Building the future – sustainably!

The heart of the project is an
ensemble of three buildings,
including a seniors residence and
an apartment building for lowincome
families. The common
infrastructure is provided by the
nonprofit organization “Green
Energy Benny Farm”. This name
says it all, because L’OEUF has
made Benny Farm a laboratory for
low-cost green infrastructure. During
the renovation of the houses,
many building materials were
salvaged, sorted, cleaned and reinstalled.
75 percent of the energy
needs of the buildings is provided
by solar collectors and a geothermal
system. Graywater from showers
and lavatories is collected and
reused in toilets. Further ecological
measures include green roofs
and passive ventilation.
The individual measures are
proven and not particularly innovative.
What’s special about Benny
Farm is the combination of green
infrastructure and social housing.
“This project shows that green
infrastructure is possible even at a
low budget”, says Daniel Pearl. “It
should help make this the norm in
the long run.” Green is not necessarily
a luxury. L’OEUF has proven
that – with creativity and strong
dedication.
“Greening the Infrastructure
at Benny Farm, Montreal”,
by L’OEUF, Montreal, Canada
L’OEUF – short for l’Office de
l’éclectisme urbain et fonctionnel
– is not an architecture office in
the classic sense; preparing social
and environmental assessments
constitutes a large part of the
everyday work of the ten employees.
L’OEUF is headed by Daniel
Pearl (photo), Marc Poddubiuk and
Bernhard Olivier – the principal
authors of the Award-winning
project.
Assessment by Olivia La O’Castillo:
“This project shows the advantages of cost-
efficient, sustainable upgrading of infra-
structure systems. Especially commendable
is the integration of the stakeholders –
owners, tenants and users – during the
planning and execution of the moderniza-
tion project. The integrated method of
planning could sensibly be applied in many
other projects. This is a reference project
and an inspiration for similar projects that
could be carried out anywhere.”
Olivia La O’Castillo (Philippines), Chair of
the Asia Pacific Roundtable for Sustainable
Consumption and Production, was a
member of the jury for the global Holcim
Awards 2006.
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