MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects

Emerald Hills Leisure Centre

Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil

EMERALD HILLS LEISURE CENTRE

MJMA + MTa

ARCHITECTS
MJMA, MTa

MANUFACTURERS
American Olean, KBE, Spectrum Aquatics

LOCATION
Sherwood Park, Canada

CATEGORY
Swimming Pool, Community Center

AREA
57000 m²

PHOTOGRAPHS
Shai Gil

MECHANICAL
Smith + Andersen

ELECTRICAL
Smith + Andersen

CIVIL
ISL Engineers

STRUCTURAL
Read Jones Christoffersen

M TA TEAM
Tom Tittemore, Bill Vance

MJMA TEAM
Ted Watson, Vitkors Jaunkalns, Andrew Filarski, Robert Allen, David Miller, Cathy McMahon, Tarisha Dolyniuk, Andrew Bramm, Jason Wah, Kenyon Jin, Katya Tunon-Marshall, Timothy Belanger, Amanda Chong

Text description provided by architect.

The Emerald Hills Leisure Centre caters specifically to leisure, therapeutic, and learn-to-swim programming.

The facility is co-joined to an existing Catholic High School with an operating partnership to create a shared ‘Community Centre’ as well as aquatic programming for students.

Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil
Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil

The aquatic hall and lobby are conceived of as a singular sculpted volume that defines the new social hub of the community.

The existing gymnasium, auditorium, and classrooms are shared with the aquatic facility to create a vibrant evening community center for the greater community.

Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil
Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil

The County maximizes utilization of both the pool and the school with joint use agreements with opportunities to connect for rehabilitation and therapy, given the proximity to a new hospital complex.

The aquatic center includes a 6-lane 25-metre lap pool, adjustable floor therapy pool, tot pool, whirl pool, and steam room.

Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil
Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil

The facility features a fully transparent all-gender universal change room accessible and inclusive for all. An upper level ‘shell space’ is provided above the change rooms as a future fitness center.

Formally the building is a simple and affordable ‘big box’ volume designed to have a sense of lightness and dynamic movement. The building’s trapezoidal plan is created by maximizing the buildable footprint to the site setbacks.

Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil
Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil

The mono-slope roof drains diagonally to provide maximum natatorium volume, and clerestory daylighting with a low height to the rear courtyard.

White triangulated standing seam panels float above a black pre cast base and incorporate four triangulated glazing locations. Interior acoustic surfaces and ceiling are triangulated above a black hexagonally tiled base to create a serene, unified and high-quality sonic environment.

Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil
Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil

Responding to the Northern Alberta climate the building’s triple glazed openings are minimized to four strategic locations and shaped to maximize their effect.

The amount of glazing is specifically located low at deck level for views to landscaped areas to the west and located high on the front elevation to bounce light off the ceiling structure — resulting in maximum low-glare lighting distribution.

Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil
Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil
Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
© Shai Gil


Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
Site Plan
Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
Ground Floor Plan

MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects
T +1 416 5936796 F +1 416 5930212
MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects
425 Adelaide St W Level 6, Toronto, ON M5V 3C1, Canada