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təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre is a public facility designed for all ages and abilities, and for how communities engage in recreation today and into the future, with greater focus on community connection and wellness-based activities alongside more traditional sporting and fitness pursuits. Woven into the landscape with a dramatic unifying roof, the City of New Westminster’s largest capital project aims to be the heart and soul of the community and a place for all to connect. The building makes a strong civic statement while being sensitive to the natural environment and human-scale experience. Over two years, more than 3,000 people—including urban Indigenous, Host Nations, multicultural groups, and an accessibility committee—helped shape the concept through extensive engagement.
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təməsew̓txʷ is situated on the edge of a residential neighbourhood north of the Fraser River, a cultural and economic life source for Indigenous peoples for thousands of years. Located on the site of the former headwaters of Glenbrook Ravine, lost to development decades prior, the project takes a strong stance toward reconciliation with the natural character of the landscape. Prioritizing an east-west cardinal orientation over the colonial urban grid, the building sits along the natural topographic line of the former ravine, counter to the residential streets that surround it. The headwaters to the north have been reconnected with the remaining branch of the ravine to the south, establishing a major public green space and rain garden directly adjacent to the facility’s south plaza.
təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre is Canada’s first completed, all-electric facility to achieve the Canada Green Building Council’s Zero Carbon Building – Design certification, entirely eliminating building fossil fuel combustion and aiming for a 92% reduction in GHG emissions compared to its predecessor. Strategies include compact massing and form factor, optimized building orientation, program overlay synergies, heat recovery ventilators, pool separation for increased energy efficiency, and a rooftop PV array. It is the first in North America to use the InBlue gravity-fed filtration system, reducing energy consumption by 50% and improving air and water quality. It is also pursuing LEED v4 Gold certification, and was recognized by the Prix Versailles with a Special Prize in 2024.
Running the length of a city block, the centre blends into the landscape while creating an iconic civic expression. The stepped, modulated elevation achieves a human scale where the building touches the ground, while the strong black roof unifies diverse program elements into a singular form.
Inside, the double-height lobby is a vibrant community heart, featuring a local heavy timber glulam roof and skylight. Aquatic programming balances both wellness-focused and competition-level amenities. Under a folded plate timber and steel roof, the leisure pool suits all generations, combining 25m lap lanes, spray elements, and a lazy river. Above the 8-lane, 50-metre lap pool, light pours in through a sawtooth roof with integrated clerestories, formed by hybrid steel trusses and cross-laminated timber.
Canada’s first completed all-electric facility to receive the Canada Green Building Council’s Zero Carbon Building - Design certification, the project marks a major shift for a typology among the largest emitters of greenhouse gases.
Inclusive design is evidenced by generous circulation; high contrast signage with braille and tactile directories; universal washrooms with adult change tables and lifts; ramps and zero-entry conditions into the leisure and family hot pools; a transfer ledge in the adult hot pool; and a moveable floor in the 50m pool.
təməsew̓txʷ, meaning “Sea Otter House” in hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓, was gifted by a panel of urban Indigenous and local First Nations.
"The City of New Westminster is excited to open təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre. As an inclusive space for recreation and fitness, it reflects our commitment to well-being. Its sustainable design supports climate action. While others cancel or double recreation budgets, we’re opening Canada’s first Zero Carbon certified aquatic centre—the most accessible, inclusive complex we know how to build, and a new beating heart for our community.” —Mayor Patrick Johnstone, City of New Westminster
hcma architecture + design designs buildings, brands, and shared experiences that connect people. Because with collective strength, communities can work together to make a difference to the issues that matter.
Collective strength empowers our practice too. Driven by relentless curiosity, we work as one to solve complex problems from every angle. Advocating for inclusive, accessible design that embraces everyone, promotes biodiversity, and minimizes environmental impact.
We’re multi-skilled but driven by a shared purpose: to maximize positive impact. We achieve it by learning from others. By challenging ourselves. And by applying relentless curiosity to create the lasting change we all want to see in the world.
