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Central Park House by Gensler

Gensler designs residential high-rise for British Columbia

Global architecture firm Gensler has released designs for Central Park House, a 41-storey high-rise in Burnaby, Canada, that will feature an off-centre glazed atrium halfway up that contains a swimming pool.

The tower is proposed for a site next to Central Park in Burnaby, which neighbours Vancouver in the wider Metro Vancouver area of British Columbia.

Exterior render of a high rise tower designed by Gensler for Canada
Central Park Tower will be 41 storeys tall

Called the Horizon Pavilion, this communal section of the building will jut out at one end and come in at the other, like a block being nudged out of a Jenga game.

A swimming pool surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glazing will sit in the side of the building that extends out, while an outdoor terrace will occupy the sheltered niche at the other.

Horizon Pavilion of Central Park House in Burnaby
A section called the Horizon Pavilion will feature a pool with a view

Gensler designed Central Park House, which will contain 355 residences, for Bosa Properties.

Each apartment or townhouse will come with its own "specially equipped den" designed to accommodate resident's work-from-home needs following the pandemic, the developer said. Entry to the building will be touchless.

Along with the pool, the 15,000-square-foot of amenities for residents will also include a gym and a lounge.

"The design is deeply refined and reimagines residential living unlike anywhere else in the surrounding area," said Gensler.

"The spaces offer a calmness and a retreat away from the modern world," added the practice.

Swimming pool render of high rise residential building planned for British Columbia
Central Park House will come with a residents' pool and gym

The interiors for Central Park House will be decorated in a palette of pale colours.

The project, which is Gensler's first residential tower in Canada, is due to complete in 2025.

The city of Vancouver has strict zoning laws that protect viewing corridors and prevent high rise buildings from blocking views of the mountains.

This, combined with Canada's low interest rates and the city's housing shortage has caused the property market in surrounding Metro Vancouver to boom. Burnaby is experiencing record house prices and an increasing number of tower proposals competing for the record of British Columbia's tallest skyscraper.

Interior render of Central Park House by Gensler
The high rise will contain 335 condo units

Gensler is the world's largest architecture firm, with 50 offices all around the world. The firm's founder Art Gensler passed away at the age of 85 earlier this year.

More upcoming high rise designs for British Columbia include a pair of residential skyscrapers designed by Heatherwick Studio for Vancouver and a hybrid wood tower designed by Perkins & Will.

The renders are by Binyan Studios and TMRW.

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