The Olympic Village project's goals align with the City's goals around sustainability, social, and environmental issues.
Canada's first net zero multi-unit residential building
As part of the Olympic Village, the City built Canada's first residential multi-unit Net Zero Building - one that generates as much energy as it uses.
The designers cut energy consumption to a fraction of a conventional building's using solar access and shading, natural cost-ventilation, triple-glazed windows, and excellent insulation.
Energy meters in each suite encourage further reductions by showing residents how much energy they are using and a heat recovery system transfers waste heat from an adjoining grocery store for space heating.
Two rooftop solar installations provide the balance of the building's annual energy. The Net Zero building helped the Southeast False Creek development achieve Platinum certification under LEED for Neighbourhood Development standards in February 2010.
Affordable housing
By 2020, the Olympic Village will have 5,000 residential units with a focus on affordable housing.
The buildings used during the 2010 Olympics have become residential housing, with a focus on housing for families. The Olympic Village is a mixed-use community, with about 1,100 residential units - 252 units are affordable housing, and another 100 units are modest market and market housing.
Modest market housing provides housing to residents who are unable to pay market rent - families, persons with disabilities, seniors, and those at risk of homelessness.
The Olympic Village co-op - called Athletes Village - is an 84 unit building made up of market and non-market housing. Find information on co-op housing in the Olympic Village:
Natural ecological habitat
The man-made island off the west shore of the Village - referred to as Habitat Island is an urban sanctuary along Southeast False Creek.
Deep layers of soil have been added to the area to provide nourishment for new trees to grow.
Boulders and logs commonly found along the coastlines in this region of British Columbia provide a home for plants, small animals, insects, crabs, starfish, barnacles, and other creatures. Surrounded by water at high tide, the island is a sanctuary for birds.
More than 200 native trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses that grow naturally in the region have been planted on the island and along the waterfront path.
Dogs and cyclists are not allowed on the island in order to preserve the natural state.
Building the island
To build the island, shoreline, and inlet, City staff used 60,000 cubic metres of rock, cobble, gravel, sand, and boulders from the Olympic Village construction.
The ebb and flow of the tide on the rocky shoreline creates a natural home for starfish, crabs, fish, shellfish, and other creatures.
The Olympic Village, developed by the Millennium Development Group, is one of the greenest communities in the world, making Vancouver a leader in sustainable development.
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Salt Building
LEED certification is an internationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction, and operation of high performance green buildings.