3 ConEd Learning Hours
3.0 AIA LU

Since Toronto adopted a laneway suite zoning policy in 2018, dozens have been constructed, adding rental units and flexible family housing in established neighbourhoods across the city. This walking tour will explore a variety of projects that exemplify the history of laneway housing in Toronto – a laneway house that was created prior to the new bylaws, a laneway suite that complies with the bylaws, and a 2-unit infill house that goes beyond the bylaws. The tour is guided by the architects who pioneered Toronto’s laneway suite policy, and have since completed over 50 laneway suite projects.

Learning Objectives

1. Understand the history of architect-led policy changes for infill housing and design in Toronto.
   
2. Balancing the need for new housing with the preservation of greenspace, existing infrastructure, and neighbourhood character.
   
3. Using new housing policies to sustain accessibility to home purchasing and rentals in a hot housing market.
   
4. Understand the design and construction challenges and opportunities with small-scale, neighbourhood infill housing.

Speakers:

Craig Race (OAA, LEED AP, Co-Founder, Lanescape)
Craig’s design process focuses on environmental and contextual sensitivity. His skill in crafting buildings that fit sensitively into their surroundings has engendered a passion for laneway development. In addition to his role at Lanescape, Craig operates an architecture and development practice focused on environmentally-conscious, contextually sensitive residential design. It was during his time on the West coast that laneway housing was conceived as a legitimate concept, allowing Craig to become familiar with the advantages and challenges of this emerging housing typology.

Paul Dowsett (Architect, OAA, FRAIC, LEED AP, CanPHI Passive House Planner, Congress for The New Urbanism Advocate)

Paul Dowsett, the co-founder of Sustainable | Architecture for a Healthy Planet, is a leading thinker and advocate in the space of sustainability and architecture. For more than the past decade, Paul has been central to the introduction of sustainable architecture to the mainstream, while practicing deep community engagement with equity-seeking groups of all backgrounds and abilities. At the core of Paul’s philosophy and practice is the belief that design and construction solutions should be simple, sensitive, and sustainable - Simple should be the new Smart.

This tour is NOT barrier free. Attendees will be required to walk several blocks and climb stairs.