Stories
Toronto Urban Design Award Winners
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The Toronto Urban Design Awards (TUDA) acknowledges and celebrates Toronto’s built environment, striving to “identify projects that are unequivocally public.” Winning projects were announced on September 13th during a private reception at the Palais Royale. ERA would like to congratulate the teams who contributed to 5 award-winning projects: Broadview Hotel, Award of Excellence – Private...
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The Life-Sized City focuses a lens on Toronto’s urban landscape, celebrating the heroes who are making the city more livable
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Host Mikael Colville-Andersen covers feel-good stories from local community-driven initiatives to government-funded transit and harbour front enhancement projects. The city is promoted as diverse, personable and multi-faceted. This collection of stories is what defines Toronto as a livable city, one whose population growth continues to outpace all others in North America. At the 28.20-minute mark...
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Toronto the Good 2017
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Toronto the Good is back, ushering in a new season at a new venue! It is an annual party presented by ERA Architects (and friends) to celebrate the city of Toronto, and contemplate its history and evolution with fellow architects, designers, and urban-minded people. For this instalment of our annual party we are supporting the...
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Joseph Bloor: A Celebration to Honour a Prominent City-Builder
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On Thursday, August 31st from 12:00 – 1:00pm at 117 Bloor Street East, Heritage Toronto will be hosting a plaque unveiling to commemorate Joseph Bloor. His surname harkens images of the city’s main cross-town artery and the path along which half of the TTC’s Line 2 traverses. What many do not know is that Joseph...
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Update: RAC Zone Launch Event
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On Wednesday, July 19th, leaders in the development of Toronto’s Residential Apartment Commercial (RAC) Zoning by-law gathered at York University to celebrate and explore challenges and next steps in empowering communities to utilize Toronto’s newest zone. The esteemed panel had representation from property owners, entrepreneurs, community members, academics and city builders with Graeme Stewart, Principal...
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Hamilton‘s Durand Built Heritage Inventory project paper has been published by the ISPRS
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In 2013, ERA worked with the City of Hamilton on updating their Downtown Built Heritage Inventory (DBHI) project that reviewed 789 properties of architectural and historical value in an effort to understand the built heritage resources within the downtown core and how they contribute to Hamilton’s character. Survey and inventory methodology was designed to apply...
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Heritage Toronto 2017 Award Nominations and Great Architectural Heritage Bus Tour
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The 2017 Heritage Toronto award nominations are now listed on the organization’s website. ERA is pleased to share that the firm is represented through three projects in the following categories: Public History Award Howard Street House Move Creators: David Dworkind, Filmmaker and Timelapse Devin Lund, Timelapse Producers: Rafi Younger, Lanterra Developments Ltd. Scott Weir, ERA...
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Kensington Market Lofts Presents a Gateway of Colour to the Neighbourhood
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Kensington Market is one of the most culturally diverse neighbourhoods in Toronto, with a long history of fostering an organic, eclectic mix of sights, sounds and tastes within the context of a relatively low density, residential building stock. Situated within this thriving cultural hub, ERA is working with Kensington Market Lofts on a long-term multi-stage...
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The Broadview Hotel Opens its Doors to the Public
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Since it first opened as Dingman’s Hall in 1891, the Broadview Hotel has been a landmark east of the downtown in the Riverside neighbourhood. Originally a venue for public meetings and commercial businesses, it first opened as a hotel in 1908. With the recent renewal, it has once again become a community hub for events...
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The Lost Craft of Tuck Pointing
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Pointing, repointing, tuck pointing, ribbon pointing, flush pointing, there are many techniques and they are all different. Tuck pointing is a style of jointing that was predominantly used on English brickwork from the late seventeen century and it continued in popular use through the early 20th century. Done properly, it is the most highly skilled...
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Launching the RAC Zone
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Property owners, entrepreneurs, community members, academics and city builders will gather at York University in celebration of Toronto’s newest zone: the Residential Apartment Commercial (RAC) (www.raczone.ca). Moderated by Graeme Stewart, Principal of ERA and the Centre for Urban Growth and Renewal, this event hosted by the City of Toronto will centre discussions on...
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ULD London – Graeme Stewart Showcases Toronto at London institution’s 15th Anniversary event
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This June ERA’s Graeme Stewart showcased Toronto at the Urban Design London 15th Anniversary event. Hosted at London City Hall, the event brought together speakers from London, Paris, New York, Toronto and Auckland, outlining advances in city building, urban design thinking and public policy as these cities grapple with the opportunities and challenges of 21st Century urbanism. The...
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Refreshing Allan Gardens
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The Friends of Allan Gardens (FOAG) are leading efforts to ensure that this historic public garden remains relevant and integrated into its ever-evolving surrounds. ERA’s Tatum Taylor, who also sits on FOAG’s Board of Directors, has published an article in the Summer/Parks issue of Spacing Magazine that describes the process for renewal. In her words:...
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Towers: a comparison in evaluation, context, and conservation
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Is the practice of heritage conservation limited to conventional landmark structures, or, can it have a broader application in relation to social and economic sustainability across our built fabric? These emerging practice issues were raised by Michael McClelland during a symposium at the 2015 Association for Preservation Technology International (APT) Conference in Kansas City, and...
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The View from Bonavista
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How do historic building practices contribute to a region’s cultural identity? What possibilities are created by the integration of new industrial, commercial, and institutional buildings into a townscape known for its heritage resources? How could a community support or encourage good quality design of new buildings? These are a few of the design challenges that...
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CUG+R at Urban Design London
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Cities internationally are exploring the challenges and opportunities of modern tower blocks and 21st century urban regeneration. Next week Graeme Stewart and Ya’el Santopinto of ERA Architects and the Centre for Urban Growth and Renewal will take part in a series of conversations focused on urban regeneration at Urban Design London (UDL) and Oxford University....
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Evergreen Canada Launches An Online Exhibit: Complete Communities
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Evergreen Canada has launched an online gallery entitled ‘Complete Communities‘ that showcases several projects within and surrounding the GTA that provide affordable homes, fresh food, clean water, local services, green spaces and great recreation to their residents. Accessibility is made available through walking, biking and public transit. The Ridgeway Community Court is one of these projects. Ridgeway has a...
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Ontario Heritage Conference Panel Highlights the Success of Recent Projects
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How does project planning, coordination and stakeholder engagement feed into the execution of a Lieutenant Governor Ontario Heritage Award winning architectural conservation project? ERA Principal Andrew Pruss will discuss the successes and challenges of the restoration of The Broadview Hotel project in ‘Getting It Right: The Formula for Heritage Conservation’, one of several sessions at the...
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Ridgeway Community Courts Celebrates the Spirit of Collaboration with Award Win
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Ridgeway Community Courts has recently been recognized by the City of Mississauga as a project that is improving the quality of life for local residents. On May 24th, 2017 ERA Architects was presented with the Community Partnership Award as acknowledgement of the inspirational partnership between the municipality and firm. The project is the realization of...
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Albert Jackson’s Story: local students document a history of social injustice spurring a network of community partnerships
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In 2013, students at Clinton Public School produced a book on Albert Jackson, the first African Canadian postal worker in Toronto. Jackson was born into slavery in Delaware and escaped to Canada via the Underground Railroad only to face racial discrimination in his new home. He ultimately became the city’s first black letter carrier and...
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Michael McClelland on the Panel: Discussions on Art and Nature in Public Space
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Art, nature and public engagement intersect throughout the city in many ways and ERA is in the thick of discussions leading to interesting, inspirational projects. Last Saturday Michael McClelland participated in a panel featuring the local urbanite’s quest for green space and reprieve from sprawl, as depicted in the City of Toronto commissioned photographs by Robert...
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ERA Principal Scott Weir Walks Designer Tommy Smythe Through a Few Current Conservation Projects
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Scott Weir was invited to tour designer Tommy Smythe of The Marilyn Denis Show through some of ERA’s current conservation projects. The first project shown is the conservation of houses at 62-64 Charles St (project team: Andrew Pruss, Daniel Lewis and Julie Tyndorf) which is being undertaken in collaboration with aA, for Cresford Developments. Hunt Heritage is...
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Start Small: Placemaking & Cultural Economies
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In collaboration with small, ERA is proud to present Start Small: Placemaking & Cultural Economies a talk with Halifax-area cultural economic drivers moderated by Philip Evans, Founder of small and Principal at ERA Architects. Join us for this free, public event taking place from 6-7pm, on May 24th at Arts Bar + Projects at 1873...
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It’s Symposium Season!
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The arrival of spring heralds opportunities to get out and enjoy engaging discourse on topics near and dear to the hearts of heritage conservationists. As a result, ERA has been branching out and sharing our knowledge with audiences in Toronto and Ottawa over the past weekend, participating in two exciting initiatives. First up, the Toronto branch...
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Coming Up: The Ward – Songs and Sounds of a Lost Toronto Neighbourhood
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Michael McClelland invites Toronto residents as well as those from abroad to experience an eclectic evening honouring a largely forgotten musical legacy: ‘Dear Friends and Colleagues, I invite you to join us for this intimate cabaret-style concert, as it promises to be an unforgettable experience, one that was sold out through its debut presentation at...
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