Fosters, Adjaye and Brooks on Toronto Quayside shortlist

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Four teams shortlisted for site once earmarked for Heatherwick’s timber smart town

Source: Waterfront Toronto

Aerial view of Toronto Quayside development area

Three British practices have made it on to the shortlist for a huge quayside scheme in Toronto.

The 5ha site was previously set to host 3,000 timber homes designed by Thomas Heatherwick and Snohetta for Google sister company Sidewalk Labs.

Thatsmart city scheme– which was unpopular with locals – fell apparent victim to the pandemic, with Sidewalk announcing in May last year that it was scrapping the project because of global economic uncertainty.

A new contest for the site was launched in March by government-backed development company Toronto Waterfront. The request for qualifications (RFQ) received entries from 10 teams in May.

These have now been whittled down to four, with Fosters going head to head with a team comprising Adjaye Associates, Canadian-born Alison Brooks and Henning Larsen.

The other two teams feature Marble Arch Mound architect MVRDV with Cobe and Canada’s Diamond Schmitt Architects.

Source: Standard Practice

Artistic rendering of what Toronto’s fully developed Quayside could look like. (The massing is one possible vision and has not been approved and would be subject to a re-zoning process)

入围者现在将被邀请对提案请求(RFP)作出回应，“首选提案”预计将在今年年底前确定。

在提及去年Sidewalk Labs退出的打击时，多伦多海滨的一位发言人说:“提交的数量和质量明确表明，多伦多海滨仍然是一个理想的发展目的地，Quayside能够并将为该省疫情后的恢复做出贡献。”

In March the body said it was after teams “with the proven experience, design portfolio, financial resources and shared vision necessary to bring Quayside to reality”.

Stephen Diamond, who chairs the Waterfront Toronto board, said: “We are looking for leaders in the development field that will share our ambition to create a place that fuses Quayside to the water, and provides more beauty, utility and originality than previously imagined. We want Quayside to be timeless, adaptive and to propel us into our rightful place among the great waterfronts of the world.”