Stories

Temporary, but Impactful: Michael McClelland Discusses New Creative Project Initiatives at The Drake Hotel

by ERA Architects

NXT City and Pavilion Project are teaming up to present ‘Short Term, Lasting Impact’, a panel discussion about the value of temporary projects at The Drake Hotel Underground. The event takes place on the evening of March 23rd, and features STACKT founder Matt Rubinoff, Layne Hinton + Rui Pimenta from in/future and Michael McClelland from...

ERA Learns the Fine Art of Tuckpointing from a Melbourne-based Master

by ERA Architects

On March 15th 20 staff from ERA and members of the Architecture Conservancy of Ontario’s Next Gen group joined Antoni Pijaca, a heritage mason with over 30 years of award-winning tuckpointing experience for a workshop focusing on techniques and skills of the trade. English Tuckpointing is a brick-laying method used on homes, churches, schools and institutions. Materials...

Sabina Ali & Graeme Stewart Speak to ‘Modern Tower Blocks and the 21st Century City’

by ERA Architects

Harlyn Thompson Lecture Series – Faculty of Architecture, University of Manitoba Thursday, March 16, 2017 6PM Lecture Eckhardt Gramatte Hall University of Winnipeg Speakers: Sabina Ali – Chair, Thorncliffe Park Women’s Committee Graeme Stewart – Principal, ERA Architects, Co-Founder/Board Member, Centre for Urban Growth and Renewal (CUG+R) and Co-Editor, Concrete Toronto: A Guidebook to Concrete...

ERA Contributes to the 2017 AIAS Quad Conference Through Tours of the Firm’s Office and The Distillery District

by ERA Architects

As host of the 2017 American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) Quad Conference, Ryerson University reached out to ERA Architects to host a tour of the firm’s offices and to conduct a tour of The Distillery District on March 10th & 11th respectively. Ryerson’s vision for the event was in inspiring and educating students on...

Women in Architecture: A Seminar Presented by Building Equity in Architecture, Toronto (BEAT)

by ERA Architects

Last Saturday, March 4th, as part of its third annual seminar, BEAT featured ERA Project Manager Amy Norris as part of a program of female architects, landscape architects, and interior designers based in Toronto. The panel spoke to students, recent graduates and young practitioners about their professional experiences working in and establishing design practices in...

ERA’s Big Day Out: We’re Launching Our 1st Annual Firm-wide Conference on March 3rd, 2017

by ERA Architects

ERA will be ‘out of office’ on March 3rd, as we attend our first annual conference, offering a range of opportunities to congregate and mingle as a full office! Follow the day’s proceedings – #eracon17. The following is an abridged agenda: 9:40 – WELCOME, OPENING REMARKS 9:45 – KEYNOTE SPEAKER Antonella Ceddia, Litigation Lawyer,...

Evergreen Brick Works Demonstrates How Revived Heritage Spaces Create Sustainable Cities

by ERA Architects

The 53,000-square-foot kiln building at Evergreen Brick Works is set for a conversion that will create a collaboration zone to aid in building sustainable cities, with a target of developing systems and technologies for reducing carbon emissions. To set the standard, project partners EllisDon, Brookfield Global Integrated Systems, CRH Canada, Levitt Goodman Associates Architectural Partners...

The Broadview Hotel is Awarded the Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation

by ERA Architects

The 2016 Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation has been awarded to Andrew Pruss, (Principal, ERA Architects), Les Mallins, (President, Streetcar) and the project team behind the revitalization of The Broadview Hotel. The award commends the contribution to the conservation of a heritage building and the community enhancement it fosters. The Broadview Hotel...

Taking the Tower Renewal Discussion to Vancouver

by ERA Architects

Vancouver’s high-rise rental apartment stock may vary in materiality from Toronto’s, however it’s no less in need of reinvestment and regeneration. In the article that follows Christopher Cheung looks to the Tower Renewal initiative for inspiration and a cue for what is possible on the west coast. Click here to view the article. All images...

Mikel Landa Discusses Wooden Heritage Conservation

by ERA Architects

Mikel Landa, a specialist in wooden architecture, heritage preservation and cultural landscapes discusses a sustainable approach to these topics at the Fort York National Historic Site Visitor Centre at 250 Fort York Boulevard on Saturday, February 18th from 3:00pm – 4:30pm. Read the posting for details.

Singapore’s d+a Magazine Covers the Don Jail Transformation into Bridgepoint Health

by ERA Architects

Former Toronto resident Rebecca Lo explores the Heritage Toronto award-winning project and shares Michael McClelland’s insights on a successful transition from a site laden with stigma and apprehension to one that is celebrated and fascinating to behold:

ERA Architects is Thrilled to Welcome David Winterton Back to the Team as Our Newest Associate

by ERA Architects

David Winterton is excited to return to Toronto and ERA Architects after 11 ½ years working and learning in the storied New York firm of Robert A. M. Stern Architects. There he served as a designer for Fifteen Central Park West, an 890,000 square foot, two-tower residential project occupying a full city block along Central...

The (Lane)way Forward: Exploring the Potential of Under-Served Public Space

by ERA Architects

As Toronto’s population increases in density, it places more pressure on ever-shrinking resources, including public space. The use of laneways in the city to increase public space offers the opportunity to release some of this pressure. ERA’s Annabel Vaughan moderated a panel discussion on November 30th on just this subject. Organized by The Laneway Project,...

‘Tower, Slab, Superblock: Social Housing Legacies and Futures’ Sparks the Imagination on Postwar Design and Construction

by ERA Architects

Participants included: Geraldine Dening, Co-Founder, Architects for Social Housing, Simon Elmer, Co-Founder, Architects for Social Housing, Phineas Harper, Deputy Director, The Architecture Foundation, Paul Karakusevic, Founder and Partner, Karakusevic Carson Architects, Jean-Louis Cohen – Sheldon H. Solow Professor in the History of Architecture at New York University, Javier Arpa, Research and Education Coordinator of The Why...

MP Peter Van Loan Supports Heritage Through Private Member’s Bill

by ERA Architects

“Peter’s progressive bill represents a true partnership role for government in protecting Canada’s Heritage.” – Michael McClelland Late last week the Conservative critic for Canadian Heritage and National Historic Sites, Peter Van Loan introduced a Private Member’s Bill enabling owners of recognized historic properties to apply for a 20% tax credit towards their restoration. Bill...

Rendez-Vous Maestria: The Restoration of the GCC’s Suspended Ceilings

by ERA Architects

On Friday, December 2nd, Jan Kubanek of ERA Architects will present La Restauration des Plafond Suspendus de Centre Conférence du government à Ottawa (The Restoration of the Government Conference Centre’s Suspended Ceilings), a rich insight into the revitalization of the Canadian landmark as it shifts into its future role of housing the Senate of Canada....

76 Howard Street’s Moving Day – Video Update

by ERA Architects

It’s one thing to pack and move house, and quite another to move a house! William Whitehead House, at the ripe old age of 130 years, was relocated under exacting circumstances to allow for the development of 1000 condos units in the St. Jamestown neighourhood. The team at ERA was on hand to supervise and...

A Sense of ‘History in the Making’ for a Toronto Residence

by ERA Architects

As highlighted in RUE Magazine’s article, “History in the Making” – the beauty is in the details. The multi-spread editorial in the recently published Issue 44, features the renovation and façade restoration of a residential project in Toronto’s Summerhill neighbourhood. The home was originally designed by John Wilson Siddall and respectfully transitioned into a more...

New Visions for Social Housing in Canadian Architect Magazine

by ERA Architects

In the November issue of Canadian Architect author Jay Pitter investigates how spatial issues contribute to community challenges such as isolation, despair and violence in urban social housing communities. Using the community where she grew up in Toronto as a case study, Pitter explores the design deficiencies of the Corbusian “Towers in the Park” style...

Big Cities in a ‘small’ Context

by ERA Architects

How do cities grow? Do we limit growth or encourage it? Direct it or simply discover its natural rhythms? While municipal planning, land use policies and settlement patterns have shaped the physical aspect of North American cities, often social, cultural and environmental forces leave a firmer mark on our communities. ERA’s Philip Evans and Heather...

Mission Point Resort Wins Prestigious Award

by ERA Architects

Mission Point Resort been recognized by Condé Nast Traveler’s Reader’s Choice Survey as the best resort in Michigan and one of the top ten resorts in the US Midwest. ERA was brought on as prime design consultants in 2014, when new ownership began an ambitious scope of improvements to upgrade guest experience and comfort requirements....

Friends of Allan Garden’s Tulip Festival Offers a Chance to Embed the City with Colour for the Spring

by ERA Architects

Winter may be around the corner, but we’re already looking forward to springtime in Allan Gardens. We will soon be planting two large beds of tulips at the centre of our favourite park, and hope that you will join us! The flowers will bloom in spring 2017, just in time for Canada’s 150th Anniversary of...

Flags: Public Artwork Complete

by ERA Architects

A new public work by artist Josh Thorpe has just been launched at Maple Claire Park, Toronto. For this project, entitled Flag Field, ERA Architects provided landscape architectural and project management services. Flag Field consists of fourteen custom flags on flagpoles ranging from 25 to 50 feet high. Thorpe designed the flags as simple drawings...

A Field Guide to Tactical Heritage Urbanism

by ERA Architects

ERA Architects, in conjunction with the Canadian National Committee of the International Council of Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS Canada), is proud to announce the launch of “A Field Guide to Tactical Heritage Urbanism”. Tactical heritage urbanism is a collection of economically accessible, temporary initiatives enacted by citizens to introduce and celebrate the stories and experiences...

Toronto’s Cultural Heritage Landscapes: From Plan to Action

by ERA Architects

On Saturday, November 5th, from 9:00am – 4:30pm in room #308 of Metro Hall (55 John Street) the Community Preservation Panels of the City of Toronto are hosting a discussion about how Cultural Heritage Landscapes (CHL’s) should be approached as part of city building and heritage conservation processes. Cultural Heritage Landscapes are defined by the...