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Supported by a valiant Toronto-based team in Lamb Development Corp and CORE Architects, 6th and Tenth is one of Calgary's most highly anticipated new residential projects. Rising in the Beltline, a neighbourhood in transition, the tower adopts an interior and exterior design that has come to personify the team involved. The contemporary contrasting glass aesthetic of CORE combined with Lamb's raw concrete living spaces creates an unmistakably urban atmosphere. As the tower quickly rises towards its ultimate height of 31 storeys, SkyriseCalgary sat down with Babak Eslahjou, Principal at CORE Architects, who shed some light on how the tower came to be and what it means for the city.
SkyriseCalgary: Your extensive architectural portfolio attracted the minds at Lamb Development; how did this working relationship begin?
Babak Eslahjou: The relationship with Brad Lamb started as colleagues on projects. We started with 29 Camden back in 1996 when we were working with David Wex of Urban Capital. We were the architects and Brad was the sales agent. From then on we started to work on a lot of projects together where he was the sales agent, we were the architects, and there was a client. Through the years he became more than just the agent — he also became the developer. He went from a colleague to the client. And we work very well with him.
SC: How does the design for 6th and Tenth align with Lamb's vision for the site?
BE: When he buys a lot he already has in his head some of the preliminary directions for views, layouts, ingress, and egress. He makes his own little sketch and that's our preliminary meeting. Then we pretty much know what he expects. He's very interested in what the building does to the neighbourhood and how it looks from afar and from up close, so a lot of our meetings are about the exterior facade, relationship to the street and so on. But because of his past, he's also very involved in the layout of the units. He really scrutinizes them over and over again because he knows firsthand what sells and what doesn't sell. So we go over the unit plans for a long time.
One of the first public meetings was actually very successful. People said, "we love it, we want to move there provided you don't change the design." The design was very well received and the whole thing was about bringing a different approach to residential buildings in Calgary. It is a tough market because the selling prices are not as high as Toronto. But the construction prices are higher. If the price of land was like Toronto's it would be a non-starter.
SC: 6th and Tenth responds to its surroundings with a fine dining restaurant, expansive forecourt, and public art defining the ground plane. How has the tower been designed to fit in with, or stand out from, its neighbours?
BE: When we respond to the neighbourhood we don't respond to the style of architecture because our style is what it is. People come to us because of the way our buildings look and the way we design them. If we went into a Victorian neighbourhood we wouldn't do Victorian architecture. We don't respond with style, we respond with the relationship of uses inside the building — the entrances, the massing, the impact of the height, where to break the building up — the kind of relational things we do with the neighbourhood. In this particular case we had a very interesting opportunity because we had a corner site that sort of had context to it but really doesn't. We had to have prominence with the building. So right off the bat, it was Brad's idea to have a very high podium. We don't really have a big use in the podium because the site is also small. By the time you put the parking entrance and the hydro vault and all that stuff, you're not left with a lot of retail. But we wanted to make that prominent retail — it has very high ceilings and will be very dramatic. It gives the appearance of a three-storey building at the front.
We also started to work with landscape architect O2 on how the facade of the podium relates with the sidewalk and everything we want to do in the private public space that's in front of the building. We were very involved with the City of Calgary in trying to get a desirable and rich public realm. That podium and what we're doing in front of it is what's anchoring our tower into the neighbourhood. It's the kind of building that helps inject life into a certain neighbourhood.
SC: In terms of design elements and techniques, have your experiences in Toronto informed the architecture of 6th and Tenth?
BE: We're primarily residential architects — 65% of our business is residential highrise and the other 35% is retail. That helps us in trying to understand how the bases are going to work. We decided a long time ago that this was all we were going to do. We didn't want to do hospitals, airports, or anything like that. We wanted to be residential experts working all over the world. So we're doing one thing all over the world as opposed to doing a lot of things in one town. We're taking that knowledge and know-how in architecture to other cities, including Dubai, and making it fit. Working in Calgary is not farfetched since it's the same country and same culture. But of course there are some minor details you have to take care of in terms of how people might want to live and have their suites. We like exporting our style to other places.
SC: There seems to be a shift in Canadian cities away from suburban living. Millennials are opting for walkable neighbourhoods that feature abundant amenities. What do you think the modern urban fabric of Calgary, particularly the Beltline community, is going to look like?
BE: Societies are moving towards modern buildings. We're living in the 21st century. There's a certain design and construction practice that allows us to respond to people's need for views and light. When you look at Victorian architecture and the windows are so small, it's because they didn't know how to make them bigger. It's not because they like them that way. If an architect from the Victorian era was working today, they would be using everything in their arsenal to give the kind of life people like. They like views, height, glass, and light, and we're certainly going that way in architecture.
As far as moving into areas like the Beltline or downtown, it's another thing that is catching on in Toronto and Canadian cities. Americans come up and admire our downtowns. They are amazed at how people live and work in the same spot because their downtown is dead after five o'clock. I think that's the wave of the future. I see cities as a tall collection of buildings with people walking and cycling everywhere. Cars have a big part to play, but rather than sitting in a car for an hour and a half every day, it's much better to do 20 or 30 minutes of cycling to work. That brings people closer to downtown. People are embracing a healthier lifestyle.
Highrises give access to location. We talk a lot about building mid-rise communities but Paris is mid-rise and Paris has a lot of issues because people can't afford to live there. If you build an eight-storey building in a prominent location, the dollar per square foot in that building is going to be much higher than if you build 40 storeys because it allows more people to have access to that node. People want to be in the centre, so you have to go high. It's more economical. Most European cities are mid-rise cities and prices are astronomical. People can't afford to live in the cities so young people live in the suburbs and that's where they're raising families. We're giving youth the access to downtown by building highrises.
With crews approaching structural completion of the tower, at which time interior finishings will begin to achieve Lamb's vision, the 2017 target delivery date is in sight. Led by a strong duo of city builders who have earned a reputation for pioneering sleek and stylish projects in Toronto, 6th and Tenth is quickly becoming a welcome addition to the constantly evolving Beltline community.
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| Related Companies: | Core Architects |
