CASE STUDY

Initial Research by: Desiree Theriault

Edited by: Samantha Miller & Nicole Brekelmans

Case study compiled in 2017

 

 

Project: Poppy Plaza 

Type of Urban Strategy: Smart Cities 

Type of Project: River Walk / Memorial Landscape / Plaza 

Location: Calgary, Alberta 

Date Designed/Planned: 2013

Construction Completed:  2014

Designer: Stantec, Mac Boutin Architectural Collabrative

 

The Poppy Plaza is designed by Marc Boutin Architectural Collaborative and Stantec Consulting. The project is one of the first nodes and phases of the Landscape of Memory development alongside Memorial Drive. The 86,100 square-foot plaza aims to revitalize an abandoned green space and residual road found at the intersection between Memorial Drive and 10th Street Bridge. The project transforms the area by becoming a necessary link not only physically but also metaphorically. The Poppy Plaza provides a much-needed node and gateway between Calgary’s Downtown, Kensington commercial Markets and the Bow River; while simultaneously creating a dynamic, evocative, and thoughtful connection to the historic past of Canada.

 

The plaza contributes to Calgary’s urban realm by becoming a valuable, inclusive, and commemorative voice for Canada’s fallen soldiers, Canadian History, and Canadian Future. Using landscape architecture, materiality, and thoughtful framing – Poppy Plaza begins to catalyse opportunities for Calgarians to commemorate, engage, and connect (Arquitectes, 2017).