Each submission to the Lower Don Lands competition had to address numerous challenges, culminating in an integrated design for the diverse transportation and social needs of a redeveloped, but long-abused 40 hectare site in downtown Toronto.
The site includes the mouth of the Don River and the entrance to the Port Lands, and connects the communities being planned for the West Don Lands, east Bayfront, and the Docklands, which will eventually house up to 100,000 residents. While the derelict site has undoubted potential, the damage it has sustained over the years added an extra dimension to the challenge.
The finalists in the $65 million endeavor respected the goal of the competition as set out by Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation CEO John Campbell: to provide a ‘bold and compelling’ concept for the Lower Don that makes the river a central feature while at the same time providing for new development and new linkages to the rest of the city.
DTAH worked with Weiss/Manfredi of New York on a multidisciplinary design that addressed the complex technical and engineering challenges presented by naturalizing the mouth of the Don River, flood protection, environmental clean up, and the integration of a multi-use transportation network. The entry was shortlisted along with three others.
Client:
Waterfront Toronto
Team:
Weiss Manfredi / du Toit Allsopp Hillier
Mccormick Rankin Corporation
Ecoplans Limited
Golder Associates Ltd
Weidlinger Associates
David Dennis Design
Evergreen
Awards:
2009 The Chicago Athenaeum, American Architecture Award
2009 AIA New York State Award of Excellence
2009 AIA New York Merit Award