The Yorkdale Shopping Centre’s 448,000 ft² east expansion, designed by MMC International Architects, required the demolition of the existing east parking deck, and construction of five levels of underground parking (including truck tunnel and loading docks), extension of the existing mall, and provision of a ground floor platform for the new Nordstrom store, complete with new entrance inviting patrons from the highway and the Yorkdale subway station.  The HIDI Group was tasked with providing mechanical and plumbing services which included HVAC, fire protection, natural gas services and building automation system. HRCx provided commissioning services for the new expansion.

Challenges

One of the challenges faced by the team was that the mall was still operational which required the rerouting of existing systems and services. By performing extensive site reviews the design team was able to identify and understand existing services and systems and develop a plan to execute with the least amount of disruption and delays to construction.

Innovation Factors

To keep with City of Toronto’s storm sewer requirements, the installation of a green roof and cistern tanks were used as a means to reduce rainwater entering the local storm sewer system, the water collected was then used for irrigation, garage wash and WC flush.

Sustainability Initiatives

As a way to lower environmental impact and create energy savings selected RTU modifications, Gas burner and Variable Frequency Drives (VFD) drives were installed.