Borden Park’s chemical-free pool claims architectural design award
Firm gh3* lauded for its research and the use of new and old technology
An Edmonton swimming pool has won a national architectural award of excellence for its design as a chemical-free pool, a first of its kind in Canada.
On Tuesday, it was announced the Borden Park natural swimming pool, located in the city’s northeast, won the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada’s Innovation in Architecture award. It recognizes exceptional architectural innovation in areas including research and development and applied use of new technology, among others.
The Borden Park pool is designed with filtration technology that was developed in order to clean the water through stone, gravel, sand and botanical filtering processes. The pool also includes a seasonal pavilion and pool area for 400 swimmers.
The building houses universal change rooms, showers, washrooms, staff areas and water-filtration mechanisms.
The challenge for architectural firm gh3* was to create a largescale pool with high-quality water control, while also achieving an environmentally healthy and natural filtration process.
Water is filtered two ways, through either a biological-mechanical system or the constructed wetland and gravel filter and in situ with zooplankton. It is an unsterilized and chemical- and disinfectant-free filtering system.
The three-person jury said the pool was a “clear example in which technical innovation is serving the fabrication of an architecture that ultimately transcends it.
“The strength of the simple, yet powerful architecture is beautifully integrated with the biological systems that provide healthy user experiences, both physically and psychologically.”