Pathway Non-Profit Housing

Pathway Nonprofit Housing

Pathway was formed in the 1980’s, by three congregations working together to provide affordable housing. Arbour Mill was constructed in the 1990’s.

Our addition fills in a step down in the original design that was meant to complement the adjacent neighbourhood. The neighbouring buildings are now higher residential towers.

The addition has three apartments per floor on two floors. The project’s aim was to provide additional accessible, affordable housing that was built with a more rapid method of construction.

The addition is built using Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) and is 7% more energy efficient than the Model National Energy Code for Buildings.

The use of wood in construction is increasing as a response to the climate crisis and with the focus on using materials with low embodied carbon.

Compared to concrete and steel, wood sequesters carbon. Wooden building materials store the carbon dioxide that was consumed during the growth of the trees, for the lifetime of the wooden building materials.

Mass timber is inherently fire resistant as the external layers of the timber chars and protects the core from fire for long periods. All the units have dimensions for barrier-free accessibility including the widths of doorways, bathrooms and heights of electrical devices. The two-bedroom units have accessible kitchens.

There is exterior insulation and the exterior is clad with corrugated galvalume steel siding attached to thermal clips. The windows are triple glazed fibreglass that match the dimensions of the existing windows.