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Ontario Place

Project Details

Originally conceived to revitalize the waterfront, attract tourists to Toronto, and in part, rival Montreal’s Expo 67, Ontario Place is nationally significant to Canada’s architectural legacy. It is an example of a visionary approach to waterfront development and a unique example of post-war era modernism.

Ontario Place was designed as a multiple use entertainment and seasonal amusement park, aimed to showcase the best of the province, as well as put its technological achievements on display. Driving the design were three guiding principles: flexibility for the changing demands of exhibitions, providing new life to Toronto’s waterfront which had been cut off by expressways, and creating a new kind of urban park that would integrate elements of both nature and city.

A 90-acre site consisting of of man-made islands and lagoons, five main ideas shape the makeup of Ontario Place: the Pavilions, the Cinesphere, the Islands, the Children’s Village, and the Forum.

As a city cut off from its waterfront, the Islands are animated with nature and shops inviting people out onto the water to experience the lake. The main reason for the man-made islands was to protect the foundation pylons of the pavilions from the wave action, therefore reducing the cost. Five pavilions, named “Pods”, were designed for flexible exhibition space and suspended by steel cables from four large central pylons driven deep into the lakebed. The Cinesphere connects with the pods and contains the first purpose-built IMAX theatre in the world. The Children’s Village, designed by Eric McMillan, and the Forum, a sheltered space for performances, have since been demolished.

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Project Details

Location

Toronto, Ontario

Client

Government of Ontario, Special Projects Branch

Status

Complete, 1971

Size

46 acres (man-made islands), 44 acres (protected water)

Scope

Architecture, Interior Design

Craig, Zeidler and Strong Landscape Architect: Hough, Stansbury and Associates

Awards

Royal Architectural Institute of Canada and The National Trust – Prix du Xxe Siècle for the Cinesphere and Pods, 2017

Ontario Association of Architects – Landmark Designation Award, 1999

Ontario Association of Architects – Design Excellence Award, 1976

American Society of Interior Designers – International Design Award, 1975

American Society of Landscape Architects – Merit Award, 1975

American Iron & Steel Institute – Design in Steel Citation for Excellence in Engineering, Low-rise Construction, 1973

Canadian Architect Yearbook – Award of Excellence, For Projects in the Design Stage, 1969

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