Q & A
General
Eligibility & Anonymity
- Is this competition open to participants internationally?
- Are there any geographic or professional restrictions on who can enter the competition?
- I have my credentials in front of the City of Vancouver right now for work commencing in January of 2012. Am I still eligible to participate in this competition?
- Am I still eligible to enter the competition if I am employed by one of the jury members or the City of Vancouver?
- With regards to maintaining anonymity, how is authorship of the work to be maintained for the submissions?
Registration and Deadline
Details, Study area & Submission requirements
- Am I able to rework/repurpose some parcels adjacent to the viaducts, like the Andy Livingstone Park (e.g, relocating the soccer field), or the electric substation at Quebec street?
- What you call the "southern boundary of Pacific Boulevard", is it its junction with Quebec street?
- Can a more comprehensive text, longer than the specified word count, appear on the panels?
- Should the submission panel be oriented vertically or horizontally?
- I am preparing the A1 posters and wanted to ask, can I write project name and my name on the poster?
- Should the scale be indicated on renderings or just on structural drawings and sections?
- Can I submit a design scheme that I’ve already developed?
- Can I enter more than one scheme?
- Can one (1) board be submitted instead of two?
- What stage of design development do you expect or require for a submission?
- Is the project to be built off of the sketch up model provided in the reference section? Or can any area be used to build on?
Evaluation Criteria
Resources
General
Q. Will the winner entries be built or lead to a commission?
A. There should be no expectation that a winning submission would result in a commission. However, it is our hope that the best and most applicable ideas generated through the competition will enter into the larger dialogue for the future through the Viaduct and Eastern Core Study.
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Eligibility & Anonymity
Q. Is this competition open to participants internationally?
A. This is an open international ideas competition and is not restricted to Canadian participants.
Q. Are there any geographic or professional restrictions on who can enter the competition?
A. re:CONNECT is an open, international ideas competition that invites participation from any individual or team. The only exceptions to this are employees of the City of Vancouver, the competition’s lead sponsor, or consultants working for the City on projects directly related to the study areas. There are no professional requirements to participate.
Q. I have my credentials in front of the City of Vancouver right now for work commencing in January of 2012. Am I still eligible to participate in this competition?
A. Yes. As you are not currently employed by the City of Vancouver, you are welcome to participate in the ideas competition.
Q. Am I still eligible to enter the competition if I am employed by one of the jury members or the City of Vancouver?
A. Employees of the sponsor, the City of Vancouver, are not eligible to enter. However, as this is an ideas competition with no resulting commission, the criteria for eligibility are less stringent and may be extended to those under the employ of the jury. That being said, the following general rules should be observed: autonomy must be maintained between the entrant and his/her office; office resources are not to be used; all competition work must be done outside of office hours; the competition is not to be discussed in the office in the presence of the juror/sponsor; and finally, none of the competition material should be present in the office at any time.
Q. With regards to maintaining anonymity, how is authorship of the work to be maintained for the submissions?
A. Each entry will be assigned a number upon receipt and all material pertaining to that entry will be tagged accordingly. The panels are not to have any identification on them.
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Registration & Deadline
Q. What is the registration and submission deadline?
A. The registration form and payment of fee are to be submitted by November 2nd and the entry material by the submission deadline of November 4th.
Q. With such an important initiative, why is the deadline so rushed?
A. With a desire to have the ideas influence the outcomes of the larger planning study, the deadline was carefully selected to allow for the submissions to have the greatest impact on the thinking of the larger study. As a result, there is unfortunately no flexibility in the submission deadline.
Q. What is the entry fee in Euros?
A. Based on the current exchange rate, the entry fee is approximately 46.50 euros. The entry fee should be paid in Canadian dollars, however, as it will be processed in Canada.
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Details, Study area & Submission requirements
Q. Am I able to rework/repurpose some parcels adjacent to the viaducts, like the Andy Livingstone Park (e.g, relocating the soccer field), or the electric substation at Quebec street?
A. While you are not bound by the scope of the questions presented, competitors would be cautioned against dramatic departures from the geographic scope of the idea categories. That being said, as this is a theoretical idea generating process, applicants do not have to assume Andy Livingstone as a fixed element, although the focus of the submissions should be on the viaduct land, not necessarily the adjacent properties.
Q. What you call the "southern boundary of Pacific Boulevard", is it its junction with Quebec street?
A. Pacific Boulevard runs parallel to the viaducts along the southern boundary of the study area. The land south of this line has been the focus of the Northeast False Creek High Level Review and is not a focus of this study. Submissions can identify how the connections through the viaduct land to the adjacent properties are made, however the bulk of the idea presented should focus on the land in question.
Q. Can a more comprehensive text, longer than the specified word count, appear on the panels?
A. While descriptive text related to the drawings and diagrams may appear on the panel, the more comprehensive text should try and adhere to the word counts outlined in the submission criteria. While it is essential that the ideas be well described and documented, it is assumed that the visual presentation of the idea should be able to stand on its own.
Q: Should the submission panel be oriented vertically or horizontally?
A. Vertically, i.e., portrait style. This is to ensure that the documents are oriented consistently for the purpose of web display and future public presentation.
Q. I am preparing the A1 posters and wanted to ask, can I write project name and my name on the poster?
A. The entries must all remain anonymous for the adjudication process. Do not identify yourself or any of your team members on any of the presentation material. Submissions with obvious logos, names or branding will be disqualified. Credit will be given for the work once the adjudication process is complete by utilizing the contact information provided at the time of registration.
Q. Should the scale be indicated on renderings or just on structural drawings and sections?
A. This is at the discretion of the applicant. As this is an ideas competition there is no requirement for architecturally scaled drawings. That being said, consideration should be given to scale during the graphic presentation to ensure that the ideas are being presented somewhat accurately.
Q. Can I submit a design scheme that I’ve already developed?
A. re:CONNECT calls for new and original work, but entrants may adapt previous work or ideas that are reconfigured to address the competition brief and areas in question.
Q: Can I enter more than one scheme?
A. Individuals or teams are welcome to submit one entry in each of the three categories with each registration fee. Additional entries in the same stream are allowed, however they would require an additional registration fee.
Q. Can one (1) board be submitted instead of two?
A. One board can be submitted instead of two. The maximum number of boards is two.
Q. What stage of design development do you expect or require for a submission?
A. Re:CONNECT is looking for innovative ideas that are clearly communicated. The level of design development is at the discretion of each entrant.
Q. Is the project to be built off of the sketch up model provided in the reference section? Or can any area be used to build on?
A. The sketch-up model provided in the reference section is for context only. The competitor can choose to use it as part of their presentation or not and they are free to alter the model in whatever way they wish. The competitor is free to assemble their presentation material in whatever manner they choose as long as it can be presented in the two panel A1 format described on the website. This could include shots of a model or other presentation techniques. Views and images selected are fully at the discretion of the competitor.
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Evaluation Criteria
Q. I have read the “Principles” for the project. These have helped me to shape my concept and presentation. However, I noticed that no information has been provided on how the jury will evaluate submissions. If a list of evaluation criteria and a weighting scheme have been devised by the jury, it would be helpful for prospective entrants to know how their submission will be assessed.
A. There has not been a specific evaluation criteria laid out. However, the competition website has identified guiding principles, as well as detailed objectives contained within the design brief, that should be taken into account. The jury will consider the ability of the idea to move these broader principles and objectives forward. The winners will be determined at the discretion of the jury.
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Resources
Q. Is there a .dwg or vector file type of the city of Vancouver to use as a base (i.e., one showing city streets and blocks)?
A. As the nature of this competition is more about the exploration of the urban context, while pertinent, it need not be extensively represented in the final proposal outside of the subject area. Should participants wish to have a greater understanding of the city, however, Vanmap is a valuable resource provided by the City of Vancouver and is available at http://vancouver.ca/vanmap.
Q. What are the specifics of the site regarding setbacks, sidewalks, height restrictions, streets, and lanes?
A. It is the entrants’ prerogative to define these criteria to enmesh with their final proposal. Height limits due to view corridor restrictions have been provided for the viaducts category and should be adhered to.
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