The Vancouver British Columbia Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), located in Langley, earned a VRCA Silver Award for Dominion Fairmile Construction.
FEATURE | VRCA Awards
The Vancouver British Columbia Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), located in Langley, B.C., earned a VRCA Silver Award for Dominion Fairmile Construction.
“It really offered local trades the unique opportunity to highlight their ability to do such high-quality work,” said Richard Aarestad, project manager for Dominion.
The project has been called a B.C. showcase building as it houses some of B.C.’s finest craftsmanship.
“This is a premier project and the quality is unparalleled,” said Aarestad.
Wall joins are seamless, the paint used was above any specifications in effect today, exotic materials were imported for use, artisans work was installed in the building, and tradesmen had to reach workmanship that was “near perfect” to suit the demands of the owners, said Aarestad.
The temple, which is the first in B.C. and the seventh in Canada, is different from meeting houses or chapels, where Sunday worship is held.
It serves as a place where marriages, baptisms and other ceremonies that impact LDS families occur.
As a result, the temple is considered a sacred place and after its dedication, only LDS in good standing are allowed to enter.
Workmanship had to reflect the temple’s sanctity.
The temple design is by Abbarch Architecture (Vancouver) and GSBS of Salt Lake City.
It features a traditional staggered block formation with an illuminated 37-metre-tall Rheinzink-clad peak knifing through the squares and topped with a gold-plated angel.
The structure, estimated to cost $30 million and opened in April, sits on 4.8 hectares and encompasses 28,000 square feet.
While it has a modernistic cathedral look, the temple’s interior consists of two levels that are divided into rooms reserved for various functions, such as the sealing room where weddings are performed.
While Aarestad said it was a challenge getting trades interested in the demanding project, those that did opt in saw an opportunity to demonstrate the high-level of their crafts.
The real challenge was communicating to the trades just how high that standard was, as it had not been reached previously.
“And, we had to define it in a manner that they could build,” he said.
To ensure that a high caliber of workmanship was achieved, Dominion Fairmile made sure that the trades knew what they were opting into before bidding on contracts.
“The challenge was attempting to convey the quality required and get that shift in thinking,” said Aarestad.
Then, several mock-ups were used to assist in the visibility of what the end product should look like.
Throughout the project, there was stringent quality control to ensure the owners expectations were met, he said.
While tradesmen were expected to meet this high level of craftsmanship, artisans were also brought in to work on the projects.
The carpet is sculpted.
“There was an artist with scissors, who cut the rug (to form B.C.’s provincial flower, the dogwood),” said Blaine Jensen, media relations for the temple.
Also, stained glass by a Kelowna artist was used, as well as a large mural by a local artist.
Jensen said even the faceplates of the door handles feature evergreens and dogwoods intertwined, custom designed by artists. All these items had to be carefully installed by tradesmen.
The temple’s exterior cladding is gravity stacked Branco Siena granite from Brazil, done with the help of Salt Lake City-based Kepco+, a specialist in architectural cladding. Anchors are seated into the concrete exterior wall with insulation placed on top.
Then, the granite (starting with a thickness of five inches at the bottom and moving to three inches up top) is stacked brick-like and tied to the wall.
The interior stone, primarily on the floor, is cream Marfil, a type of marble, from Spain with Sahara Beige accent marble from Pakistan.
Woods used on the interior are grained Makore hardwood from Africa’s west Coast and maple. Chandeliers are Schonbek using Swarovski crystal from Austria.
While the temple may stand as a sacred place for members of the LDS, it also has a special significance to B.C.’s tradesmen, who worked over a three-year period to finish it. It shows the caliber of craftsmanship that challenged B.C. tradesmen and how they rose to meet that challenge, Aarestad said.
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