North Oakville is a medical hub in Oakville. The project responded to its immediate environment while offering an efficient and welcoming plaza of medical services, podium garden and restaurant, tower of professional services and laboratories.
Our team focused on the flow of circulation, including the specific experience of the spaces from the entrance to exit. Harmonized with existing site conditions, the building is a distinct representation of the quality of the care that is offered at North Oakville Medical Centre.
In a collaborative design meeting with the client, a the preliminary stages, we understood that diverse programs need to fit in the building: OHIP medical services and private medical services, plus professional office and research labs, as well as other supporting services such as a bank, a café, and a restaurant. The result became a “plaza”.
On the ground and second floor the facility houses the medical services, as well as a pharmacy, urgent care, radiology, optometry, dental, physiotherapy, home healthcare and café; second floor with family practices and specialists where patients are coming with pre-booking. On top of this plaza, there is a podium complete with a skylight that allow light to penetrate into both of the floors.
In order to optimize the natural light penetration, we placed full height precast concrete panels at different angles with glass to create fins-like structure for the plaza. The tower is mostly curtain wall with metal fins and a band of limestones that define the geometry of the tower relative to the plaza.
The podium also separates the plaza and the five-storeys tower, which is more private for lab and administrative functions. This podium level is accessible from both the plaza and the tower. It was intended and designed as a social space with a garden and a restaurant which overlooks the view of the greenfield. The entrance of the restaurant, on the exterior façade, is located at the intersection of the roads.
