Taking the Peachland Wellness Centre, British Columbia, to net-zero energy

The Peachland Hub will be an enhanced facility, made by renovating and expanding the existing 50+ Activity Centre, that will house many of Peachland’s non-profit groups, servicing Peachlanders of all ages. The over-arching project is to upgrade the existing energy inefficient and under-utilized building into a vibrant net-zero energy landmark building on Peachland's beautiful Beach Avenue.
The Hub concept was born of necessity, as the Peachland Wellness Centre ("PWC"), the Peachland Food Bank, the Peachland Community Policing, and Peachland Lions groups started to look for new homes due to the pending demolition of their current homes to make way for the second tower of the Peachland Seniors Residences. These groups, together with the Peachland and District Retirement Society, Peachland Community Connects, Peachland Chamber of Commerce, Bat Education & Ecological Society, Peachland Lions, Peachland Rotary, and Peachland Ambassadors have formed a consortium to plan and fundraise for this project.
The land for the project, and the existing building, are the property of the District of Peachland. District Council, having given Support in Principle for the project in December 2021, passed a Resolution on April 19, 2022 authorizing PWC to proceed with the project to renovate and expand the existing 50+ Activity Centre.
The Hub project will expand on the existing 50+ Activity Centre, a 6,200 sq. ft. single storey building built in 1975 with two expansions in the subsequent decade. The existing building is extremely energy-inefficient and has design issues precluding its use to support multiple community service groups.
The facility offers one of the largest public spaces in Peachland. The main hall is used for many community purposes and its location in the centre of town – adjacent to other civic facilities such as the Community Centre, the Visitor Centre and Gallery makes it part of heart of Peachland’s cultural centre.
The renovations to the existing building will involve: energy efficiency and envelope upgrades; modernization of electrical, HVAC and kitchen facilities; upgrading some washrooms to current barrier free code while decommissioning others; installing solar panels; and re-purposing some spaces into multi-function spaces.
Expansion will involve adding 3,000 sq. ft. of required circulation and a new street face for the building (via a pre-function space/lobby), as well as a two-storey addition with 3,640 sq. ft. per floor providing two multi-purpose spaces and washrooms on the ground floor and office space on the upper floor. Solar panels will be included on the roof of the addition.
This study will advance the project from the concept stage with test layouts to the schematic design stage with a Class D cost estimate and net-zero energy analysis. The project intends to follow the Zero-Carbon Building Design Standard.
The key questions to be answered in the study are:
- will the roof structure of the existing building support an array of solar panels, and if not then can it cost effectively be strengthened to do so
- assess the feasibility and provide a cost estimate to increase insulation levels of existing building; this will include considerations and costs associated with the asbestos (vermiculite) removal from the existing walls
- viability of ground source vs air source heat pumps as the facility's HVAC system
- can the renovated facility achieve net-zero energy
The Hub will be a beacon for sustainable development in our community, providing a much needed home to multiple groups that provide critical community programs and services.