May 30, 2006

Vancouver Olympic HQ focus is building green

WARREN FREY

staff writer

VANCOUVER

The 2010 Winter Games will showcase Vancouver to the world. But when it comes to the headquarters of Vancouver’s Organizing Committee, the focus is on going green.

VANOC is currently targeting a minimum of silver level LEED Commercial Interior certification for the new nerve centre of the Olympic effort, located in East Vancouver.

Some of the measures taken by the new tenants to get LEED certification included ensuring proper air quality during construction, HVAC controlled by zone and proximity lighting. The lights also automatically shut off in rooms that aren’t occupied. Accessibility is also addressed, with a large ramped entrance in the front of the building.

ROXANNE HOOPER

Terry Boulega (left) reviews plans for the automated heating system with assistant site supervisor Harry Chow.

The organizers were looking for a building that could house the eventual 1,200 employees and host partners needed to stage the Games, VANOC headquarters building manager Elaine Lester said.

Affordability, accessibility and proximity to transit were all criteria for both the location and design of the building. A shuttle system from a nearby SkyTrain station is in place, as are bicycle lockers for two-wheeled commuters.

The site also had to have adequate communication facilities and security.

All these factors also contribute to an attempt to have the building awarded with LEED Gold or Silver status.

Office space in downtown Vancouver is at a premium, and VANOC searched for months for an appropriate locale. The organization wanted a location inside Vancouver itself, though a downtown location was out of the question.

“It’s difficult to find a location with 200,000 square feet of space, and finding that downtown is virtually impossible,” Lester said.

VANOC found a building on the outskirts of the City of Vancouver, at 3585 Graveley St. Built in 1995, the building already had tenants, but the ground floor was empty, and ready to be remade into the headquarters for the Olympic organizing committee.

The same staff and facility will be used for the Paralympic games, held immediately after the Olympics, emphasizing the need for a fully accessible site.

“We worked within a very short period of time to get the renovations done. We had from January to the end of April. Our goal was to be able to move our entire team into the building,” she said.

Currently there are 250 employees working in the building, with more added periodically until 2009, when the staff will reach roughly 1,000 to 1,200 workers.

Vancouver isn’t the only location building up to the Olympics.

Across the ocean, construction has already begun on the centerpiece of the 2012 Olympics in London. A disused industrial area in Stratford, a rundown area in East London, will be converted into a park housing the 80,000 seat Olympic stadium, a velodrome, an aquatics centre, an athlete’s village and other venues.

The first stage of construction is removal of 52 electric pylons, followed by relocating the power lines underground by 2009.

Meanwhile, China is also hard at work on venues for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, including the 10,000 sq ft. National Stadium, which will seat 91,000 people, and the National Aquatic Centre, a 65,000 sq. foot structure that resembles a solid block of water.

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