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There are three types of areas required in the program: living, services,
and community. These areas coincides with the three types of space
that we need in our daily life as Professor Harris has pointed
out: alcove, high place, and
gathering space. One of the objective is to integrate these
spaces to serve the individual needs and the community life. Ideally, a low-rise high-density approach would be the best for a student residence where the sense of community is important. However, limited land supply in the downtown core imposes difficult constraint in the developement and encourages a vertical stacking of spaces. |
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The initial conception of this project did not immediately call for the use of quadrangle design, but it did not exclude that possibility either. It was soon realized that the creation of an interior courtyard on this site could help to isolate the noise of heavy traffic, and to integrate the space between Thomson House and the Law building in order to create a more exciting place than just a leftover space. |
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Currently, the main level of Student Centre is connected to the lower level of Brown Building. This could be extended to the student residence and all the way to Thomson House and the Law building by means of underground connection. The Education Building above the street also provides a precedents to connect Peel and McTavish by internal circulation. |
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In contrast to the other underground footpaths in McGill campus using tunnels, the idea here is to create an underground street that connects the student residence and the Brown Building using a ramp. This underground street should be connected to the main lobby. The front of the building facing Dr. Penfield will use glass curtain wall to admit direct sunlight into the main space, and it creates a visual link with the lower campus when the user is approaching the ramp. The curtain wall also funtions as a sound buffer to shield the noise from the traffic. |
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Massing Study Model 1 |
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This study shows a U-shape building connected to both the Law Building and Thomson House, and a central courtyard is created in the middle. |
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Massing Study Model 2 |
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A tower is rising from the west side of the building to give a strong presence of the building and to provide more usable space. Areas for student services can be stacked in the tower in order to allow the living areas to be centered around the courtyard. |
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This conceptual sketch suggests another approach to the design by using the juxtaposition of various masses and heights to satisfy the requirements of different spaces. The tower should be strategically placed to minimize the shadow casted on the adjacent buildings. |