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PEDESTRIAN REALM | TALL BUILDING DESIGN GUIDELINES<br />

4.3 PEDESTRIAN LEVEL WIND EFFECTS<br />

Locate, orient, and design <strong>tall</strong> <strong>buildings</strong> to promote air circulation<br />

and natural ventilation, yet minimize adverse wind conditions on<br />

adjacent streets, parks and open space, at building entrances, and<br />

in public and private outdoor amenity areas.<br />

Figure 1: Strong pedestrian level wind makes street-level conditions uncomfortable and in<br />

some cases hazardous.<br />

Figure 2: Wind testing (Engineering input by RWDI)<br />

RATIONALE<br />

CITY OF TORONTO<br />

MAY 2013<br />

The design and placement of <strong>tall</strong> <strong>buildings</strong> to capture natural<br />

breezes and air flow can benefit energy efficiency and indoor<br />

air quality. Adequate air circulation at-grade, especially during<br />

the summer months, is important to flush away street-level<br />

pollutants and improve air quality for pedestrians and cyclists.<br />

While air circulation around <strong>tall</strong> <strong>buildings</strong> is important, down<br />

drafts from <strong>buildings</strong> or accelerated winds from tunnelling<br />

between <strong>buildings</strong> can negatively affect pedestrian-level comfort<br />

and even become hazardous. In general, the <strong>tall</strong>er the building,<br />

the stronger the potential for wind effects at the base and the<br />

greater the need for mitigation measures.<br />

Adverse wind conditions can be mitigated through the siting,<br />

massing, orientation and articulation of the base and the tower.<br />

The use of stepbacks at the tower base is a particularly useful<br />

strategy to dissipate down drafts. Architectural devices, such<br />

as projecting cornices, screens, terraces, overhangs, and<br />

permanent canopies can also be applied to reduce the effects<br />

of high speed wind around the base building and within rooftop<br />

amenity areas.<br />

The placement of permanent site features such as walls,<br />

berms, and landscaping can also help mitigate wind impacts<br />

by reducing speed or creating sheltered areas for seating or<br />

standing.<br />

Predicting the influence of <strong>tall</strong> <strong>buildings</strong> on local wind flow<br />

patterns and street-level conditions is a complex task best<br />

established through wind tunnel testing of a scale model. At<br />

a preliminary planning stage, however, the basic aerodynamic<br />

issues illustrated in the schematic diagrams provided on the<br />

following page can be applied to inform the initial design.<br />

60

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