Mississauga: six finalists for Condo competition

03/03/2006 - Builders Cityzen Development Group and Fernbrook Homes have announced the finalists of an international design competition they are hosting. The competition winners will design a new Mississauga condominium skyscraper that could reach 69 storeys into the sky. The tower, to be developed by Fernbrook Homes and Cityzen Development Group, will be a key part of Mississauga's efforts to transform its downtown. More than 600 architects submitted 92 designs. The contest saw architects from 70 countries pared down to six finalists who have been chosen will compete in a second phase of the competition. The winner will be announced in mid-March. The six finalists include two from Toronto, two from the United Kingdom and one each from the United States and Mexico: Yansong Ma (MAD office - United States) Sebastian Messer (Studio MWM - United Kingdom) Tarek El-Khatib (Zeidler Partnership Architects - Canada) Michel Rojkind (rojkind arquitectos - Messico) Roland Rom Colthoff (Quadrangle Architects Limited - Canada) Nicholas Boyarsky (Boyarsky Murphy Architects - United Kingdom) - Kenyon Jin of MAD architects of the United States said his firm's curvaceous design was inspired by feminine shapes. He said the "very intuitive" design will make for functional living space. - Sebastian Messer and his collaborators at Studio MWM of the United Kingdom submitted the multi-coloured, 69-storey design, which towered above the other five. It features floors filled with stores and restaurants, not just condos. "We came up with a sort of doughnut plan," Mr. Messer said. "So there's a great, dramatic open space up the middle of it. The whole building is wrapped in this twisting, elliptical screen." The screens shield residents and their patios from the elements -- especially the rain Mr. Messer sees so much of in the north of England -- and open up when they want to get some fresh air. Huge adjustable panels on the roof will keep the entire building lit from within by reflecting natural light into the open core, which spans the height of the building. - Gerald H. Stein of Zeidler Partnership Architects of Toronto designed a chrome, two-towered approach to the project. - Michel Rojkind of Mexico's rojkind arquitectos submitted a design that features an exoskeleton of metal and randomly shaped windows. Earth + Mark Tower ( in the pictures in this page ) Structure: a concrete structure composed of a central core and a double membrane makes it possible to reduce the section of columns and beams, making a 60 story building appear very light weight, agile and dynamic. Decks: the residual space in between the 2 membranes creates decked balconies with natural landscapes and ergonomically designed topographies, which enriches the living experience by an in-habitable in between. Flexibility: by having a central core and a structural façade the possibilities in the floor plans are endless, including double height units. Idea: our concept is based on the intertwining of modern cultures in a global time, linking the past and the future (2 membranes) unfolding like an organism, from the seed within. its free-flowing lines and expressive forms are sympathetic to the human body, mind, and spirit, and are rooted in a passion for life and nature that is expressed in this Iconic tower. Urban public space: the importance of creating an urban public plaza that soothes down from street level to a -3.00m creating a protected pedestrian environment away from the streets and cars that is ideal for commercial spaces. - Roland Rom Colthoff of Toronto's Quadrangle Architects Limited submitted a cylindrical design with jutting square terraces. - U.K. architect Nicholas Boyarsky of Boyarsky Murphy Architects proposed a design combining three rectangular towers that each feature random black, white and grey window schemes.