Grand Beach Washrooms

Client: Manitoba Conservation, Parks and Natural Areas Branch
Location: Grand Beach, Manitoba
Size: 3,800sf
Stage: Completed 2010

About
Working with The Government of Manitoba and park officials, an architectural concept of ‘no building’ was the design's driving factor.  MMP decided that buildings should not dominate the beach, nor should a washroom building become the predominant element of the beach.

Because the building shadowed LEED through ‘the green building policy,’ it was determined to use a construction method that dates back to 5000 BC. Modernized through pneumatically compacting sand, gravel, clay, and stabilized through cement, rammed earth construction was used to minimize the environment's impact and tie itself into its context.

With rammed earth construction, on-site earth could be used as a material creating a building that will last indefinitely, is economically viable, and makes use of one of the best sustainable building materials, earth.

The building also includes many other strategies which result in a green building.  This includes natural lighting through skylights, high-efficiency lighting on sensors, water use reduction through ultra low-flow fittings, waterless urinals, and a green roof.  The building is also of rammed earth, burnished block, and concrete construction, non-combustible, durable, low maintenance, vandal resistant, and green building materials.