Category Archives: College and University campuses

Ryerson U’s sensational new Student Learning Centre will bring sparkle to the Yonge Street strip

This rendering suggests how the Ryerson University Student Learning Centre will appear when viewed looking north on Yonge Street near Gould Street

Campus showpiece: I envy the students who will get to study and relax in the marvellous Student Learning Centre that Ryerson University unveiled this week and will begin constructing later this year. I spent six years of my life studying in university libraries and classroom buildings that were bleak, bunker-like structures with few windows allowing natural light inside. They were drab, dreary places to learn, and I often dreaded going inside. Even lounge and food service areas tended to be dim, dull and depressing — taking a break for a coffee or chat with friends just meant moving from one boring, bland building to another equally cheerless space. Ryerson’s Student Learning Centre promises to be the polar opposite. Designed by Toronto’s Zeidler Partnership Architects and Snøhetta of Oslo and New York City, the building will be breathtaking on the outside, its flashy glass facade adding architectural excitement and sparkle to the busy Yonge Street strip between Dundas and Gerrard Streets. With a dramatic stepped plaza entrance and transparent glass walls bearing dazzling designs, the Student Learning Centre will bring tremendous visual interest to a streetcorner previously made famous by the long-gone Sam the Record Man store’s iconic neon signs. I wouldn’t be surprised if the building’s startling shape and skin slows or even stops traffic on Yonge — stunning contemporary architecture isn’t something Torontonians expect to encounter on a commercial strip characterized by boxy, unattractive buildings plastered with brilliant electronic billboards and enormous advertising posters.

The Student Learning Centre’s interior will be just as sensational. Inside, a cavernous light-filled lobby with an impressive, wide staircase will wow visitors, while upper levels of the eight-storey structure will offer huge bright spaces for study and socializing. “The Student Learning Centre will provide bright, open, technologically rich, barrier-free spaces for individual and collaborative study that will accommodate our students’ different learning styles and our faculties’ different teaching practices,” Ryerson’s Provost and Vice President Academic, Alan Shepard, said in a press release announcing the building design. The Centre will be linked by a bridge to the university’s existing library next door, will have learning and study spaces in a variety of different sizes and designs on its upper floors, and will have retail space both along Yonge and on one floor below street level. Each floor will have a unique personality — “some will be open and interpretive with flexible furniture and terraces, while others will be densely filled with enclosed study rooms for groups of four to eight people. Space will be available for independent, quiet study and contemplation. With full digital support and accessible academic services, the Student Learning Centre will foster learning success and help promote a culture of collaboration and creativity among Ryerson students,” the news release explains.

Besides becoming the architectural showpiece of the university campus, the Centre is bound to have a significant impact on the city, too. Ryerson president Sheldon Levy says the Centre will be ” a transformative, bold development and an important step forward in city building.” And there’s no doubt it will give the university’s campus, much of which is largely hidden from view between Yonge and Church Streets, an unprecedented presence and highly influential profile on the city’s main street. Zeidler Architects senior partner Tarek El-Khatib anticipates that the Student Learning Centre “will contribute to the retail and pedestrian life in the area and set the tone for ongoing revitalization in this historic commercial neighbourhood. A generous and inviting, entry plaza will gently draw both students and the general public up and into this new vertical community setting the standard for future development in the area.”

That’s something I’m personally looking forward to. I don’t particularly enjoy walking along Yonge between Dundas and College Streets; I find the sidewalks too narrow and crowded, while the retail shops and restaurants are geared to a much younger demographic — there’s practically nothing there to catch my interest and make me want to linger. I either hurry past, or avoid the strip altogether by walking up Bay Street or cutting through the Ryerson campus. But the Student Learning Centre at Gould Street, along with the Aura condo and retail complex two blocks north at Gerrard, could well become catalysts for major improvements and enhancements to the area. In a few years’ time, I just might enjoy spending time on Yonge Street once again.

Construction of the Student Learning Centre is scheduled to begin by the end of this year, with completion anticipated for 2014. Full project details are available on the media page of the Ryerson University website. The Toronto Star’s architecture and urban issues specialist, Christopher Hume, discusses the design in his April 6 2011 column, while Globe & Mail writer Omair Quadri describes the project in an April 6 2011 article in that newspaper. Below are several artistic renderings depicting some of the Student Learning Centre’s signature interior and exterior design features.

The Student Learning Centre will feature an impressive and dramatic stepped plaza entrance at the corner of Yonge & Gould Streets

The Centre’s lobby will be cavernous, but streaming with natural light

One of the “flexible” study spaces on an upper level of the Centre

One of the Centre’s cheery and bright open study spaces

This illustration outlines the interior layout of the 8-storey building

Yonge St. site ready for excavation … but when will Ryerson reveal student learning centre design?

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Ryerson University sign at the corner of Yonge and Gould Streets

Site’s all set: It was a year ago this week that Ryerson University announced it had selected the architecture team for the new 10-storey Student Learning Centre (SLC) it plans to build at the corner of Yonge and Gould Streets on the former site of the famous Sam The Record Man store.

During the past couple of months, I have seen small contracting crews on the SLC site, clearing rubble and doing what appeared to be minor pre-construction site preparation work. This afternoon, the property was empty, virtually clear of debris, vehicles and heavy machinery. The site looks like it’s all set for excavation, so I’m wondering if the university may soon reveal the SLC design, and start digging.

I’m sure the whole process has been held up by events during the last two months on the south side of Gould Street, where the historic Empress Hotel building at 335 Yonge Street burned down in a fire that investigators determined was caused by arson. I’m pissed that 335 Yonge was neglected and allowed to languish, and I’m even more angry that the building had to be demolished because of the irreparable damage it suffered both from the fire and subsequent investigation procedures. Now that the beautiful heritage building is gone forever, I hope the property lands in Ryerson’s hands, so the site can be developed into an impressive Yonge Street gateway to the university’s downtown campus. (I definitely don’t want to see 335 Yonge’s owners get city approval to build a condo tower there.)

It was on February 10 last year that the university said it had picked Zeidler Partnership Architects of Toronto and Snøhetta of Oslo and New York City to be co-architects for the 160,000 square foot learning centre, a high-tech library and learning environment connected to the university’s existing library building. Ryerson is hoping the SLC can also be linked to the Yonge subway line by its own on-site entrance to the Dundas subway station.

According to the university, “[t]he state-of-the-art Student Learning Centre will provide the latest technology and will be designed to accommodate different learning styles and teaching practices. The SLC will feature bright, open, technologically rich, barrier-free spaces for individual and collaborative study. A variety of learning environments, digital support and academic services will promote student learning success and help foster a culture of collaboration and creativity.”

Below are pics I’ve taken of the SLC site over the last few years, followed by a couple of photos showing how the site looked this afternoon.

September 26 2008: The iconic Sam the Record Man store seen shortly before its demolition. The building to its left once housed a popular A&A record outlet; after it closed, a Future Shop store occupied the spot for several years.

Another view of the famous Sam the Record Man store before its demolition

September 26 2008: The future SLC site viewed from south of Gould Street

February 15 2009: Demolition of Sam the Record Man store is almost complete

A graffiti-covered wall along O’Keefe Lane is all that remains of the Sam’s store

May 2 2010: Sam’s is long gone, but demolition hasn’t begun on the A&A site

November 23 2010: The former A&A/Future Shop building is finally coming down

December 21 2010: A light layer of snow covers the cleared SLC site

December 21 2010: Site viewed from O’Keefe Lane, looking west to Yonge St.

December 21 2010: The SLC site, looking southwest from O’Keefe Lane

January 5 2011: Site viewed during demolition at the 335 Yonge St. fire scene

January 8 2011: Gould Street during the 335 Yonge fire investigation

February 15 2011: The SLC site viewed from the west side of Yonge at Gould St.

February 15 2011: Vacant SLC site viewed from the corner of Yonge & Elm Streets

42-storey “luxury” student residence for U of T?

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Diamond and Schmitt Architects rendering of proposed U of T residence

Towering Dorm: The biggest university in Canada could lay claim to having the tallest and most expensive student residence in the country if the City approves a development application for property on College Street. But will community concerns about the project’s height and density derail the proposal or knock down the height of what would be a stunning, landmark tower for the neighbourhood?

The potential development site — 245 – 251 College Street — is situated on the south side of College, just a stone’s throw east of Spadina Avenue and directly across the street from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). The university owns part of the property while a private developer, Knightstone Capital Management, owns the rest.

In an article published last July, the Globe and Mail reported that U of T had “quietly” begun plans for a new residence which Knightstone would finance and build near the university’s downtown campus. Just one month later, a rezoning application was filed with the city seeking approval to build a 42-storey tower with “academic residences” and a three-storey podium “containing retail, academic services and lecture halls for University of Toronto.”

In an article published in its online edition today, the Toronto Star offered more details about the plan. It said U of T has leased its land to the developer, which will build a $120 million, 42-storey residence housing 1,000 students. However, the building will not be a typical university dorm housing “ordinary” Canadian students — they couldn’t afford to live there. Instead, the tower will offer expensive rental accommodation — costing approximately $15,000 per year — that is expected to appeal primarily to wealthy international students, along with some graduate and out-of-province students. However, accommodation would not be restricted to U of T students; those attending the city’s other educational institutions could rent rooms, too, if they have the cash.

“The glass and panel tower, a series of wonky boxes stacked one on top of the other, would rise a dizzying 42 storeys above its Lilliputian neighbours on College St., commercial buildings that are two, three or five storeys at most,” the Star article says.

To the south, on the other hand, sits a vast residential area; in fact, Glasgow Street — a quiet, narrow road lined with small homes — runs north from Cecil Street, dead-ending at the proposed tower location. “If someone can get 40-storey buildings shoehorned into that neighbourhood, all of the (future development) sites will come back as 40-storey applications,” the Star quotes local city councillor Adam Vaughan as saying.

The newspaper says city staff have recommended that the developer reconsider the tower’s height, and that Vaughan hold consultation meetings with the landowners and residents. But Knightstone’s CEO, David Lehberg, told the Star that U of T “needs bigger, shinier buildings to compete internationally.”

So, too, does the City of Toronto, in my humble opinion. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this project gets the A-OK; I think it would improve the look of the area immensely, not to mention put U of T on the radar of privileged students around the globe. With several new five-star hotel towers opening in Toronto over the next two years, the city will finally be able to attract elite tourists who have been travelling to high-end hotels in destinations elsewhere, at the expense of our local tourism industry. I say let the residence tower go up so all those wealthy parents will come visit, spend money and boost our economy while their kids attend U of T in style!

Below is another rendering of the proposed tower, by Toronto’s Diamond and Schmitt Architects, along with some photos I snapped of the project site this afternoon from College and Glasgow Streets.

Diamond and Schmitt Architects rendering of proposed residence tower

Proposed U of T residence tower site viewed from south side of College Street

Site viewed from the north side of College Street

Development proposal sign on College Street

Another site view from the north side of College Street

A printing centre once occupied this two-storey building

A view of the proposed development site looking east along College Street

The tower’s neighbours include the LillianSmith library, left.

View towards the tower site from the corner of Glasgow and Cecil Streets

Glasgow Street view of the proposed tower location

Another Glasgow Street view of the proposed tower location

Proposed tower location viewed from the north end of Glasgow Street

Proposed site viewed from a parking lot at the end of Glasgow Street

View south on Glasgow Street from the proposed tower location

View of the site (the short white building and the three-storey brown brick structure to its right), looking southwest from corner of College and Huron Streets

The CAMH building directly across College Street

Another view of the CAMH building on College Street

On the waterfront: $175M health sciences building is first phase of new George Brown College campus

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Rendering of the new George Brown College waterfront campus

Lakeside learning: George Brown College is giving the new Corus Quay office building some company on the waterfront.

Corus Quay, headquarters to the Corus Entertainment media company, opened last fall at 25 Dockside Drive near the foot of Jarvis Street — right beside the similarly brand-new urban park, Canada’s Sugar Beach. Along with the beach and nearby Sherbourne Common, which also opened last autumn, Corus Quay was the first project finished under Waterfront Toronto’s massive East Bayfront revitalization program. Since they moved into their new digs, the 1,100 Corus Quay employees have had the Muskoka chairs and custom park benches at Sugar Beach and Sherbourne Common mainly to themselves during weekdays. But that will soon change.

The second major Waterfront Toronto project is the George Brown College Health Sciences Centre campus, currently under construction between Corus Quay and Sherbourne Common. Scheduled to open for the 2012 fall semester, the 330,000-square-foot building will accommodate 3,500 students in the the schools of Dental Health, Health and Wellness, Nursing and Health Services Management.

Designed as a joint venture by Stantec Architecture and Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects, the building will have eight floors including a three-storey glass podium and a rooftop terrace. Besides classrooms and office facilities for the health care faculties, the full-service campus will house a health care clinic, bookstore, administrative offices and food service operations. The project cost is $175 million, of which $61.5 million is being paid by the Ontario government, and $30 million by the federal government.

That’s just phase one of the campus development; the facility will grow further in its second phase, for which the College is still seeking to raise funds from individual and corporate “partners.” And in several years’ time, the College plans to add a third campus in the vicinity. Once all the college faculty and students start joining the Corus employees on the waterfront in 2012, the East Bayfront lakeside promenade and boardwalk should be buzzing with activity all year long.

Those lucky kids won’t even have to cut classes to hit the beach — they’ll be able to catch some rays or walk along the lake during lunch breaks or between labs and lectures. Below is a college webcam photo of construction progress at the campus site, along with some of my photos of building activity between last August and this past Thursday.

College webcam view of new campus construction on Feb. 5 2011

George Brown College sign on Queen’s Quay August 29 2010

Construction site viewed on August 29 2010

Waterfront campus excavation and foundation work Aug. 29 2010

Waterfront campus excavation and foundation work Aug. 29 2010

Nov. 2 2010 CN Tower view of two cranes on the construction site immediately to the east of the new Corus Quay office building.

Construction viewed from walkway at Corus Quay on November 9 2010

Site viewed from walkway at Sherbourne Common on November 9 2010

Site viewed from walkway near Sherbourne Common on November 9 2010

Two cranes perched high above the campus construction site

One of the construction crane operators working at the campus site

Underground levels taking shape on February 3

Underground levels taking shape February 3

Underground levels taking shape on February 3

Underground levels taking shape February 3

Construction on February 3, viewed from the promenade along Lake Ontario. By this time next year, an 8-storey building will occupy this site.

Images of Ryerson University campus reflect in exterior of new image arts school and gallery

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Artistic rendering on a billboard beside the construction site on Gould Street

Ryerson reflects: A university campus is a great place for personal reflection, as a stroll past Ryerson University’s latest construction project proves.

The university is in the midst of a massive renovation and total transformation of its School of Image Arts building at the southwest corner of Bond and Gould Streets. As part of the redevelopment project, which began last year and continues until September 2012, the Ryerson Gallery and Research Centre will be incorporated into the new facility.

The gallery is intended to serve as an international centre “for the study, teaching, research and public exhibition of photography, new media and film.” It will “combine public exhibition of innovative work by professional Canadian and international artists” with academic research and education while also housing “the renowned Black Star Collection at Ryerson University and other collections in a museum-quality, climate-controlled environment.”

I’m glad to see the drab old building getting a complete overhaul, and I enjoy how the gallery’s shiny glass skin reflects nearby buildings on the Ryerson campus, including the clocktower at Kerr Hall. Unfortunately, most of the Rye U students don’t even seem to notice the gallery taking shape; they’re too busy fiddling with their smart phones as they rush past on their way to and from classes and coffee shops. But I’m sure the new school will catch their attention once the construction hoarding and fences come down, and the university joins the ranks of “the top international centres for photography and related disciplines.”

Further information and a rendering of the Ryerson Gallery and Research Centre is available here.

The photos that follow show the building’s renovation and construction progress during the past year.

Bond Street view of School of Image Arts renovations on March 8 2010

Bond Street view of School of Image Arts renovations on January 5 2011

Gould Street view of School of Image Arts renovations on March 8 2010

Gould Street view of School of Image Arts renovations on Dec 21 2010

Kerr Hall courtyard view of School of Image Arts on Nov 11 2010

School of Image Arts Bond Street facade reflects Kerr Hall on Nov 11 2010

School of Image Arts reflects Kerr Hall clock tower on Dec 21 2010

West side of School of Image Arts on Dec 21 2010

West side of School of Image Arts on January 8 2011

President envisions burned heritage building as Yonge Street gateway to Ryerson U campus

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The remains of 335 Yonge Street two days after the big blaze

Ryerson to the rescue? While firefighters and investigators today kept busy probing the cause of Monday’s destructive fire at 335 Yonge Street, the president of Ryerson University reiterated his keen interest in acquiring the historic property.

As I mentioned in a blog post the other day, I’ve been wondering if the university still wants the site — the William Reynolds Block — for its campus expansion plans. Turns out, it definitely does.

University president Sheldon Levy told The Globe and Mail that he’d still like to obtain the property for a possible Yonge Street “gateway” to the RU campus. According to the Globe & Mail story, “Ryerson has eyed the property as a potential venue for an additional entrance to the Dundas subway station for years, but failed to persuade the owners, the Lalani Group, to sell the land.” Ryerson is just about to start construction of a new student services building just a stone’s throw away — directly across Gould Street, on the site of the former Sam the Record Man store. Obtaining the 335 Yonge building would give the university the opportunity to create an impressive, stand-out entrance that its compact downtown campus has been sorely lacking.

But the big question, now, is whether City Hall and the provincial government have the wherewithal to finally get any kind of redevelopment of the site going — especially since they have allowed the property to sit neglected since part of its brick facade fell down last April.

“You don’t sit back and watch a building fall down and burn and then say, ‘Let’s think about this for another six months or a year,” Levy told the Globe. Sadly, that’s the way all levels of government typically act in Canada. They love to spend years talking about things they’d like to do before actually getting around to it — if they ever in fact do it at all.

Frankly, I’ll be amazed if any kind of redevelopment activity gets underway at 335 Yonge in the next year — whether it’s by Ryerson, the City, or by someone else. But I’ll be thrilled if the university does acquire the site and is able to restore the burned building as part of a new main entrance to its campus. Below are some pics I shot of 335 Yonge this afternoon.

Traffic was still restricted on two blocks of Yonge Street today

What’s left of the building’s Yonge Street facade

Firefighters surveying the ruins from an aerial platform

Firefighters hosing down the remains of the collapsed building

Site of Ryerson’s new student services centre, to start construction soon

Big digs: A look at how the earth’s been moving for five condos and a new waterfront college campus

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Hole-y moley! That’s my reaction to several mighty big excavations currently underway for a half dozen major construction projects in the southern half of downtown.

One of the biggest (above) is for the new waterfront campus of George Brown College, situated between Sherbourne Common and the Corus Entertainment head office, both of which opened in 2010.

Just down the road, an even bigger dig is in progress for the Waterlink at Pier 27 condo complex.

Meanwhile, York Centre is the site of an enormous L-shaped excavation where the two ICE condo towers (65 and 55 storeys tall, respectively) and their office highrise sister (31 floors) ultimately will rise alongside the new Infinity3 three condo building (35 storeys).

Finally, on nearby Front Street West, holes are gradually getting deeper for Fly Condos (24 floors) and the 300 Front Street West condo tower (49 storeys).

Here’s a set of photos I’ve taken of these project sites recently, including some aerial shots from the CN Tower.