Location: Toronto, Ontario

Architecture Practices: Bucholz McEvoy Architects Ltd. + ZAS Architects Inc.

The Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) was formed to enhance the region’s natural environment, protect lands, water, and communities from the impacts of extreme weather events across nine watersheds and the Lake Ontario shoreline. The project site is located on the edge of Black Creek Ravine, where TRCA’s objective was to create a tangible exemplar for sustainable development in the sensitive ravine transition zone over which they hold stewardship.

The brief for the TRCA Headquarters was to create a workplace that would facilitate public engagement as well as interdisciplinary science-based work, in response to its mission of conserving, restoring, and managing natural resources. The design team has created a workplace for TRCA embedded in the natural environment of the ravine trees, crafted of mass timber echoing its setting. The presence of water is made visible in the project’s “waterwalls”: full-height “glass ducts” within which water flows vertically and is visible from most parts of the building. The sight and sound of the waterwalls evoke the primary purpose of TRCA: the protection of Toronto’s watersheds.

 

Jury Comments

"This project embeds sustainability into its DNA, but also puts it on display in a very public and engaging manner. Children and adults alike are fascinated and entranced by the 
water wells. It sets a new benchmark for ambitious sustainable design within the City of Toronto."

 

Check out our BLOAAg article for more information.

Publish Date : 2026/Jun/17