In addition to chairing the Low Energy Homes II Session, Mark Lawton presents a paper during the Building Retrofit/Whole Building Session.  The topic of the presentation is Hotel Georgia, a Vancouver landmark. The 12-story building opened in 1927 and since then has hosted royalty and scoundrels—and a host of famous entertainers.  The hotel is registered as a protected heritage property by the City of Vancouver.  It is currently undergoing a major renovation with the intent of reopening as a five-star hotel.

The concrete-framed building is clad with a brick veneer and precast elements over backup walls of laid-up terra-cotta blocks.  The brick is supported on shelf angles and tied back with irregularly spaced strap anchors (in a severe seismic zone!).  Most windows were wood-framed, double-hung units.

The team overseeing the renovation of the building envelope had to consider many issues, including:

• Providing seismic competence
• Addressing brick displacement caused by corrosion jacking at shelf angles
• Providing thermal and acoustic comfort appropriate for a five-star hotel
• Providing appropriate protection against water penetration in Vancouver’s maritime climate
• Maintaining heritage character and fabric
• Controlling costs

Key features of the renewal design included:

• Installation of structural framing inside the existing walls and tying the brick through the terra-cotta block to the frame
• Replacement of about a quarter of the shelf angles without wholesale brick removal
• Use of spray-applied urethane foam to the inside of the existing wall to control the flow of heat, air, vapor, and moisture
• Replacement of guest room windows with wood-framed, double-glazed, single-hung operators
• Restoration of lower floor wood-framed windows

This paper highlights how building science and logic drove design decisions.  Click here to download a copy.