With 800 ft of waterfront along the St. Lawrence River and the Seaway, this 6.25-acre site holds a rich history of diverse uses including a Shipbuilding fort (French 1758-63, British during 1770s War of Independence), Upper Canada’s Largest Flour mill in the 1830s, a large bootlegging distillery in the 1860s, a submarine sonar chart company during WWII, and a well-known horse stable in the 1950-90s. Since then this site has slowly slipped into disrepair, and it is the project’s goal to revive the space and create community once more. The project team feels that the best way to preserve history and historical buildings is to give them a new and vibrant present and future, thus the tag line “Leading while Remembering”. The 1828 stone tower is the perfect icon for this revival.
The vision for the community is an Imaginarium: a place devoted to stimulating and cultivating the imagination toward scientific, artistic, commercial, recreational, and spiritual ends. In this spirit, the plans so far include a Marine Research Center, a Biomimicry-based Technology Incubator Hub, a zen/yoga/recharge space, biodynamic farming, bees, water, music, and open arms.
The project team’s LBC Biophilic Design Charrette for the Chart House Building generated exciting ideas that spread to the whole site, and the team realized it was only natural to pursue the Living Community Challenge.