Defined by sun floods, through views, and candy-coloured stairwells, the six-storey Passive House Skeena residence provides 220 bedrooms and amenity space to UBC Okanagan students. Completing an ensemble of residence buildings encircling the Commons Field, the project focuses on student life and support services while synching up with the existing campus. This building is so energy efficient that much of the building's heat is supplied by students’ body heat.
On the first level, Skeena Residence has a large laundry room in close conversation (a glass wall separates them) with adjacent lounge and social spaces. This relationship between the two spaces encourages chance run-ins, happenstance gathering, and makes doing laundry more fun. Each of the upper five floors contains a house lounge, with views of the surrounding mountains, a kitchenette, dining table, and couches to create hominess. In short, the design of the building supports community life.
All photos by Andrew Latreille
