There’s housing, and then there’s student housing. While the build quality of new homes varies massively across the board, apartment buildings intended for Canada’s growing post-secondary population often feel notably cheaper or more haphazardly assembled than their market-rate counterparts. Not so at Montreal’s Technopôle Angus, where local architects ADHOC have added a sensitive, sustainable and affordable new residential complex to a fast-growing neighbourhood.

Situated adjacent to the striking Cité Angus II — a recently completed residential complex notable for its innovative indoor-outdoor circulation — the six-storey Rose des Vents student apartment building comprises 123 suites, which are divided between studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments, with loft-style suites taking advantage of the tall ceilings across the top floor and the ground level. At grade, a café also animates the public realm, along with student services provided in partnership with the developer, non-profit student lodging organization UTILE (Unité de travail pour l’implantation de logement étudiant).

The infusion of affordable student housing — which helps address a long-standing local shortfall —makes the project notable in itself, but the building also asserts a distinct architectural presence alongside its design-driven neighbours. Seamlessly integrated into the generous and pedestrian-oriented public realm that ties together the Technopôle Angus community, Rose des Vents is distinguished by its aluminum mesh outer building envelope. Serving as both a solar shield and a guardrail, the locally sourced aluminum skin lends the structure a visual identity and a sense of depth, creating a sense of visual rhythm amplified by the varied fenestration.

The aluminum scrim draws the eye, but the cladding behind it plays just as pivotal a role in maintaining the building’s low energy performance. The visually simple structure features efficient high-performance rigid insulation, which is applied continuously to the exterior of the building’s structure, eliminating the extensive thermal bridging that hampers the performance of interior insulation systems. By the same principle, the exterior aluminum and steel structure carefully wraps the building without introducing thermal bridging to the interior. While such insulation systems seldom result in visually dynamic architecture, the careful and creative integration of the aluminum outer skin fosters a surprisingly elegant presence.

As part of the Technopôle Angus complex, the Rose des Vents residence also forms part of the neighbourhood’s district energy loop. The technology facilitates energy exchange between nearby buildings, optimizing efficiency on a larger scale. According to the architects, the “building achieves a 35.5 per cent better energy performance compared to a reference building meeting the 2015 CNÉB standard and shows a 51.5 per cent reduction in GHG emissions.” (In addition, three green roofs top the building).

For ADHOC, a local firm recognized for its thoughtful additions of modest density into the urban fabric, Rose des Vents marks an impressive addition to the built portfolio, characterized by deft structural innovation within an economy of means.