Fathom, in partnership with Moriyama & Teshima Architects and Barrie & Langille Architects, led the site planning and landscape design for the Nova Scotia Community College’s (NSCC) new $160M waterfront campus in downtown Sydney. The project follows Fathom’s 2019 NSCC Sydney Campus Relocation Plan developed for the Province of Nova Scotia which balances goals of strengthening student enrolment, revitalizing downtown Sydney, promoting strong tourism, and building an energy efficient and sustainable building and site.

The project stitches the downtown back together in this important location to act as a gateway to the city and provide new connections to the harbour. Fathom’s work includes the detailed design of all aspects of the outdoor private and public-realm on the 10-acre site including streetscapes, promenades, plazas, boardwalks, outdoor classrooms, playgrounds, performance areas, all designed as an interconnected series of high-quality and universally accessible spaces. Each space tells stories of the people, industrial heritage, and natural landscapes of Cape Breton Island through material choice and integrated interpretive messaging.

The design addresses future sea-level rise by raising the waterfront and buildings to higher elevations and other shoreline protection measures. It also demonstrates best practices in sustainable Low Impact Development, implementing passive stormwater management through stormwater tree soil cells, bioswales, and constructed wetlands. The project also involves the cleanup of the polluted industrial waterfront through the management of heavily contaminated soils on site. The project is currently under construction with completion targeted for 2024 and is on track to achieve the NSCC’s goal of LEED Gold certification.

Status

Ongoing - Anticipated Fall 2024

Our role

Landscape Architecture

Client

NSCC

Location

Sydney, Nova Scotia