The Pond Road Residence is the first green project for student housing in Ontario. The architectural typology approximates a U-shape surrounding an 8,000 s.f. courtyard through a four-storey central section bookended by two taller nine-storey elements. The building’s footprint combined with the College’s out-of-doors programme mutually informed the surrounding landscape design to reflect a modern interpretation of the traditional collegiate quadrangle. On the courtyard’s south-edge the interior floor treatment extends beyond the building into the landscaped space. A planting of Trembling Aspens along the east and west edges of the courtyard provide visual and acoustic barriers between the more private interior quarters and the more public space of the courtyard. 

This project realized opportunities for sustainable solutions through the following design initiatives: the in-slab heating and cooling uses the concrete structure as a heat sink, a high-performance curtain wall is fitted with sunshade devices, all mechanical exhausts are fitted for heat recovery, and the building has a planted green roof. The Pond Residence provides 440 beds distributed through adjoining two-bedroom suites that share a washroom and a small kitchen area.