Construction of a brand-new energy-efficient facility comprising a discovery area, a service block, and an outdoor amphitheater. The design of the discovery center was inspired by the surrounding natural elements, ensuring it integrates harmoniously into its environment. To that end, it will feature wood materials, including Eastern cedar for the exterior cladding, pine for the ceiling, and hemlock for part of the interior walls—hemlock also being used for the amphitheater's finishing.

The center will also offer abundant fenestration, with some windows framing the landscape and mountains like a picture. This openness to the outdoors will allow not only for passive solar gain but also for generous natural lighting.

The building will be topped with a roof whose form reflects a rock fissure. It will fold and rise in height, where three large motorized operable windows will expel hot air through the suction effect created by prevailing winds. This natural ventilation will be fueled by the cool breeze sweeping across the lake, using 10 manually operated windows located at the bottom of the walls.

To heat the spaces, in combination with passive solar energy, the designers have chosen to harness the sun's heat captured by the lake water. This bioclimatic solution will be implemented using an innovative technology—a first in the institutional, commercial, and industrial sectors in Quebec: three Slim Jim exchangers, consisting of three large 304 stainless steel plates through which ethanol flows—a fluid that poses no risk to the aquatic environment.

Placed underwater at depths of 12 to 16 meters, these large plates optimize heat transfer.

The use of hydrothermal energy required prior approval from the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks. Approval was granted following an analysis demonstrating that this technology would have no impact on the lake’s temperature.

The installation will also be the subject of a study to determine the temperature index zone in the lake. Probes will be installed on the exchangers to monitor temperatures at various distances from the plates.

Connected to the building via 65 mm diameter HDPE pipes, the hydrothermal exchangers will be linked to two heat pumps with a heating capacity of approximately 180,000 Btu/h. The system will supply radiant floor heating throughout the building. These floors will be primarily concrete, with some sections made of wood.

Among other strategies aimed at optimizing the building's performance are a heat recovery ventilator (940 CFM), which will save approximately 50,000 Btu/h in energy; a CO2 sensor in the main room to regulate fresh air supply; an energy-efficient artificial lighting system; and a system to remotely control energy parameters.

Additionally, the building will be well-positioned to take advantage of solar energy for domestic hot water heating.