A unique, hands-on construction approach is being used by Durham Region on phase two of the Clarington Police Complex.
“We do have full time site presence by our region and consulting team, which is a bit of a unique approach to construction,” said David Nagy, manager of design, construction and asset management, facilities management with Durham Region.
“Generally, you don’t have 100 per cent site representation, but in this instance we did. The idea is to help move construction along, provide timely responses to questions and ensure quality assurance. It’s a good model because it allows the contractor to have access to our staff when necessary.”
Buttcon Limited was awarded the contract for the $83 million project in early 2022. The site is located on the northwest corner of the intersection of Bloor Street and Maple Grove Road in Clarington, Ont.
Substantial performance on phase two is expected within the next month. Occupancy is scheduled for April 2024.
Parkin and RPL Architects in joint venture are working with the Region of Durham, Durham Regional Police Services and Buttcon to deliver the project.
Two new buildings will be added to the project in phase two, the Regional Support Centre (RSC) and Centre for Investigative Excellence (CFIE).
“We’re in the middle of construction right now,” Nagy said. “They’re progressing on the CFIE building. The structure is up and we’re in the process of doing some of the internal works now and trying to close in the building within the next month or so. The second building, which is the RSC…we’re in the phase of erecting the structural steel and we are approximately 30 per cent done on the steel erection.”
Work on phase two began at the end of March and construction commenced during the summer.
“Some of the early civil works were completed at that time as far as additional fill material that was imported to site and getting the site ready to receive the building,” said Nagy.
“In fall of 2022 they started working on the CFIE building with the foundation work which progressed into winter of 2022. In spring of 2023, the work started to happen on the RSC building…It’s a much larger footprint.”
The RSC building is two-storeys and about 12,260 square metres. It will contain offices and support areas, indoor parking, a seven-bay vehicle maintenance area and property and evidence warehouse.
“The building will employ a structural steel frame supporting concrete on metal deck for all upper levels and a metal deck on OWSJ roof structure,” states the Buttcon website.
“Cladding will comprise both masonry veneer and a metal panel system supported on insulated backup wall system.”
The CFIE building is a two-storey structure of approximately 4,654 square metres containing offices and support areas.
A concrete structure will support the cast-in-place concrete second floor and a structural steel frame will support the roof and penthouse, the website indicates. Cladding and wall systems will be similar to the RSC building.
The first phase of the project included the preparation of a master plan, the purchase of approximately 27 acres of land, site servicing and the construction and fit out of two buildings: the East Division Building and the Forensics Investigation Facility (FIF), both of which opened in early 2016.
Work on the project is being performed in phases to minimize disruptions to ongoing operations of the existing buildings. The scope includes altering of the FIF building to connect to the new CFIE building.
“There will be a link because the Centre for Investigative Excellence building is primarily an administrative building,” Nagy explained.
In addition to the 27-acre property, an additional five acres of land was acquired in 2018 in order to facilitate construction of the second phase of the project.
“We determined that in order to fit the program on the site comfortably, we needed to acquire some additional lands,” Nagy explained.
“It was a bit of a challenging site in the early stages just because of the fill requirements. Having the additional lands also helped with the constructability of the RSC building.”
The project is targeting LEED Silver with sustainable features such as ground heat exchangers, electric vehicle charging stations and window shading devices.
Both buildings will utilize a geothermal system for primary heating and cooling distributed by means of a VAV distribution system.
“In the region, we’re continuing to pursue opportunities of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and we are maximizing the use of measures in order to offset electric consumption,” said Nagy.
“We’re working towards trying to have this building go eventually to net-zero in the future to align with the region’s goals of zero GHG emissions by 2045.
“There will need to be additional measures taken in the upcoming year, so we’ve tried to make it as ready as possible for conversion to a net-zero facility in the future.”
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