First Peoples House
Victoria, BC
The Coast Salish Longhouse inspired First People’s House at the University of Victoria serves as a home away from home for students on campus. It is a safe and welcoming space to encourage the building of indigenous communities at the university, and to create a community for students to learn and share. To acknowledge the teachings of our ancestors, one must enter the House with a good mind and good heart.
The First Peoples House is a LEED® Gold certified building , meaning it emphasizes sustainable objectives like natural ventilation and highly efficient earth tube pre-heating/cooling systems.
The building uses minimal irrigation and is surrounded by a permaculture low maintenance Indigenous Garden. The angled planted roof reduces storm water runoff by creating a cascading waterfall effect into a stormwater retention pond.
One of the key unique features of this building are the curated cedar carvings handmade by Indigenous artists. The 4 sets of carvings in the Ceremonial Hall represent four different tribal areas as you move south to north. They are hand sandblasted red cedar, set into a cedar beam from an original design.
Awards
2011 Council of Educational Facilities Planners International Awards, Project of Distinction / New Construction
2010 Victoria Commercial Building Awards, Best Community – Institutional
2010 Western Red Cedar Association Architectural Design Award
2010 Canadian Wood Council Award, Use of Red Cedar
Client
University of Victoria
Year Completed
2010
Size
1196
Formline Team
Alfred Waugh, Kenneth Wong, Amanda Wallace
Consultants
Structural Engineers: Equilibrium Consulting
Mechanical Engineer: Hirshfield Williams Timmins
Electrical Engineer: Applied Engineering Solutions Ltd.
Civil Engineer: Stantec
Landscape Architect: Vaughn Landscape Planning & Design
Code Consultant: Pioneer Engineering Consultants Ltd