Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts is thinking outside the box to build accommodations for its staff at the Buffalo Mountain Lodge in Banff and is recycling sea containers to create affordable housing.

The company is working with Ladacor Advanced Modular Systems to convert the containers into homes for about 80 staff members.

“This will be, essentially an apartment building. It’s larger than what we need for our staff at Buffalo Mountain Lodge but we certainly like the option to house some of our staff for Deer Lodgers in Lake Louise because of the community that Banff offers. So there’s a need for all sorts of housing but this will be designed as an apartment building where people outside of Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts will be offered a chance to reside in these apartment buildings,” said Larkin O’Connor, Development Manager for Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts. “With that it provides a major transition where it was very much dorm-style accommodation, we had bunk beds. This project will allow every single individual to have their own bedroom. There will be some shared kitchens and such but everybody has that one bit of privacy and that is what Banff is so desperately lacking.“

Work on the project is already underway in a giant shop in southeast Calgary and one of the challenges for designers is to make it look nothing like a shipping container.

“One of the big challenges with the system is concealing the fact that you’re working with a kit of parts. So when the product is finished, it looks nothing like a series of sea cans all stacked together,” said Jamie Clark, Architect, Systemic Architecture. “It’s thinking outside the box but it’s thinking inside the box at the same time.”

“So we build and design as per what our client’s specs are and at the end of the day there’s a stigma around living in a sea can and so what we do, is we ensure that we have some design process we put in place that gives you the flexibility to design it however you want and when its all said and done you get the benefits of having a steel structure without it having the view of it being a sea can that you’re living in.” said Darrell Nimchuk, President Ladacor.

The cans are being converted indoors by about 90 workers, which will eliminate costly weather delays.

“It’s a new type of construction. It allows crews to be working in a controlled environment. It gets the quality of the product up. We’re a full, steel fire rated building and we’re not in it for any more cost than stick construction when you factor the timing,” said O’Connor.

The shipping containers have windows cut into them, framing and insulation inside and out and have all electrical and plumbing installed before the finishing carpenters get to work.

The structure will be built to last and to fit in with the surroundings.

“Their aesthetic criteria is very demanding, there’s no question about it, which I’m all for. “I’ve been working my whole career in the parks. I have a huge amount of respect for what they’re doing, but it does make things challenging and it's part of what’s led to some of the housing challenges because it’s so hard to get projects off the ground and the economies are so hard to make work,” said O’Connor. “It’s going to come on site, click together, they’ll be that siding stage and some of the roofing and then we’re moving in. It is exciting.”

The sod was turned for the project on November 14th and it is expected to be complete by the spring of 2017.

(With files from Kevin Fleming)