Vancouver's landmark VanDusen Botanical Gardens, created over 30 years ago, preserved an important oasis amidst increasing urbanization. Busby Perkins+Will, in conjunction with internationally renowned sustainable landscape designer Cornelia Hahn Oberlander, have been selected to provide a signature facility to highlight this oasis well into the future.

The new facility will be tailored to its stunning natural context, and ensure a harmonious balance between built and natural landscapes. Given VanDusen's spectacular setting, the relationship between the new building and its garden context will be key to the renewal project's success and longevity. Our design will ease the building gently into the site, seeking to create a harmonious dialogue between the facility and the garden and reflect not just the nature of the surroundings but the nature of the community as well. We are investigating the possibility of designing a facility that gradually emerges from its surrounding landscape, an option that will maximize integration, minimize intrusion, and offering energy savings through the landscape's natural insulation.

The final VanDusen Botanical Garden facility design must provide a strong, inviting heart for the garden. Possibilities for this core area include a flowing entry with surprising and inviting partial views, revealing the gardens slowly as one passes through the facility. The building will be a harmonious and fluid addition to the landscape.

This facility will be held to high environmental standards and will incorporate sustainable and green techniques and technologies at every opportunity. The provision of this renewed facility is a unique opportunity to create a sustainable signature facility for the VanDusen Botanical Garden, a focal point for the neighbourhood, and a renewed natural landmark within the city.