Canary District Garner's Prestigious Award

Dundee Kilmer Developments’ construction of the Canary District on Toronto’s waterfront  may be in its earliest days, but widespread industry recognition for the cutting-edge neighbourhood’s design innovation and excellence is already taking flight.  

The design for the Canary District / Pan Parapan American Games Athletes Village  by the Dundee Kilmer Integrated Design Team (IDT)—a joint venture of architectsAlliance and Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects in association with Daoust Lestage Inc. and MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects—has been honoured with the 2012 Canadian Architect Award of Excellence. 

The Canadian Architect Awards of Excellence, one of two major national design award programs, has recognized significant projects – from small-scale installations to complex institutional buildings – on an annual basis since 1968.  The Canary District, which will first serve as the Athletes’ Village for the Toronto 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games before being reimagined as Toronto’s most dynamic master-planned live-work-play community, was one of nine projects selected for the honour from 167 submissions across Canada.                                                   

“The Canary precinct is sophisticated proof (and a quiet rallying call) that intelligent cities should renew the currency of the well-crafted ‘block’ as the real medium in which we can grow good neighbourhoods,” Awards of Excellence juror Donald Chong said of the dynamic new district’s design. 

In addition to this prestigious design recognition, the Canary District was recently awarded the National Sales and Marketing Gold Award for Community of the Year (Urban) by Washington, D.C.-based National Association of Home Builders, along with the NAHB’s Gold Award for Best Website for a Community and six Silver Awards across various real estate marketing categories. The highly-coveted international awards recognize exemplary work in real estate sales, marketing, and design from around the world. 

“These accolades are indicative of the creativity and imagination of the entire team currently breathing life into the Canary District,” said Dundee Kilmer Developments Limited president Jason Lester. “I believe our vision for this exciting new community will not only stand the test of time, but will contribute to Toronto’s ongoing growth and success for generations to come.” 

To ensure aesthetic diversity across the Canary District, the IDT was commissioned to design unique, contemporary buildings reflective of each team member’s trademark distinct architectural styles, while working within Waterfront Toronto’s precinct and block plan for the new district. The goal: building a truly livable and sustainable neighbourhood.   

Designed as a community for the 21st century, some of the Canary District’s most important features include an extensive pedestrian network to allow for a highly walkable neighbourhood, open and transparent streetscapes, as well as large-scale building windows and balconies to offer a connection between residents living above and the bustle of streets below—a direct nod to the late Toronto urban planning visionary Jane Jacobs’ ‘eyes on the street’ thesis. Amenities at the base of residential buildings will include retail stores, cafes and restaurants, as well as accessible community and recreational services. 

 

To learn more about the innovative, sustainable new neighbourhood that is transforming the heart of Toronto, visit www.canarydistrict.com