Western North York Community Centre
Toronto, Ontario
Area : 85,300 sf
On track to be Canada’s first ‘Aquatic-Based Net-Zero Energy Building’ and to meet the Canada Green Building Council’s Zero Carbon Building Standard, the new Western North York Community Center (WNYCC) is envisioned as a conduit to connect communities. Working with local residents, City of Toronto Parks, Forestry & Recreation Department, Children’s Services and a diverse consultant team, the project developed the City of Toronto’s most expansive community centre engagement process to-date. The WNYCC will provide this diverse and expanding community, currently lacking a public social gathering space, with new social and wellness infrastructure, including aquatic, fitness, recreation, childcare, and community programming. The project is the first Toronto Parks Forestry and Recreation facility mandated to meet the most recent and ambitious version of the Toronto Green Standards that requires 100% of the building’s energy use will be offset by site-sourced renewable energy and that greenhouse gas emissions will achieve near zero. This project arranges the infrastructure of a net-zero energy building to connect and strengthen separated communities within an urban park.