Nelson in the Park | Puya Khalili

The site sits on the highest point of the downtown core which makes it a significant location for a vertical landmark project. It also straddles the threshold between the historic west-end residential and retail district and the downtown business, arts and hospitality district. This project is the first of a series of towers that will come on line to form the “urban corridor” flanging Burrard and Alberni streets.

With its privileged site, Nelson celebrates the skyline with a coud-like lattice structure populating the atmosphere and vaporizing as it ascends skyward.

The cloud also serves as a nest for photovoltaic panels and becomes an infrastructure for devices which will deter the coastal winds and provide shade for its sky-bound swimmers. Finally as a celebratory marker in the skyline, the cloud is suffused with light by day and a lucidly luminous lantern by night.

The clean energy nest surrounding the rooftop garden

Nelson in the Park was a finalist in the future projects category of World Architecture Festival 2015

View from the Sky Garden

View from the Sky Pool

Because of its high elevation, the proposal has great potential to be one of the primary vertical-markers in the downtown core and within the dome skyline stipulated by the new tall building guidelines. Its adjacency to Nelson Park allows it to be become a rare entity of a building typology of its kind in the heart of the city – A Tower in the Park.

The Clean Energy Nest aims to reduce energy use, provide community access, and improve building systems performance through a design proposal that enhances the overall appearance of the building.

The location of the proposed appurtenance and its access to sun and wind aims to be a net benefit to the building’s residents as well as the community at large, both in terms of the site’s carbon footprint reduction as well as through pro- viding outdoor amenity space