Student Learning Centre, Toronto Metropolitan University

The design begins with the creation of a south-facing raised platform that opens the street corner to allow for a broad range of pedestrian activity from larger gatherings to smaller individual seating areas. Part plaza, part porch, this space creates a welcoming yet protected urban edge shared by students and the general public. Shaped by a large canopy clad in blue hand-folded metal panels, the SLC promotes a strong urban quality that is generous and inviting to the public on the Yonge Street retail corridor, one of Canada’s best-known commercial avenues. The interior floors are all different in plan and section, offering students a wide variety of spaces to suit their needs, both volumetrically and atmospherically. Inspired by themes found in nature, each level has a distinctive character—some open and interpretive with flexible furniture, while others have enclosed study rooms dividing the floors into various configurations.

The interior floors are all different in plan and section, offering students a wide variety of spaces to suit their needs, both volumetrically and atmospherically. Inspired by themes found in nature, each level has a distinctive character—some open and interpretive with flexible furniture, while others have enclosed study rooms dividing the floors into various configurations.

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Project Details