The Bow (skyscraper)

The Bow
August 2011
General information
Type	Office
Location	Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Coordinates	51°02′52″N 114°03′44″W
Construction started	June 13, 2007
Estimated completion	2012
Cost	1.4 billion
Height
Roof	236 m (774 ft)
Technical details
Floor count	58 floors 53 office floors 2 retail floors 4 mechanical floors 3 sky gardens
Design and construction
Owner	H&R Reit
Main contractor	Ledcor
Architect	Foster and Partners, Zeidler Partnership Architects
Developer	Matthews Southwest
Structural engineer	Halcrow Yolles

The Bow is a 158,000-square-metre (1.7 million sq ft) office building currently under construction for the headquarters of EnCana Corporation and Cenovus Energy, which was spun off from Encana in late 2009. The skyscraper is being built in downtown Calgary, Alberta. The building will be the tallest office tower in Canada outside Toronto, a title currently held by the Suncor Energy Centre's West tower, also in Calgary. The Bow is also considered the start of redevelopment in Downtown East Village. It is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2012.

History

Future location of The Bow; the York Hotel will be incorporated in the building complex

Early project

The proposed highrise was announced in 2006 by EnCana Corporation, North America's second largest natural gas producer. Early designs suggested that the project would consist of a complex of towers (perhaps two or more) over two blocks. The tallest of these towers could be 60-stories tall, which would make it taller than the current tallest tower in Western Canada, the Suncor Energy Centre (also in Calgary). Conflicting reports suggested that it would be one single tower around 70 stories tall and possibly over 1,000 feet (300 m), making it the tallest building in Canada. Other sources suggested a two tower complex spanning the entire surface of two blocks, with a second tower of 40 to 50 storeys connected at sixth storey level over 6th Avenue. Official statements declare that the tower will be 58 stories, or 247 metres (810 ft) tall.

The management company in charge of the project is Texas-based Matthews Southwest, with architectural services being furnished by UK-based Foster and Partners & Zeidler Partnership Architects of Calgary.

The Bow announced

The project filed for development permit application is called The Bow, for its crescent shape and the view of the Bow River. On October 12, 2006, Foster and Partners revealed the first designs for the new tower.

The project will eventually house two separate companies both equally occupying the space. Encana Natural Gas with over 3,000 Calgary-based employees and Cenovus Energy's more than 3,600 Calgary based staff. Both companies are presently located at multiple sites throughout the downtown core. With an estimated 158,000-square-metre total office space, the complex is expected to be the city's largest. The towers will be Canada's tallest-built since Toronto's Brookfield Place, completed as Canada Trust Tower in 1990. Construction costs are estimated to reach $1.4 billion. Construction started in June 2007, and is expected to be completed by 2012. The tower was lowered down to 236 m due to shadowing concerns. When the tower is completed it will become the 149th tallest building in the world.

On February 9, 2007, EnCana sold The Bow office project assets to H&R Real Estate Investment Trust for $70 million, while signing a 25-year tenant lease agreement that would start after the project's completion in 2011.

In late June 2007, the company announced that the Portrait Gallery of Canada would not be moving from Ottawa into the Bow.

Construction

Groundbreaking took place on June 13, 2007, with work starting on both sides of 6th Avenue S between Centre Street and 1st Street E. Sixth Avenue is being excavated, after closure of the block (August 21, 2007) and the six level underground parkade will be constructed on a two block area, on both north and south side of 6th Avenue.

A neighbouring historic building - The York Hotel, that was built from 1929 through 1930 using the Edwardian Commercial Architectural style was demolished to make room for the new building. Because of the historical significance of the York Hotel it was important to save as much as reasonable to incorporate into the new building "The Bow". Between 70 to 80 per cent of the bricks have been saved and will be used to reconstruct two of the hotel’s exterior walls. The brown brick originally supplied by Clayburn Brick in Abbotsford and the cast-in-concrete friezes have been removed, numbered and graphed to show the original location the brick and friezes will be put on the new building in the original locations. The remainder of the building was demolished ahead of schedule by Calgary based demolition and environmental contactor Hazco. A large crane was used to lift an excavator on to the roof of the York and it was used to demolish the building floor by floor.

The concrete foundation was continuously poured over 36 hours on May 11 and 12, 2008, being the largest of its kind in Canada, and third largest in the world after the Howard Hughes Center in Los Angeles and the Sama Tower (Al Durrah Tower) in Dubai. Some 14,000 cubic metres (18,000 cu yd) of concrete filled the 3,000-square-metre (30,000 sq ft) foundation.

Erection of the above ground steel superstructure began in October 2008 with the installation of the first of two Favelle Favco heavy lift tower cranes.

Construction was briefly halted in December 2008 due to a $400 million shortage of financing needed to finish the job. The project continues to move forward, despite the unresolved financing issues. In April 2009, a secondary tower in the project, the 200,000-square-foot (19,000 m²) building planned for a block south of the main tower, was put on hold for at least two years. The main tower, however, is set to continue, having secured the remaining $475 million required for completion of the structure.

On July 8, 2010, the Bow surpassed Suncor Energy Centre as Calgary's highest building. The 215 metres (705 ft) tall Suncor Energy Centre was the highest building in Calgary since 1984. The addition of a steel girder, part of floors 55 to 57, raised the Bow tower to 218 metres (715 ft).

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  The construction involved building a caisson wall shoring system (July 2007)

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  Construction of 6 level underground parking under 6th Avenue in September 2008

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  View of the foundation of the main tower, October 2008

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  Construction above ground level in March 2009

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  Construction site in April 2009

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  Construction site in May 2009

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  Construction site in July 2009

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  Construction on the Bow seen from Crescent Heights in September 2009

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  The Bow, seen from St. Mary's Cemetery in May 2010

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  Construction in June 2010

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  Topped out

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  Construction in May 2011, from Tom Campbell's Hill in Bridgeland

Public art

Encana officially confirmed on June 16, 2008, that Jaume Plensa, an artist most famous for the Crown Fountain in Chicago, has been chosen to complete two major public art installations for the project. Designs of the artwork are yet to be unveiled.

Building details

• Height: 236 m (774 ft)
• 58 stories
  • 2 retail floors - 200,000 sq ft (19,000 m²)
  • 3 floors - sky gardens, spaced approximately every 18 floors (sky lobbies), served by express elevators
  • 53 office floors - 1,700,000 sq ft (158,000 m²)
  • 4 mechanical floors
  • In total over 84,000 square metres (900,000 sq ft) of glass
• Footprint: 190,000 ft² (17,700 m²)
• Parking: 1,400 parking stalls (6 level parkade, spanning two blocks on both sides of 6th Avenue)
• +15 skywalk connections to neighbouring buildings (Telus building, Suncor Energy Centre, Hyatt Regency Calgary)

Source: Encana Corporation

See also

• List of tallest buildings in Calgary

External links

• The Bow Website
• Live webcam of the construction of The Bow
• Another live webcam of the construction of The Bow - wider view, lower resolution