Construction begins on superstructure of tallest Canadian building west of Toronto
by Canadian Manufacturing.com Staff
Once completed, the Stantec Tower will reach 66 storeys, eclipsing any building in Calgary, Vancouver or Edmonton
A rendering of the 250-metre (820-foot) Stantec Tower. PHOTO: WAM Development
EDMONTON—The relatively demure Edmonton skyline is about to get an enormous new addition.
ICE District Properties announced Aug. 4 that construction crews have begun raising the superstructure of a new skyscraper that will soon become the city’s tallest building—as well as the tallest building in Canada west of Toronto.
With foundation work complete on the 66-storey Stantec Tower, developers are hoping to complete the 250-metre (820-foot) skyscraper by the fall of 2019. Once finished, engineering and construction firm Stantec Inc. will occupy a full 19 floors, consolidating 1,700 Edmonton-area staff in one central location.
“We are confident this building will not only serve as an ideal workplace for our employees, but will also set a new standard for the design and development of buildings in Edmonton and beyond,” Bob Gomes, Stantec’s president CEO, said.
In addition to housing one of the city’s largest businesses, the tower will have another nine storeys of office space and 481 residential units. It will eclipse any tower in Calgary, as well as in densely-packed Vancouver, which maintains relatively strict building restrictions that limit the height of skyscrapers to protect views of the North Shore mountains and surrounding water.
The Stantec Tower is one component of the ICE District development, a mixed-use building area around the Edmonton’s Roger’s Place. It is being developed by a Katz Group and WAM Development Group joint venture, and unsurprisingly, designed and engineered by Stantec. Focusing on efficiency, the new skyscraper is targeting a LEED Gold certification when complete. Among other features, it will incorporate high-efficiency heating and cooling systems, high thermal insulation and a rain harvesting system.
While the companies hope to complete the entire building by 2019, they anticipate opening the office space in the fall of 2018.
