There's a three-building, 300-unit complex rising between the bus station and Women's College Hospital that will go a long way to transforming the neighbourhood from a dense mass of uninviting concrete into something resembling a functional part of town.
Designed by
Regional Architects and
Hilditch Architects, the new YWCA women's housing complex, called the
Elm Centre, will feature roof-top gardens and extensive landscaping on street level.
"We've tried to reach out to the community with the massing and the views into the site," says Steve Hilditch, one of the project's architectural principals.
The 235,000 square foot complex, which will have certain units set aside for aboriginal women and 15 per cent for women over 50, is being built on the site of Toronto's first poor house, the 1848 facade of which is being retained, and is budgeted at $80-million. It's being built to Toronto Green standards, intentionally avoiding the expense of applying for LEED certification, which can be extensive, given the non-profit status of the project.
Demolition began late in 2007, construction began in early 2009, and is just now reaching the fifth storeys of all three buildings. They're expected to be completed 12 months from now.
Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Steve Hilditch
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