təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre is a winner on the international stage.
The City of New Westminster has announced that its newest facility has been awarded a Prix Versailles 2024 World Title Special Prize for an Interior in the Sports category. Prix Versailles is a series of architectural competitions that each year recognize “the finest contemporary projects worldwide.”
Winners were announced at a ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on Dec. 2.
Mayor Patrick Johnstone said the City of New Westminster is thrilled and deeply honoured that təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre has been awarded the Prix Versailles Special Prize for an Interior award.
“As the first sports venue in Canada and the first community recreation centre in the world to receive a Prix Versailles, this recognition is an incredible achievement and testament to the facility’s design,” he said in a news release. “On behalf of the City of New Westminster, I would like to extend appreciation to the Prix Versailles jury for this tremendous honour and thank the talented team at hcma architecture + design for bringing their outstanding work to New Westminster. Their visionary design and skilled execution has set a new standard for great community spaces worldwide.”
According to the City of New Westminster, təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre is only the second Canadian project to be recognized since the prize was established in 2017. It was one of six international projects shortlisted in the Sports category, including the Olympic Aquatic Centre in Paris, the Workers’ Stadium in Beijing and the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
Paul Fast, principal with hcma architecture + design, recognized the city for “leading the way and setting a bold, ambitious agenda” for this project.
“This building creates a new picture of civic life – proud, inspiring and most importantly, one in which everyone in this community can find their place,” he said. “It is a building that works with the land, not against it, and acknowledges the role that design can play in the work of reconciliation. Architecture that is founded on these principles achieves a beauty that is not just skin deep, but lasting, just, and equitable. We are grateful for the support of the project manager, the entire design team and the contractor in bringing this vision to life.”
To celebrate this achievement, the City of New Westminster invites the community to attend a free event on Sunday, Dec. 15 from 12:30 to 8:30 p.m. Community members can enjoy refreshments and drop-in swimming, fitness, and sports at təməsew̓txʷ. More information is available online.
Prix Versailles recognizes “the world’s most beautiful achievements” in airports, campuses, passenger stations, sports, museums, emporiums, hotels and restaurants. təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre is the only Canadian project that has been recognized in any of this year’s Prix Versailles categories.
The 2024 World Jury unveiled:
— Prix Versailles (@PrixVersailles) December 3, 2024
Sou Fujimoto (Japan) | Benjamin Millepied (France) | Blanca Suárez (Spain) | David Adjaye (Ghana - United Kingdom) | Guo Pei (China) | Daniel Libeskind (United States) | Julia Fischer (Germany) | Wang Shu (China) pic.twitter.com/Yjp8qUExo2
In October, the city announced the facility has been recognized by the Prix Versailles selection committee as one of the World's Most Beautiful Sports Venues for 2024.
In addition to being included among the World’s Most Beautiful Sports Venues 2024, təməsew̓txʷ is eligible to compete for one of the three 2024 World Titles – Prix Versailles, Interior and Exterior.
Ashleigh Young, the city’s manager of communications, said hcma sent a few representatives to Paris including Darryl Condon, Paul Fast, and Ali Kenyon. Geoff Watson from Turnbull Construction also attended, and Lisa Spitale represented the City of New Westminster.
“Lisa used her vacation time to attend and covered the trip personally with no costs expensed to the city,” she said in an email to the Record.
təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre, a $114-million facility that opened in May 2024, is the City of New Westminster largest capital project to date.
The City of New Westminster recently announced the facility had achieved a Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certified Gold rating under the RHF Accessibility Certification™ program.
