2nd Prize, Townshift: Semiahmoo Competition

Vertiplaza is a high-rise housing proposal that seeks to unify the typologies of the plaza and the tower. The project was awarded 2nd Prize in an international competition.

The community of Surrey is surrounded by an abundance of natural features: the North Shore Mountains to the north, Mount Baker and the Cascades to the southeast, the Straits of Georgia to the southwest. But the relatively low-rise development of the city hasn’t taken advantage of the presence of these landscapes. Our project seeks to both reorient the axial grid of Surrey toward these features (with the project “twisting” as it ascends) and to gain enough height that these views would become essential to the project.

The typology of the residential high rise has typically focused on maximizing FAR, with some small public space given back to the city at the ground floor. Here, we are interested in unifying the public and residential areas of the building, while giving the public an opportunity to take in the view. We also want to maximize the outdoor area for each unit.