Main façade south. Photo credit: Stéphane Brügger The new La Pêche Town Hall, built on a promontory facing Route Principale, is a mass timber, highly energy-efficient building that will soon become the first Passive House-certified institutional building in Quebec. Rectangular in shape and located on an east-west axis, the building, by BGLA architecture + urban design, features a long façade which faces directly south onto the main road. This façade offers views of the hills of Gatineau Park from the inside, while also using natural solar gain to  serve as the building’s primary heating source. Main façade south. Photo credit: Stéphane Brügger The presence of wood is felt inside and outside the project. Eastern cedar cladding envelops all the façades, while the glulam and cross-laminated timber structure is exposed and highlighted in each of the interior spaces. The mechanical systems are fully integrated into the architectural features, leaving the wooden surfaces unobstructed. The presence of the wood is also felt as a result of the direct and indirect lighting strategies. The sloping roof sections, which form large CLT boxes, are revealed from the outside at night. These boxes span the entire depth of the building and provide a second level without any columns or obstacles. This strategy makes the most of the CLT material by making the most of its bidirectional mechanical capabilities. Central hall upper floor. Photo credit: Stéphane Brügger Passive solar principles guided the design of the complex to achieve an exceptional level of energy performance; mechanical heating and cooling uses only 15 per cent of the energy of a comparable building built to current standards—a savings of 85 per cent. Guided by the principles of passive solar architecture, the building’s shape is a simple rectangle with its long side oriented along an east-west axis. Directly to the south, a lightweight steel structure rests in front of the building and forms a colonnade, balcony, and openwork sunshade. Open plan south. Photo credit: Stéphane Brügger At the center of the floor area is a large through-hall that connects the staff entrance and parking on the north side and the public entrance and landscaping on the south side. This double-height hall and its sculptural staircase constitute the heart of the project, and provides access to the public spaces of City Hall and the various service counters. Reception. Photo credit: Stéphane Brügger Office spaces and open work areas are located on the south side and benefit from magnificent views while being bathed in natural light. Executive offices are located in the center of the floor area and benefit from secondary daylight due to the glass partitions that run along them. Meeting rooms and various service or storage spaces are located on the north side, where windows are less abundant. Balcony access. Photo credit: Parsell Technical sheet: Official project title: New town hall of La Pêche Location: La Pêche, Quebec Client:  City of La Pêche Architect: BGLA architecture + urban design Structural Engineer: Lateral Electromechanical engineer:  Pageau Morel General contractor: Ed Brunet Project end date:  November 2024 Surface area:  1472 m² Sustainability: Peel Passive HouseThe post La Pêche Town Hall to become first Passive House-certified institutional building in Quebec appeared first on Canadian Architect. #pêche #town #hall #become #first