Royal Roads University Sherman Jen Building

Location
Colwood, BC

The Sherman Jen Building revitalizes and adds to the Hatley Carriage House Mews—a federal heritage building with an interesting history—into a state of the art environmental science laboratory, teaching, and undergraduate hub, on Royal Roads University’s Colwood campus.

Built in 1912 as a horse stable on the Dunsmuir Estate, the building was later turned into a car garage, before being used by the Department of National Defense for rifle training, and then by the university as a conference centre.

Our renovation gives the building its fifth lease of life, an example of how adaptive reuse can preserve heritage while meeting today’s higher education needs—with little environmental impact.

Encouraging social connection

RRU had traditionally been a popular university for people seeking professional development through blended learning or short campus residencies. Through increasing demand, that focus has evolved.

Now hosting undergraduate programs where students live on campus full time, the university needed places for people to socialize between classes. The Sherman Jen Building offers that, providing a space to gather and share meals, in addition to working and studying in its modern research labs.

The building promotes a sense of community by encouraging casual connection in its ‘in-between’ spaces, while its staff and faculty bring a rhythm of daily life—eliminating static times when teaching activity wanes, and contributing to the buzz of a vibrant, social campus.

Conserving history and context

To pair educational innovation with contemporary design on this extraordinary heritage site, we preserved many of the building’s original features—it’s wooden frame, hollow clay tile structure, and wood windows, doors, and gable roofs—while adding a modern extension to the back.

The new addition compliments the heritage massing of the existing structure, with zinc cladding, curtain wall, and a visible glulam structure. Views out to the surrounding forest connect students to the outdoors and speak to the building’s sustainable design as an environmental science facility.

For the original building, wood serves a functional purpose, while highlighting its regional context. A whitewashed cedar clad feature stair and breakout areas create vibrancy and warmth, and we preserved the building’s Tudor Revival style exterior wood detailing, incorporating retrofit measures that mitigate fire and safety risks to meet the building code.

Guided by the Heron People Circle

Royal Roads University is located on the traditional lands of the Xwsepsum (Esquimalt) and Lekwungen (Songhees) peoples, which have been part of the fabric of the life of Indigenous communities long before Hatley Castle was built, and will be long into the future.

RRU were sensitive to this and met regularly with the Heron People Circle of Indigenous Knowledge Keepers to understand how this building could support Indigenous learners. Native artists contributed placemaking elements in the building courtyard entry, while student social spaces allow for diverse indigenous programming and welcoming ceremonies.

Location

The benefits of adaptive reuse

Adaptive reuse has helped Royal Roads University maintain the ecology and natural beauty of its Colwood campus by limiting the growth of new buildings, reducing the need for demolition and landfill, and reusing existing materials.

The new Sherman Jen Building saves 44 tonnes of carbon emissions annually compared to the original Mews—accounting for 3% of the University’s target to cut greenhouse gases by 33%.

The revitalization of an Edwardian working stable block into a state of the art environmental research facility helps retain the working heart of the University estate, while showcasing the possibilities of historic buildings being reused to house groundbreaking research for the future of our planet.