York U SCS

Competition for the School of Continuing Studies at York University

Gow Hastings Architects, in collaboration with Danish firm Henning Larsen and multinational engineering firm Arup, were one of three teams shortlisted for the York University School of Continuing Studies (SCS) Competition. Due to the project’s prominent location at the south-eastern gateway to the Keele Campus, the SCS project presented unique opportunities to frame a key entrance from the city into the campus. Through iconic and performative façades and a transparent and activated ground level connecting to street activity, the SCS becomes an inviting living ‘billboard’ advertising the activities within to the Campus and City beyond.

Stepping beyond the confines of LEED Gold and into the realm of passive house and net zero design, the iconic, highly sustainable SCS contributes to the wellbeing of its inhabitants. The carbon neutral building design incorporates three approaches; operating energy, embodied energy and occupant behavior. By means of passive, non-energy consuming properties such as geometry optimization, program distribution, façade optimization, space planning and orientation, we significantly reduced energy consumption while enhancing the unique quality of the building and its spatial experiences.