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= Government of Canada Visitor Welcome Centre = The Government of Canada’s Visitor Welcome Centre (VWC), designed by IBI Group and Moriyama and Teshima Architects, is a public complex located adjacent to Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada. The VWC enhances the current experience of visiting the site, inviting visitors to experience the interior of the iconic Parliament buildings that have become a symbol of the country’s capital. Consisting of four underground levels, the structure acts as a gathering space for tourists visiting the historical buildings on site, while also creating connections to neighboring buildings and enhancing current on-site security screenings for anyone accessing the parliament buildings. Designed to blend in with the surrounding historical buildings, the structure was hailed as one of the first new additions to the historical Parliament hill site in approximately a century.

Construction
The VWC is a single part of many proposed expansion projects on Parliament Hill, the majority of which are currently being built. This development has been organized into phases, the first of which was completed in November 2019. The second phase, which will expand the project and connect it to other fundamental blocks of the Parliament Hill site, began in mid-2020.

Phase One
The first phase of the project began in 2015 with an on-site excavation for the Visitor Welcome Centre. This project was completed simultaneous to a renovation of the West Block, another planned intervention on the site. Construction continued up until 2019, when the Centre finally opened its doors for the general public.

Phase Two
A series of ongoing renovation projects have been planned out for Parliament Hill, with some phases of this construction commencing in 2020. Phase one of the project included the renovation of the site's West Block and the construction of the Visitor Welcome Centre. The next phase addresses the Center and East blocks, by which future expansion to the VWC would look to unify them through an underground connection. This phase began in 2020 and is ongoing.

Building
The building was designed for the Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) as a client, with Moriyama & Teshima Architects and IBI group working as the design and primary consultants. The construction contract was awarded to PCL Constructors Canada Incorporated. An approximate budget of $130 million was allocated for the project.

The building entrance is discreetly located to the West of the main parliament building, with only the ground floor visible from the outside level, and is embedded underneath a bridge used as a pathway through the site. This entrance is the main access point, which features programming such as ticketing, a cloak room, public washrooms, and areas for security placement. Security screening facilities are located here for not only for tourists looking to visit the historical parliament blocks, but also for everyday workers of the site. A concourse level below the ground floor houses in a double-heighted atrium containing various congregation spaces, information services, building tours, a gift shop, and other amenities. Other parts of the building consist of underground pathways that lead to other historical buildings onsite, such as the House of Commons. Future expansions to this complex would work to increase the access of the underground pathways to adjacent blocks on the site.

Challenges
The project is challenged by its surrounding context; first by creating a contemporary structure that is able to blend in with the surrounding heritage buildings, then by creating an underground space that is still bright and inviting to its users. A series of design interventions throughout the structure work to address these challenges and situate the building to its context and purpose.

Given the nature of underground buildings, the project utilizes the limited amount of natural light from the ground floor, but mostly relies on artificial lighting strategies and careful material choice to compose the interior condition. Bright materials like white plaster, limestone walls, and terrazzo flooring, adds height and depth to the space; this is contrasted through the careful use of bronze and wood accents throughout the underground complex.

The use of double-height spaces and vaulted ceilings contributes to a feeling of lightness in the space, while also reflecting the heritage architecture of the site. The subtle use of ornamentation and detailing throughout the space contributes to a synergistic combination of neo-gothic and minimalist architecture in a single space, ultimately creating a rendition of historical and contemporary architecture within the Visitor Welcome Centre. This combination of old and new design principles best represent the purpose of the building: to create an inviting space that integrates visitors into the experience of the historic Ottawa site.

Awards
Since its construction, the VWC has been nominated or chosen for the following awards ; Honoree for the Interior Design 2019 Best of Year Award,  Canadian Interior Best in Canada Award, Contract Magazine Interiors Award, and the Ottawa Urban Design Award.