How ERA approaches housing across the affordable spectrum, and why the buildings already standing are our most powerful tool.
Canada’s housing crisis is, in part, a story about what we choose not to see. Across our cities, existing buildings such as Victorian rowhouses, mid-century apartment towers, and underused commercial buildings hold enormous latent potential. Unlocking that potential requires a particular kind of expertise: deep familiarity with how old buildings behave, how they can be renewed, and what it takes to convert them into high-quality homes for the people who need them most.
That intersection is where ERA works.
Over the past seven years, ERA has delivered or designed the adaptive reuse and modernization of more than 2,000 homes across the affordable housing spectrum: emergency shelters, transitional housing, supportive housing, and deeply affordable long-term homes. These projects revolve around the dignity and well-being of residents, with a focus on climate resilience, trauma-informed design, universal design best practices, and healthy indoor environments.
In the context of a housing crisis, adapting existing buildings is the most cost- and time-effective way to deliver homes. The building and the community are there, but what is often missing is the expertise to unlock this tremendous opportunity.
A gap in practice — and how we close it
Adaptive reuse for affordable housing presents a unique challenge. ERA has spent decades developing expertise in de-risking work in existing buildings and working with the social and non-profit housing sector.
Our practice brings together expertise in existing buildings, a deep understanding of the non-profit sector, trauma-informed design, community-oriented architecture, and ultra-high-performance building design in a single, integrated approach.
The following three projects illustrate ERA’s integrated approach across a range of affordable housing projects.
Parliament Street & Rose Avenue Supportive Housing
Two projects undertaken with Dixon Hall Neighbourhood Services and Toronto Community Housing illustrate ERA’s approach to renewing Victorian-era buildings. A row of townhouses on Parliament Street was adapted into 31 supportive housing units, while a vacant property on Rose Avenue, within the Cabbagetown Heritage Conservation District, was transformed into a vibrant seven-unit rooming house.
Working closely with ARUP Engineers and NSP Code Consulting, both projects required navigating the full complexity of heritage conservation while keeping focused on what matters: creating safe, healthy, and high-quality homes. Through design, these projects demonstrate how the rehabilitation of historic fabric can deliver inclusive, sustainable housing solutions for Toronto’s most vulnerable residents.
444 Logan Avenue Net Zero Renewal
“In the context of our current housing crisis, housing preservation is, in fact, housing supply.”
–ERA principal Graeme Stewart.
At 444 Logan, in partnership with WoodGreen Community Housing, ERA is pioneering an “outside-in” prefabricated building renewal, using new panelized technology to shop-fabricate a net-zero building envelope and HVAC upgrade. Completed with 160 senior residents in place, in collaboration with Entuitive and Hammerschlag & Joffe, this project demonstrates a first-of-its-kind approach to housing modernization while minimizing disruption and using modern construction methods.
3838 Bloor Street Women’s Shelter
For the City of Toronto, and in partnership with Entuitive, ERA is converting a former assisted-living facility into a modern 60-bed women’s shelter, providing community, wellness and program spaces. This net-zero-ready renovation and addition is designed using a soft, warm and welcoming language that de-institutionalizes the facility, integrating it into its mid-block site. This project demonstrates the transformational potential of conversions, bringing a dated building into alignment with best practice in shelter and housing design.
The road ahead
There are not enough trades, not enough materials, and not enough approval capacity to build our way out from scratch. The renewal, adaptation, and care of existing building stock must be part of the solution.
At ERA, we believe affordable housing is often best achieved through thoughtful re-use. Through thoughtful design and technical expertise, existing buildings can become homes for the people who need them most.
ERA works with municipalities, non-profit housing providers, and co-ops across Ontario. To discuss a project, contact us at eraarch.ca.
