Conservation at Saint Mary's University Halifax, NS
Owner:
Saint Mary's University
Completion:
2009
G.F. Duffus & Co. Ltd. (now part of DSRA) has provided building assessment reports on all of Saint Mary's University's buildings, and has done several projects for them beginning in 2005. The work includes the exterior masonry envelope conservation of the McNally Building.
The McNally Building is the original building on the current Saint Mary's University campus, designed by Montreal architect Franco Consiglio and completed in 1952. The building is reinforced concrete with a stone veneer. The plinth, buttresses, band courses and trim are all granite with a random stone on the remainder of the facades.
The conservation project began in 2005 with an exterior envelope assessment and recommendations on a conservation strategy. The building was still in similar condition to the previous assessment completed in 1993. A four-phase scope of work was developed beginning with the most urgent repairs. Generally the work consisted of taking town and rebuilding the top 6 courses of the granite buttresses, grouting, stone repairs; repointing 50-100% of the joints in any particular area; and caulking the windows. Occasional leaks found over windows and around the foundation were also addressed through this project.
