n Architecture Inc. is delighted to announce that we have won the 2018 People’s Choice Award for our Tim Horton’s Project on Main Street in Brampton. The Brampton Urban Design Awards celebrate achievements in design, architecture and landscape architecture. These awards, given out every two years, recognize the creativity and excellence of those who are working to fill Brampton with innovative, high-quality environments.
Moreover, the People’s Choice Award is presented to a project selected by the public from a group of outstanding projects developed or planned in 2017 or 2018 and nominated by an expert jury. Public polling for the 2018 People’s Choice Award closed on November 15th, 2019 and the winning project with the most votes was announced in December 2019.
Tim Horton’s Brampton | 320 Main Street North
Address: 320 Main Street North, Brampton, ON
Commissioned in: 2013
Brand: Tim Horton’s
Amenities: Tim Horton’s with Drive Thru
Scope of Work: Site Plan Design and Approval. Tim Horton’s Drive Thru Design. Building Permit and Interior Design not in scope
Status: Construction completed in 2017
Credits:
Design and Site Plan Approval by: n Architecture Inc.
Building Permit and Architectural General Reviews by : K Paul Architect Inc.
Located at the busy intersection of Main and Vodden Street, this new 2880 square feet standalone Tim Horton’s restaurant is set upon a site identified as a gateway to the historic Downtown and Central Area of the City of Brampton. It includes interior seating area, a drive thru that was strategically placed behind the restaurant to be screened by the building itself, and a beautiful Trellis patio area that increases the built form and can be enjoyed by the customers on warmer days.
Due to the importance of the site as the entrance to the city center, one of the key objectives was to break away from the typical Tim Horton’s prototype and specially design the exterior facades of the building to ensure the vision of giving this Tim Horton’s a timeless quality. Carefully placed at the corner of the intersection to border both streets, an increase in height and an intricate brick detailing of basket weave pattern intrigue the eye and gave the one-storey restaurant a prominent presence attracting both vehicular and pedestrian traffic, while the outdoor patio invites further human activities to the corner of Main and Vodden Street.
Furthermore, the unique building form incorporates a generous area of glazing on the main facades, providing transparency along the streets and allowing a great amount of natural light into the restaurant. The building elevation also cleverly incorporates the loading area to minimize its impact on the public realm while enhancing the restaurant’s frontage along Vodden Street.
Finally, red brick was chosen to harmonize the building with the surrounding architecture and its juxtaposition with Hardie Board in combination with the wood of the exterior patio remind both visitors and locals a cozy and welcoming feeling to the restaurant, which additionally reflects Tim Horton’s distinct values and trademark as a Canadian company.
Mahdieh (Madia) Ghassemi, who was a part of the team that won the award was one of the 176 people on board the Ukraine International Airlines plane that was shot down in Iran on January 8, 2020. Madia had been working at our firm since the last five years and she was one of the Most Senior Architects in our practice.
Born in Iran in 1981, Madia earned her master’s degree in 2004 from the Azad University of Tehran. After arriving in Canada, she secured her intern status in 2013 and passed the Architectural Exams (ExAC) in 2016. She became a licensed architect in Ontario the following year, and was an active participant in education programs and social activities.
She kept on taking on responsibilities, delivering and performing, so much so that by the time this accident happened she was managing a number of complex projects on her own. She went through a rigorous internship program to get her Architecture License. She was very driven, very committed, very bright—just a nice, warm individual.
We all miss her cheerful presence in our lives dearly and this building is a living testament of her contribution to the world of architecture.
