This mixed-use, urban infill project was built in 2005 on Ontario Street, a commercial artery of Montreal. The double-height ground floor, open mezzanine and basement are occupied by the architecture office of Rayside Labossière, who designed the building. The second and third floors house four energy-efficient rental apartments. When it was built, the project was among the first small-scale, private buildings to be LEED certified in Canada. It was an early adopter of geothermal energy and featured several water-saving measures that had yet to become commonplace. It also features one of the first rooftop vegetable gardens, which remains productive to this day, and now includes a productive beehive. As an older LEED-certified project, we were curious to know whether the reduced energy-consumption systems, sustainable thermal performance, and responsible material use strategies selected in 2005 would still be effective enough to attain a Zero Carbon – Performance certification. The certification was also a trial run for our upcoming office expansion project which we intend to be even better than the current office, and for which we will be seeking Zero Carbon Design and Performance certification. The Zero Carbon Performance certification for our existing building allowed us to see how a 15-year-old design process would measure up to present-day criteria for sustainability. Since the building’s completion, we have seen the energy-consumption benefits of the green design strategies, and we wanted to delve deeper into the carbon footprint of the construction and operation. This knowledge is being used to improve the design of our future projects.
When it was built, the project was among the first small-scale, private buildings to be LEED certified in Canada.
