Dockside Green
| Dates of completion | 2005 – in progress |
| Surface Area | 60 000 m² |
| Localization | Victoria, Canada (BC) |
| Project description | Urban renewal project in a suburban context : 12 buildings on a total surface of 150 000 m2 – 12 700 m2 of commercial and offices – 116 600 m2 of housing including 49 “affordable” housing units – 20 600 m2 of public spaces |
| Certification | LEED ND Platinum (for the whole project) and LEED NC Platinum (for some buildings) |
Context
Located at the southern part of the Pacific coast of Canada, on Vancouver Island, Victoria is the administrative capital of British Columbia. Dockside Green is likely one of the major projects of sustainable innovation in this region; the first LEED Platinum award in North America, this econeighborhood has slowly evolved towards a private-public partnership and has undergone different crises.
Stakeholders
The 3 successive developers: Windmill, VanCity and Bosa Developments;
The municipality of Victoria;
The civil society (groups of residents).
Sustainable Development
Dockside Green plans targeted high technical expectations since its very first phase. Then it obtained the highest LEED-ND Platinum score in North America. For example, this ambition meant to reduce by 53% the energy consumption and to diminish of 67% of potable water use (Dockside Green, 2008). In addition to fostering a compact form of urban growth according to European standards, the project wants to achieve a functional and social mix between housing units (rental and ownership accession), commercial, inherited industrial and tertiary activities. Dockside Green is also supposed to be a walkable neighborhood, supporting multimodal connectivity (bike lanes, public transportation especially) (Dockside Green Master Development agreement, 2005). Finally, the development presents an innovative sewage treatment process with the first on-site treatment plant of the Vancouver Island; the storm water is also funneled into a central bioswale and reused for the irrigation of semi-public green spaces.
EcoUrbanism Research Network 