A New Cultural Hub for Toronto
The Vision
GWLRA has submitted a proposal to the City of Toronto for a once-in-a-generation revitalization of College Park. The plan will preserve the building’s heritage architecture while transforming the property into a major cultural destination that makes sense for the Toronto of today. It includes a precedent-setting heritage restoration, three new mixed-use residential towers inspired by the original 1920s architecture and a reimagined public realm.
The College and Yonge neighbourhood surrounding College Park is one of the busiest and most densely populated areas in the city. GWLRA’s proposal includes expanded residential, retail and commercial spaces, as well as a hotel, improvements to streetscapes, transit access and connections to the public park behind College Park. Throughout construction, we are committed to minimizing disruptions to residents, businesses and the 250,000 commuters that pass through the TTC’s College Station each week.
Toronto has waited nearly 100 years to see a completed vision for College Park come to life. Read more about the proposal below.
HeritageCollege Park will be a precedent-setting heritage restoration project for Canada.
Source: HPA
The College Park proposal aims to raise the bar for heritage restoration. In an ambitious move, ERA will complete the unfinished seven-storey podium along Yonge Street as original architects Ross and Macdonald intended. Not only will College Park’s heritage elements be preserved, but the proposal will break from the architectural practice known as “facadism” by retaining the full building.
Source: Archives of Ontario
When it opened, one of College Park’s most spectacular features was the shopping arcade running parallel to Yonge Street. The arcade has since been subdivided with walls. Under the new plan, those partitions would be removed to bring back the arcade’s expansive, Machine Age grandeur – a sight Torontonians haven’t experienced for generations.
Source: Archives of Ontario
The Carlu, the historic Art Deco event venue on College Park’s seventh floor, is a national historic site of Canada and one of Toronto’s most important works of architecture. This opulent heritage space will be preserved and expanded with new outdoor terraces and more indoor space to host events such as conferences.
Architecture
HPA’s architecture for the three mixed-use residential towers will compress the 100-year gap between old and new Toronto, with sculptural elements that echo the verticality and setbacks of 1920s skyscrapers. The architects are taking inspiration from College Park’s Art Moderne and Art Deco DNA and extending it vertically into modern towers that contribute back to Toronto’s skyline.
Inside College Park, a striking ribbon-like raised pathway will link the College and Yonge entry point to a new, glass-encased atrium and outdoor public plaza at the rear. This feature would make wayfinding between more intuitive, while blurring boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces.
Public Space
The proposal considers how the public realm surrounding College Park can rise vertically. PUBLIC WORK will reimagine the plaza backing on to College Park in conversation with a new glass atrium with outdoor landscapes that mirror the interiors. There will be a new tree canopy, native plantings, a rolled landform, more topographic variation and design elements inspired by The Carlu’s Art Moderne design flourishes.
Higher up, rooftop gardens inspired by the Modernist architectural idea of the “urban mountain” would sit atop a series of plateaus, accessible from the sky lobby where the heritage building meets the new towers. This project aims to introduce a new metropolitan culture in Toronto by demonstrating how public space can rise from the ground floor up towards the sky, while adding to the urban forest for downtown dwellers.
