STUDIO

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First
West

Team

Ryan Swirsky
Ryan Radics
Peter Odegaard
Mark Whitehead

The First West Credit Union building is more than just a corporate headquarters. As a new landmark visible from the highway, it stands as a beacon that signals entry into Langley, and a symbol of FWCU’s longstanding significance to Langley’s economy. The building site is also an important interface between the private and public realm, with office space surrounded by new public gathering spaces on 200th street.

One of the main challenges in designing the building was the location of the site. Surrounded by a 9-lane arterial road and the Trans-Canada Highway offramp, noise, and high-speed traffic threatened the peace of the future building and surrounding landscape. Our solution was to set the building back from the street, creating a continuation of the freeway on 200th street and a new public plaza on the corner of 88th. The building itself is a nod to Langley’s evolution from an agricultural center to a more diverse city, with massing and a façade that references stacked lumber. Long elevations parallel to 200th street vary at their ends, with wood accents on the soffits, canopies, and vertical sun shades. The new FWCU building speaks to Langley’s identity, offering new public gathering spaces at a symbolic entry point to the city.

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First
West