbourhood. The jury noted the blend of midrise towers, townhouses and street-level retail “continues Toronto’s tradition of socially responsive contextual modernism.” As a gateway building to this large redevelopment project, One Cole “is an exemplar of the sustainable and healthy approach of Regent Park – part of the district energy system, providing outdoor amenity spaces as green roof, community garden plots, and numerous green building features.”
“It is gratifying to be recognized by the National Urban Design Awards, which is a valuable initiative to raise awareness of the role architecture plays in the built environment in Canada,” says Donald Schmitt, principal with Diamond Schmitt Architects.
“The National Urban Design Awards recognize that architecture and urban design impact society and enriches our lives and stand as clear evidence that Architecture matters,” says Architecture Canada | RAIC President David Craddock.
The National Urban Design Awards will be presented at a ceremony at the IIDEX NEOCON Canada conference on Sept. 21 in Toronto.
Diamond Schmitt Architects (www.dsai.ca ) is a leading Canadian full-service architectural practice and is the recipient of more than 200 awards, including six Governor General’s Awards for Architecture. The firm is recognized for sustainable design expertise in healthcare facilities, academic and research buildings, the performing arts, residential and commercial properties. Current projects include The Hospital for Sick Children’s Research Tower and Bridgepoint Hospital in Toronto and the New Mariinsky Theatre opera house in St. Petersburg, Russia.
