EDMONTON, AB
Gibbard Block Rehabilitation & Repurposing
The Gibbard Block Building was originally constructed in 1912 for Thomas William Gibbard and his partners to house apartment units and offices.
After changing hands several times over the next handful of decades, the block became home to La Bohème Restaurant, a staple in the Edmonton dining scene for many years before closing in the mid-2010s.
The building is a designated historic resource with designated elements, including a pressed tin ceiling at the main floor level, interior light wells and brick façade.
Images courtesy Next Architecture.
New ownership sought to restore the building to attract new investment in the neighbourhood. The second and third floor apartment units were converted to open office areas while the main floor was to house new restaurants.
PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS
CLIENT
Sparrow Capital
ARCHITECT
Next Architecture
OUR ROLE(S)
Structural Engineering Consultant
SIZE
15,000 ft²
BUDGET
$2.7 M
MARKET (OFFICE)
EDMONTON
KEY CONSIDERATIONS
Challenge One
Major structural upgrades for repurposing and improvement of the building's lateral stability.
Solution One
The old building structure, which was over 100 years old, and the vision of the project team for repurposing required significant structural upgrades and removal of some of the major load-bearing elements to create open space.
In addition to strengthening the existing structure where possible, new heavy timber frames were carefully installed without damaging the existing designated historic elements. New mass timber shear walls were also incorporated into the new elevator shaft to improve the structure lateral-force resisting system.
GALLERY
