Aspen Daycare

Aspen is a suburban community on the west edge of Calgary. While a daycare is a necessary facility in this area, locating it in an area of large single-detached dwellings was controversial. Our solution to this problem was to design a building that was residential in scale and detailing. We chose a comfortable Prairie Style aesthetic that borrowed loosely from Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House in Chicago.

The building was designed for both preschool and before and after school care (BAS). The preschool was located on both the lower and upper levels, and the BAS on the main level. Administration was also accommodated on the upper level.

As daycares are commercial buildings, they require more parking spaces than any residential use. To maintain the sense of residential scale we located the parking lot to the south end of the lot. This is away from most of the existing residences, and it could be buffered and screened by both a strip of public land and plantings along the west property line. Similarly, we placed the playground behind both the principal and accessory building to avoid direct visibility from the street. This enhanced the safety of the children and protected the privacy of the neighbours.

While we did prepare construction documents, the client has not yet built this facility.

Architecture: Gravity Architecture
Operator: Heartland Agency