shop

Located in the heart of downtown New Westminster, we wanted to create a project that would maintain the unique and charming character of the area but also reinvigorate it, address the social and economical issues that the community faced, as well as provide them with amenities they lacked. However, it was important for us to make this space accessible and inclusive for all groups within the community. 

Our project aims to catalyze a revitalization in the neighbourhood through the creation of a central marketplace/community hub that fosters community, innovation and entrepreneurship, that will, over time, spread through the downtown area as a patchwork of pop-up markets within the many under-utilized and forgotten spaces of the area and uplift the city. The name of this building is a reference to its versatile, open, and inviting spaces: the “shop”, an open atrium space that functions as a marketplace but also as a community event space; the “workshop” where visitors, craftsmen, artisans, and others can interact; and lastly, the classroom or “workshop space” where community members can learn new skills and trades.