綠色、社會和組團

Green, Social and Complex

憑著巨大且全面的責任心——工作地點在蒙特利爾的L'OEUF事務所的建筑師證明，實施環(huán)保型建筑體系不是金錢問題，而是決心問題。

乍一看本尼農莊毫無稀奇。驅車從旁經過，位于蒙特利爾內城邊緣的恩寵圣母區(qū)附近的住宅發(fā)展幾乎引不起任何注意。像這樣經歷了60年風雨的砌磚建筑在蒙特利爾到處都是。但是本尼農莊的意義遠不止視覺所見?！氨灸徂r莊是一個夢想?！盠'OEUF的建筑師丹尼爾·玻爾說——是他和他的共同創(chuàng)始伙伴馬克·波杜比烏克在過去15年中孜孜以求的夢想。最近，他們的第三個合作伙伴貝納德·奧利維爾，和生物氣候工程師馬丁·羅伊也全心致力于建設共同的愿景——這個愿景不僅為該團隊贏得了北美地區(qū)豪瑞獎金獎，也榮獲全球豪瑞獎銅獎。

靈感來自斯泰因和勒·柯布西耶

該團隊的故事從第二次世界大戰(zhàn)之后開始。1947年，在前本尼農莊的土地上為退伍軍人及其家人建起一個住宅群。這個住宅項目由政府資助，占地7.28hm2（約合18英畝），共有近400座公寓，是加拿大同類住宅項目中最大的一個。建筑師哈羅德·多蘭從與其同時代的進步思想家那里獲得靈感，將本尼農莊設計成一個勒·柯布西耶風格的花園城。3層的建筑分布在開闊的綠地上，戶外社交空間各式各樣，本尼農莊成了一個住宅公園。老兵們對這個綜合住宅區(qū)的生活質量，尤其是社區(qū)氛圍評價很高。他們大多數(shù)都在這里住了幾十年，在這里養(yǎng)兒育女。丹尼爾·玻爾說，“有一段時間本尼農莊的孩子很多，他們舉辦了自己的曲棍球聯(lián)賽！”

白板

到了1980年代后期，農莊的發(fā)展已經落伍過時。建筑外殼和基礎設施（機械、電氣和管道系統(tǒng)）不再符合現(xiàn)代標準。由于小區(qū)內原有居民或去世，或搬入養(yǎng)老院，空置的公寓越來越多。1990年代初，本尼農莊的業(yè)主CMHC（加拿大抵押貸款和住房公司）考慮將小區(qū)發(fā)展私有化。CMHC委托蒙特利爾建筑師研究這個問題；得到的回饋建議對本尼農莊來說是毀滅性的——這個過時的小區(qū)應該被徹底拆除和替換。推土機很快就開到現(xiàn)場，實際上，第一批樓已經被撞到了。如果不是受到突發(fā)的、聲勢浩大的強烈抗議，本尼農莊很可能就這樣被夷為平地了?！拔覀兏信d趣的不是重建本身，而是重建所代表的有趣環(huán)境下的社會生活?！钡つ釥栒f，他和他的L'OEUF同事馬克都強烈反對拆除計劃，“在我小時候，空閑的日子里我可以在早上離開家，晚上才回家。我的父母從來不知道 我一整天都在哪兒閑逛。如今的孩子再也不能擁有像我當初那樣的鄰里關系了，他們不能在城市里自由自在地到處活動。但是在本尼農莊，他們可以！這里的小孩子還可以在房屋之間的綠地上長大。”

拆遷抗議者獲得了極大的同情。媒體報道了這個故事。本尼農莊引發(fā)了關于如何處理舊建筑結構的討論。推土機離開了現(xiàn)場，政府把這里的土地和建筑物轉讓給另一個國有公司CLC（加拿大土地公司），該公司尋求替代拆除的方法，要求建筑師們?yōu)楸灸徂r莊的未來提出建設性建議，其中包括L'OEUF。

建筑師、理想主義者——活動家

2 綠化系統(tǒng)/Green systems

3 社區(qū)基礎設施/Community infrastructure

L'OEUF不是經典意義上的建筑事務所。該事務所有10名雇員，他們日常工作的很大一部分是準備社會和環(huán)境評估。這一點體現(xiàn)在L'OEUF為本尼農莊設計的項目中：L'OEUF建議保留大部分建筑物，對其進行大規(guī)模改造，并安裝環(huán)保型建筑系統(tǒng)?！拔覀兿Ｍ峁┑统杀?、高品質的住宅空間和綠色基礎設施，”丹尼爾解釋說。與此同時，制定并提出新的項目社會理念：全部管理應當由非營利組織掌握?！拔覀兪抢硐胫髁x者，”玻爾說：“通過本尼農莊，我們也成了政治活動家。我們知道，假如本尼農莊被私有化，那這些住宅單元最終只能為有錢人提供經濟實惠。但是，我們希望錢少的人也能擁有良好的生活環(huán)境。在我們的社會中，嚴重缺乏對經濟上不富裕的群體的尊重。我們要反抗這種現(xiàn)象！”

4 建筑組團/Building facilities

5 能源設施/Energy services

7 水處理設施/Water services

6 混合地熱和太陽能/Geothermal-solar

3個居住群體的3座建筑

L'OEUF的示范項目的核心是3座建筑的綜合效果，共包括187套住宅單元。每座建筑都是針對不同的居住群體設計。第一座建筑包括30個翻新單元和一個16套公寓的新廂房，供經濟困難的家庭居住。第二座是一座與整個住宅區(qū)完美融合的新建筑：一個擁有91個低成本單元的養(yǎng)老院。2006年夏天，這座養(yǎng)老院開放后才幾個月，就已經幾乎全部住滿了。第三座建筑是本尼農莊最早的建筑之一，它將被裝修一新，為首次購房者提供實惠的公寓。它包括30個翻新單元，和一個20多個房屋單元的新廂房。每座建筑分別由專為該項目設立的不同的非營利組織管理。3座建筑的共用基礎設施由另一個非營利組織——綠色能源本尼農莊 (GEBF)管理?！笆堑?，我們在最近幾年幫忙建立了許多公司，” 丹尼爾·玻爾笑著說，“在過去的兩年里，我處理的法律、社會和政治問題比建筑事務還多?！?/p>

為期30年的商業(yè)計劃

綠色能源本尼農莊的名稱說明了一切——因為L'OEUF及其合作者已經通過一項綜合行動計劃將本尼農莊改造成令人印象深刻的綠色基礎設施實驗室。在這些改造項目中，從舊建筑上拆下的磚、散熱器和木地板，經分類、清潔后，儲存起來供工地重新使用。3座建筑的基礎設施所需能源的75%是在工地現(xiàn)場由太陽能發(fā)熱板和出熱井產生。灰水（來自淋浴和浴池的廢水）將被過濾并用于沖洗廁所。這使得3座建筑每年的用水量減少了約670萬L，廢水產生量減少了1100萬L。該設計還包括綠色屋頂、自然通風、以及許多其他環(huán)保特性。一項為期30年的商業(yè)計劃表明，這些系統(tǒng)的成本將從長期節(jié)省中收回。

毫無新意？

單獨考慮L'OEUF項目的各個方面，這里幾乎沒有任何特別的創(chuàng)新：太陽能發(fā)電、地熱能、保水系統(tǒng)——這些都可以在別處找到，而且規(guī)模更大?！笆堑?，這些都已經做過幾百次，而且經過了嘗試和測試，”丹尼爾·玻爾說。本尼農莊的特別之處在于綠色基礎設施和社會住宅建筑的結合?！巴ㄟ^我們的項目，我們證明，在適度預算下，綠色基礎設施也是可行的！我們要促使綠色基礎設施成為長期的常態(tài)。”許多人現(xiàn)在仍然不信任綠色基礎設施的理念?！八麄冋J為綠色基礎設施會耗資巨大，且不會持續(xù)多久。這就是為什么我們迫切需要像本尼農莊這樣的項目。這些項目證明，綠色的確能在技術上和經濟上發(fā)揮作用！”

20年前，絕緣玻璃還是一項創(chuàng)新——“而如今，它已經成為正常標準；它不再屬于可持續(xù)建筑領域，而僅僅是普通建材。所以，它也必須結合其他我們在這里宣傳的東西。”

社會、綠色——和組團

據(jù)丹尼爾·玻爾稱，本尼農莊之所以成為創(chuàng)新項目，并不僅僅在于其能夠證明環(huán)保建筑不必昂貴：“創(chuàng)新之處在于，該項目創(chuàng)建了一個新的組織，其社會導向是創(chuàng)新的。在這里，年輕人與家中的老人住在一起。另一個創(chuàng)新是，我們要讓工業(yè)正視綠色基礎設施。我們不與子行業(yè)專家合作，因為我們負擔不起。創(chuàng)新是所有這些不同步驟的組合！”

但這種組合也帶來了很多問題?！皠右话l(fā)而牽全身！改變一個，其他一切都會隨之改變！”這就是為什么這個共約20座建筑的住宅群中只有3座與GEBF發(fā)生關聯(lián)。丹尼爾·玻爾說：“即使只有3座建筑，這個項目也已經太復雜了?！彼婕暗慕M織必須把每一分錢都花在刀刃上。丹尼爾介紹了但某些項目多次超出預算時所出現(xiàn)的問題。雖然這些費用不大，但足以打亂本項目敏感的財務結構。例如，工程師修改了太陽能集熱器的安裝方式，以承受更大的風載荷——“那要多花2萬美元啊！一個地方的成本額外增加，就意味著我們必須降低其他某些地方的成本?！?/p>

With enormous and extended commitment the architects of L'OEUF – "L'Office de l'éclectisme urbain et fonctionnel" – working in Montreal, prove that implementing environmentally adapted building systems is not a question of money but of determination.

No, at first glance Benny Farm is nothing spectacular at all. Driving by, you hardly even notice the residential development in the neighborhood of Notre-Dame-de-Grace on the edge of the inner city of Montreal. 60-year-old brick buildings like these are everywhere in Montreal. But Benny Farm is far more than what meets the eye. "Benny Farm is a dream," says Daniel Pearl, architect at L'OEUF – a dream to which he and co-founding partner Mark Poddubiuk have been committed for the past 15 years. More recently their third partner, Bernard Olivier, and bioclimatic engineer Martin Roy have also thrown themselves into building this shared vision – one that brought the team not only the Holcim Award Gold for the region North America but also the global Holcim Award Bronze.

Inspired by Clarence Stein and Le Corbusier

Te story of the dream begins after World War II. In 1947 a residential complex was built on the grounds of the former Benny Farm for war veterans and their families. With nearly 400 apartments on 18 acres, this government financed residential project was one of the largest of its kind in Canada. The architect, Harold Doran, drew inspiration from the progressive thinkers of his day and designed Benny Farm as a garden city in the style of Le Corbusier. He grouped the 3-story buildings around spacious green areas; Benny Farm became a residential park with a diverse range of outdoor social spaces. Te veterans valued the quality of life in the complex, especially the community feeling. Most of them remained for decades, raising their sons and daughters here. Daniel Pearl tells that "at one time there were so many children living at Benny Farm that they had their own hockey league!"

Tabula rasa

By the late 1980s the development had become old and outdated. The building envelopes and infrastructure (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems) were no longer up to modern standards. More and more apartments were being vacated as the residents either died or moved into seniors homes. Early in the 1990s the owner of Benny Farm, CMHC (Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation), considered privatizing the development. CMHC commissioned Montreal architects to study the issue; the recommendation came back tabula rasa for Benny Farm – the obsolete complex should be completely demolished and replaced. Bulldozers were soon on the site and in fact the first buildings were knocked down. Benny Farm would have been completely leveled –were it not for sudden, broad-based and loud protest against the demolition. "It was not the redevelopment itself that interested us, but what it stood for: social life in an interesting setting," says Daniel, who along with his colleague Mark at L'OEUF, was among the most vocal critics of the demolition plans. Daniel Pearl: "When I was a child, on my free days I would leave the house in the morning and come back in the evening. My parents never knew where I was floating around the whole day. Today children no longer have a relationship to their neighborhood like the one I had; they cannot move about freely in the city. But at Benny Farm they can! Here young people can still grow up in the green spaces between the houses."

The demolition protestors gained great sympathy. Te media covered the story; Benny Farm triggered discussion of how to deal with old building fabric. The bulldozers left the site, and the state transferred the land and buildings to another crown corporation, CLC (Canada Lands Corporation), which sought alternatives to demolition. Architects were asked to develop constructive proposals for the future of Benny Farm – among them L'OEUF.

Architects, idealists – activists

L'OEUF is not an architecture office in the classical sense. Preparing social and environmental assessments constitutes a large part of the everyday work of the ten employees. And this is reflected in the project that L'OEUF designed for Benny Farm: L'OEUF proposed keeping most of the buildings, renovating them extensively, and installing environmentally progressive building systems. "We wanted to provide low-cost, high-quality residential space with a green infrastructure," explains Daniel. At the same time, new social concepts for the project were being developed and proposed: The entire management should be in the hands of non-profit organizations. "We are idealists," says Pearl:

"And through Benny Farm we also be-came political activists. We knew that if Benny Farm were to be privatized the residential units would end up being affordable only for the wealthy. But we want people with less money also to have a good living environment. In our society there is an alarming lack of respect toward people who are financially not so well off. We wanted to fight against this!"

3 buildings for 3 occupant groups

The heart of L'OEUF's demonstration project is an ensemble of 3 buildings containing a total of 187 residential units. Each building is designed for a different group of occupants. The first building comprises 30 renovated units and a new wing of 16 apartments for financially challenged families. The second is a new building that is well integrated into the overall complex: a seniors home with 91 lowcost units. In the summer of 2006, just a few months after its opening, this building was already nearly fully occupied. The third building was one of the earliest at Benny Farm; it will be renovated to provide affordable condominiums for first-time buyers. It includes 30 renovated units and a new wing with 20 more housing units. Each building is managed by a different non-profit organization established specifically for the project. Te shared infrastructure for the 3 buildings is managed by a further non- profit organization – Green Energy Benny Farm (GEBF). "Yes, we helped establish many companies in recent years," laughs Daniel Pearl. "For the past 2 years I have been occupied much more with legal, social and political issues than with architectural ones."

30-year business plan

The name Green Energy Benny Farm says it all – because with a comprehensive action plan L'OEUF and its collaborators have made Benny Farm into an impressive laboratory for green infrastructure. In the renovation projects, bricks, radiators and wood flooring are being removed from the building, sorted, cleaned, stored, and reused on site. Seventy-five percent of the energy required for the infrastructure of the 3 buildings is produced on site – with solar thermal panels and geothermal wells. Graywater (wastewater from showers and baths) will be filtered and used for flushing toilets. This cuts water consumption in the 3 buildings by about 6.7 million liters a year – and cuts the amount of wastewater produced by about 11 million liters. Te design also includes green roofs, natural ventilation, and a great many other environmentally sensible features. A 30-year business plan shows that the costs for these systems will be amortized by the savings in the long run.

Nothing new?

Separately considering the individual aspects of L'OEUF's project, there is hardly anything especially innovative here: solar power, geothermal energy, water retention systems – these can all be found elsewhere, and at much grander scales. "Yes, each of these things has been done hundreds of times and has been tried and tested," says Daniel Pearl. The special thing about Benny Farm is the combination of green infrastructure and social residential construction. "With our project we show that green infrastructure is also feasible at a modest budget! We are helping to make green infrastructure become the norm in the long run." Many people still distrust the idea of green infrastructure. "Tey think it costs a fortune and it won't last. Tat's why we urgently need projects like Benny Farm. They prove that green does work – technically and economically!"

Twenty years ago insulating glass was considered innovative – "today it's stan-dard; it's no longer in the domain of sustainable construction, but simply of construction. And so it must be with other things too – things we are pro-moting here."

Social, green – and complex

According to Daniel Pearl, proving that environmentally sound construction does not have to be expensive is not the only thing that makes Benny

沒有志愿者就無法實現(xiàn)

在本尼農莊項目中，每1美元都是珍貴的。該項目主要由政府資助，然后將這些建筑的所有權轉讓給非營利組織。但既然花了政府的錢，項目就必須自己承擔。L'OEUF已經投入了很多工時，還沒有從中收到一分錢的回報?！霸谶^去幾年里，本尼農莊一直是困擾我們的一個難題。這個項目消耗了我們大量的精力，我們不得不忽略其他一些事情。如果沒有志愿者來進行這樣一個項目，那就一個項目也沒有。要實現(xiàn)這樣一個夢想，就需要全心全意勤懇敬業(yè)的人員——即使沒有得到任何從中獲得報酬的保證也在所不辭?！边@就是為什么某些社會變化會使這些項目的實現(xiàn)復雜化。丹尼爾·玻爾說：“以前，很多女性參與志愿工作。如今，大多數(shù)女性都有專職工作，參加社會項目的時間就少了?！痹诒卷椖恐校缘拇_發(fā)揮了杰出的作用，“但在這種情況下，往往是老一代女性?！?/p>

正常市場價格的一半

珍妮·梅奧就是這樣一位女性。這位活躍熱情的退休女士已經參與該項目多年。她是養(yǎng)老院的非營利管理機構Coop Chez Soi的董事會主席，也是GEBF的董事會成員?！拔野堰@兒的一切都保持得井井有條，”她一邊說，一邊迅速簽署支票、填寫賬簿。養(yǎng)老院的居住者年齡在65～94歲之間，其中2/3是女性。一半以上來自附近小區(qū)或有子女住在附近。要獲得入住資格，其收入不能超過規(guī)定的上限。標準一室老年公寓的費用是每月565美元，內含電費、取暖費和有線電視費——大約是正常市場價格的一半。

復雜的融資熱潮

即使本尼農莊的這些示范項目僅能勉強維持收支平衡，從經濟周期的角度來看，該項目的時間安排也不甚有利。1960年代以前，蒙特利爾一直是加拿大和美國的重要貨物分銷中心，因為輪船可以通過圣勞倫斯河把貨物運到這里。后來開鑿了一條運河，船只可以繞過蒙特利爾進入五大湖區(qū)，蒙特利爾就失去了特權地位。與此同時，講法語的魁北克人的獨立運動使各大公司倉皇失措。很多公司將總部遷往多倫多、卡爾加里或溫哥華。因此，直到千禧年之交，蒙特利爾內城的住宅價格一直在人們可以承受的范圍內。但是蒙特利爾生活的高質量重新吸引了人們的注意之后，住宅物業(yè)的需求量增長，租金大幅飆升。該市決定再次投資社會住房，并在近幾年中建造了5000套新公寓。隨后，社會住房的建設就興旺起來；承包商的工程太多，承包價格也隨之上漲。這就是第三個住房項目的改造尚未開始的原因。

長期斗爭

面向年輕家庭和機會區(qū)（Zone of opportunity，簡稱ZOO）的公寓樓早已人滿為患。當然，租戶特別喜歡實惠的條件和異常美麗的環(huán)境——但是很多租戶也對項目本身頗感興趣。丹尼爾·玻爾說：“他們看到了我們的措施所產生的影響，也認識到成本和能耗之間的聯(lián)系。他們是在生態(tài)問題大受重視的時代長大的。人們認識到，不能再任由情況像以前那樣繼續(xù)下去了。雖然我們這個星球在20年前不見得比10年前更好——但是，在這10年間，人們的思想發(fā)生了巨變?！癓'OEUF已經致力于本尼農莊15年，何時才能結束遙遙無期。該事務所以顧問身份監(jiān)督兩個項目，并直接負責4個項目（共264個單元）的建筑設計?！拔覀儾坏貌淮蛞粓龀志脩?zhàn)，” 丹尼爾·玻爾說?！币磺卸紶可婧苌睢㈠e綜復雜、并且勞動密集。我們做了一件完全反常的事情：從最底部開始。這種規(guī)模的項目通常是自上而下、從總概念到細節(jié)的順序來進行設計。我和馬克卻以另一種方式開始——從細節(jié)開始“這種方法的優(yōu)點是，許多精心開發(fā)的解決方案可以很容易地應用于其他項目。

拆遷繼續(xù)

“我們已經能夠實現(xiàn)我們設想中2/3的目標，”丹尼爾·玻爾說，“那已經很多了。”要保留所有建筑是不可能的。本尼農莊的另一座舊住宅樓，本來很容易納入本項目，但為了給醫(yī)療診所騰出空間，不久后就要被拆除，雖然小區(qū)內有足夠的空間?！罢f這句話的時候，丹尼爾微笑著，卻略顯傷心。但是L'OEUF的建筑師學會了妥協(xié)。這是他們的想法被認真對待的一個原因。在渥太華，政府正在啟動一個巨大的項目，據(jù)說會在其中利用本尼農莊的經驗。

保持綠色不容易

盡管愿意妥協(xié)，丹尼爾仍然堅信：“作為一名建筑師，你必須有你自己的價值觀； 你必須堅守你自己的人生信條！”因為L'OEUF不會讓自己妥協(xié)，他們堅持自己的方式，本尼農莊的成功有時會使他們經受考驗。“通常，綠色項目會處于高價位，今天我們還收到要約，請我們設計高價私人住宅。建造經濟適用房對我們來說很重要，但高價住宅樓理所當然也應有綠色基礎設施?！辈栒J真思考什么更重要：是不考慮社會經濟環(huán)境的純生態(tài)，還是環(huán)保與社會關注的結合。

“我們每年最多建一座住宅，”他說?！拔覀冞x擇客戶的條件非?？量?。他們必須非常綠色（環(huán)保）；必須愿意走我們的路。九成潛在客戶還沒到談傭金的階段就被我們淘汰了。”做到綠色（環(huán)保）并非易事——因為在社會上，正如在本尼農莊上一樣，一切都與其他事物緊密相關。丹尼爾·玻爾說：“蒙特利爾是一個獨特的城市——大小瞬息萬變。我們反對人們搬到郊區(qū)郊外的趨勢。這種趨勢有時會使我們陷入困境——例如，關于城市地鐵是否應該延伸到郊區(qū)的問題出現(xiàn)的時候。當然，我反對人們開車進市。但是如果我們現(xiàn)在把地鐵延伸到郊區(qū)，所有居住在更遠處的人都會受益。這只會加速城市蔓延?！?/p>

樂觀主義為基礎

8 普遍情況與本尼農莊的對比/Base case vs. Benny farm

9 成本收益/Cost-benefit

10 總平面/Site plan

L'OEUF和所有參與本尼農莊的其他人的夢想是否會實現(xiàn)，生態(tài)邏輯概念是否會發(fā)揮作用，功能性社會結構能否在這里恢復——這一切只有再過若干年才能知道。丹尼爾·玻爾說：“你現(xiàn)在可以對我們的項目要多熱情就多熱情，雖然我們不能保證一切都會和我們的想象一樣——但我相信一切都會變好！”精力充沛的合作者珍妮·梅奧哈哈大笑：“哦，丹尼爾總是這么樂觀！”她知道，如果沒有L'OEUF的努力，早在15年前，推土機就已經把本尼農莊的一切都結束了。（馬里烏斯·羅通艾格 文）Farm an innovative project: "The innovative thing is that the project has created a new organization; its social orientation is innovative. Here young families and elderly people live together. Another innovation is that we are confronting industry with green infrastructure. We are not working with subtrade specialists because we cannot afford to. Te innovation is the combination of all these various steps!"

But this combination also raises many problems. "When you change one thing somewhere, everything else changes too!" Tat's why only 3 core buildings –from a total of about 20 buildings in the complex – are connected to the GEBF. Daniel Pearl: "Even with just 3 buildings the project was almost too complicated." The organizations involved have to count every penny. Daniel describes problems that arose when certain items overstepped the budget many times. These costs were not big, but they were enough to upset the sensitive financial structure of the project. For example, the engineer revised the mounting of the solar collectors to withstand greater wind loads –"Tat cost 20,000 dollars more! Additional costs mean we have to cut costs somewhere else."

Impossible without volunteer work

In the Benny Farm project literally every dollar is precious. The project is financed chiefly by the state, which then passes ownership of the buildings to the non-profit organizations. But now that the government money is spent, the project must carry itself. L'OEUF has invested uncounted man-hours for which it has never seen a cent. "Benny Farm has been a dilemma for us again and again over the past years. The project has taken so much of our energy that we have had to neglect some other things. If you don't have volunteers to carry such a project, then you don't have a project. To realize such a dream, you need people who are fully committed – even without any guarantee of ever being paid for it." Tat's why certain social changes com-plicate the realization of such projects. Daniel Pearl: "Earlier, many women were engaged in volunteer work. Today most women have jobs and less time for social projects." Women indeed played an outstanding role in this project, "but in this case it was often women from an older generation."

Half the normal market price

Jeanne Mayo is such a woman. Te lively retiree has been engaged in the project for years. She is chair of the board of directors of Coop Chez Soi, the nonprofit organization that manages the seniors home, and she also sits on the board of the GEBF. "I keep everything here in order," she says while swiftly signing checks and filling out the books. Te occupants in the seniors residence are between 65 and 94 years old and two thirds are women. Over half come from the neighborhood or have children living nearby. To qualify to live in the building, one's income must not exceed a certain limit. Te seniors pay 565 dollars a month for a modest one-room apartment, including electricity, heating and cable television –that's roughly half the normal market price.

Boom complicates financing

Even if these demonstration projects at Benny Farm do just barely make ends meet, the timing of the project is some-what unfortunate from the point of view of economic cycles. Well into the 1960s Montreal was an important goods distribution hub for Canada and the USA because ships could bring goods here via the St. Lawrence River. Then a canal was opened that allowed ships to bypass Montreal and access the Great Lakes. Montreal lost its privileged position, and at the same time the independence movement of the French-speaking Québécois disconcerted the large companies. Many companies moved their head offices to Toronto, Calgary or Vancouver. Thus up until the turn of the millennium, residential space in the inner city of Montreal was available at affordable prices. But Montreal's high quality of life was then rediscovered, demand for residential properties grew, and rental rates exploded. The city decided to invest in social housing again and to build 5,000 new apartment units over the past few years. The construction of social housing then boomed; contractors had too much work and prices consequently rose. Tis is why the renovation of the third housing project has not yet begun.

A long battle

Te apartment building for young families, ZOO (Zone of opportunity) has been occupied for quite some time. Of course the tenants particularly like the affordable conditions and the unusually beautiful environment – but many are also interested in the project itself. Daniel Pearl: "They see what effects our actions have and they recognize the connection between costs and energy consumption. Tey grew up during a time in which ecology was an issue. People recognize that things cannot continue as they have been going. Te planet was not necessarily better off 20 years ago than it was 10 years ago – but the thinking of the people has changed during that time." L'OEUF has been working on Benny Farm already for 15 years – and an end of the engagement is nowhere in sight. The office is over-seeing two projects as a consultant and has been directly responsible for the architecture of four projects (264 units in all). "We've had to fight a long battle," says Daniel Pearl. "Everything has been very involved, complicated, and labor intensive. We did something completely atypical: We started at the very bottom. Projects of this scale are typically designed from the top down, from the general concept to the details. Mark and I began the other way – with the details." The advantage of this method is that many painstakingly developed solutions can be easily adapted for use in other projects.

The demolition goes on

"We have been able to realize about two thirds of what we wanted to," says Daniel Pearl, "and that's a lot." It was not possible to save all the buildings. Another old residential building at Benny Farm, which could have been easily integrated into the project, will be torn down soon to make room for a medical clinic, although "there is plenty of space available in the neighborhood." Daniel smiles when he says that, even if it maybe hurts a little. But the architects of L'OEUF have learned to make compromises. And that's one reason their ideas are taken seriously. In Ottawa the government is now starting a huge project that is supposed to take advantage of the experience gained at Benny Farm.

It's not easy being green

In spite of the readiness to compromise, Daniel remains convinced: "As an architect, you have to have your own values; you have to live by your own philosophy!" Because L'OEUF will not let themselves be corrupted, and because they insist on going their own way, the success with Benny Farm sometimes puts them to the test. "Usually green projects are in the upper price segment – and we get offers today to work on expensive private homes. Working on affordable housing is important to us, but of course highprice residential buildings should also have a green infrastructure." Here Pearl ponders what he thinks is more important: pure ecology with no consideration of the socio-economic environment – or the combination of environmental and social concerns.

"We build one house a year at the most," he says. "And we choose our clients very deliberately. They have to be very green; they have to want to go our way. Nine out of ten potential clients who come to us don't even come into question for a commission." Being green is not easy – because in society, as at Benny Farm, everything is tied in with everything else. Daniel Pearl: "Montreal is a unique city – large and small at once. We oppose the trend of people moving to the suburban outskirts. This puts us in a dilemma sometimes – for instance, when the question arose whether the city metro should be extended into the suburbs. Of course I am against people driving into the city by car. But if we extend the metro to the suburbs now, this benefits above all the people who live even further away. Tat only feeds urban sprawl."

Optimism as a foundation

Whether the dream of L'OEUF and everyone else involved in Benny Farm will ever be fulfilled, whether the eco-logical concepts will work, whether a functioning social structure can be regained here – all this will be known only after some years pass. Daniel Pearl: "You can be as enthusiastic as you want about our project right now, but we have no guarantee that it will all turn out as we envision – but I am secure it will all turn out well!" Jeanne Mayo, the energetic collaborator, laughs: "Oh, Daniel is always so optimistic!" And she knows that if L'OEUF weren't, the bulldozers would have finished their work at Benny Farm 15 years ago.(Text: Marius Leutenegger)