Red Fish Centre for Mental Health and Addiction won Urban Design & Architecture Design's Gold Award in 2022. Located on səmiq̓ʷəʔelə in Coquitlam, BC (formerly the Riverview lands), the core guiding design and construction principles reflect the values of the community and the Kwikwetlem First Nation (“KFN”). The Centre’s name is a reference to the sockeye salmon that once thrived in the Coquitlam River.  In traditional language, kʷikʷəƛ̓əm means, “red fish up the river”.

To support First Nations communities, Parkin Architects collaborated with leaders to design the Hummingbird Room, where clients can practice smudging traditions as part of their healing journeys. The room is lined with cedar, and features a medicine wheel on the floor and a large mural painted by an Indigenous artist. 

Red Fish Centre is identified as the first institution in North America dedicated to treating concurrent disorders of mental health and addictions. The design of the Centre takes new approaches to help the most desperate British Columbians with both serious substance-use dependency and mental illness.

Clients stay longer than at other treatment facilities, providing more time to understand the roots of their addictions through conventional counselling and various types of therapy including music, art, and physical activities.

The Centre focuses on recovery, trauma reduction, family therapy, and First Nations culture. The modernized facility includes green spaces, natural light, and private rooms for patients and therapeutic staff.  Divided into seven co-ed units, each having 15 private bedrooms, a TV lounge, an eating area with indoor and outdoor seating, and a room for family visits. 

Clients are placed in varying units according to their stages of recovery. Unique, operable vents in the patient windows allow access to fresh air without posing personal harm. Combined features and programs allow clients to gradually transition from care back into their communities.