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Recipient of 2019 Wood Design Awards in Interior Beauty Design

Ts’kw’aylaxw Cultural + Community Health Centre

The completed centre at dusk, its facade and angled metal roof set against the dry hills of the Pavilion Mountain.

Ts’kw’aylaxw Cultural + Community Health Centre for the Ts’kw’aylaxw (pronounced tisk-why-lah) First Nation (or Pavilion Indian Band is located between Lillooet and Cache Creek in the South Central Interior of BC. Completed in 2018, this community centre features design based on Passive House principles and was built in collaboration with BC Passive House. All exterior and structural elements are pre-fabricated in the BC Passive House factory and were assembled on site. The design of this facility was driven by the community’s comprehensive vision of healing physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually to maintain peace and dignity. Designed according to a holistic wellness model, it aims to not only provide primary care services to the community but also to act as a hub for community wellness and nurture physical and spiritual potentials. At the heart of this facility is a multi-purpose community gathering space which hosts cultural activities, weddings, and funerals, when it is not used as a gymnasium. Adjacent this space is a commercial kitchen and related services. The Ts’kw’aylaxw Cultural and Community Health Centre has a total floor area of 18,800 sf. and it serves a host of critical uses including: Children’s Counselling, Social Workers, NNADAP, Education, Exam rooms, Home Care, Traditional Healing, and day to day activities such as basketball, volleyball, badminton, and weight lifting for the community’s youth.


Photos: Ema Peter Photography · Builder: Mierau Contractors

Community
Ts’kw’aylaxw First Nation
Location
https://maps.app.goo.gl/2qGHV7auFuAunWQz8
Type
Health, Cultural + community
Status
Complete
Completed
2018
Client
Client: Ts'kw'aylaxw First Nation
  • Architectural floor plans and building sections for the centre.

    Drawing

  • A cultural gathering room dressed with vertical local wood, with a curved timber bench and stone floor set around a central boulder. Ready for smudging.
  • The glazed stair tower and cantilevered roof blade lit from within at dusk.
  • Children playing basketball in the gymnasium beneath exposed glulam beams and NLT panels, with a round window looking out.
  • The upper entrance canopy and its curved timber soffit, with the surrounding hillside beyond mark a casual seathing area.
  • A full-height glazed wall revealing the locally sourced hemlock-lined stair, with a person crossing the lobby.
  • The locally sourced hemlock-lined main stair, its folded ceiling and slatted screen filtering daylight.
  • The centre's main elevation in daylight, signage above the entrance and the hillside rising behind.

Consultation

Start with a conversation.

Tell us about the community, the site and what the building needs to do. We will come back to you about how a consultation could work.