Accolades for Wilson Hall, Braley Health Sciences Centre

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McMaster’s newest buildings have been recognized as among the best in Hamilton.

L.R. Wilson Hall and the David Braley Health Sciences Centre were honoured at this year’s City of Hamilton Urban Design and Architecture Awards.

The architecture and construction team of the David Braley Health Sciences Centre received the Chief Planner Award for outstanding contribution to the City of Hamilton. This 192,000-square-foot LEED Gold certified facility is home to the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine’s Department of Family Medicine, the City of Hamilton’s Public Health Services, and McMaster Family Practice.

The Centre welcomes 54,000 patient visits each year and is home to 550 staff.

A dynamic addition to the downtown core, the architecture of David Braley Health Sciences Centre was recognized for lecture theatres with generous windows, terraces that overlook Hamilton’s escarpment and City Hall, and the creative use of stone, wood and planting features throughout.

The architecture and construction team of L.R. Wilson Hall for Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences received the Award of Merit for Landscapes, Public Spaces and Green Infrastructure. McMaster’s new home for the Liberal Arts was singled out for its’ ample natural light, flexible learning classroom and collaboration space, and its use of landscape for function and aesthetics. Building highlights include a 350-seat concert hall, research spaces and labs, Indigenous celebration space and medicinal garden, several courtyards, trees and landscapes.

“L.R. Wilson Hall is a great example of how teams across campus have collaborated to advance the mission of the University and facilitate excellence in teaching and learning. Thanks to the teams who contributed to the design and construction of this space, we can change the way learning and teaching happens in the liberal arts. This award is a well- deserved recognition of how great teamwork supports the University’s mission,” says Roger Couldrey, Vice President Administration.

This is the 7th iteration of the City of Hamilton’s Urban Design and Architecture Awards. Each submission was evaluated by a volunteer jury panel of design professionals and was based on the following criteria: excellence in overall site design; appropriateness of built form orientation, scale design, materiality and contextual integration; excellence in landscape architecture; energy efficiency, sustainability, adaptability or resiliency; quality of execution; innovation.

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