The Old Main building expansion—which houses TRU Law— received international recognition this week at the 2015 Wood Design Awards. Facilitated by the Canadian Wood Council and Wood Design & Building Magazine, the awards recognize excellence and leadership in wood architecture and design.

The expansion includes the third and fourth-floor addition, as well as the exterior upgrade to the entire building. The impetus for the project was to create space to house TRU’s law school and resulted in an overall facelift for the building.

The interior of the law school as well as the building’s exterior features extensive use of wood and showcases modern wood designs. Diamond Schmitt Architects and associate architect Stantec Architecture are the talent behind the concept.

The eye-catching undulating roof line mirrors the outline of Mt. Peter and Mt. Paul, two regional landmarks that border Kamloops from the north side.  The idea of incorporating the local environment into the design is a factor in the awards criteria.

A snowy view of Old Main.

“It’s one thing to build a building, it’s another to ensure that the building complements its surrounding environment from a green, structural/functional and aesthetic point of view,” said Etienne Lalonde of the Canadian Wood Council.

The building addition is also LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified.

All projects completed between January 2010 and September 2015 were eligible for the 2015 awards. A total of 26 design projects from around the world received awards in six different categories.