Last year Toronto became the first North American city to mandate green roofs on all new residential, commercial and institutional buildings larger than 21,500 square feet. Now it has created a 118,000 square foot example on top of the City Hall.
"The $2.2 million garden has been drawing thousands of visitors since it opened in May-more than 10,000 people on the first weekend alone," reports Tim Keough.
"The city has really been pushing the green side of construction and wanted to lead by example," says Bruce Bowes, Toronto's chief corporate officer. "A number of projects have been undertaken at city hall. One is the roof podium. Others include hooking up to a deep-lake water-cooling system and adding building-automation systems."
Two local firms, Plant Architect and Shore Tilbe Perkins + Will, planned the new rooftop oasis and are leading the larger transformation of the square below.
The Finnish architect Viljo Revell, who completed Toronto's modernist city hall in 1965, had always intended for the podium roof to be publicly accessible, but "it had been closed off for about fifteen years," says Mary Tremain, a partner at Plant.
FULL STORY: Up On The Roof
Developers of "Cool Roof" Buildings May Catch a Break
Industrial building developers, who had previously decried the price tag of green roofs now standard to many buildings in Toronto, may get the OK to construct an alternative, reflective roof instead.
Green Roofs May Be Mandated in Toronto
Toronto City Council is planning to vote on a measure that would require green roofs on most buildings over 54,000 square feet, which would make it the first North American city to require green roofs. Developers are opposing the move.
The Most Popular Tree on Google?
Meet Rodney: the Toronto tree getting rave reviews.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
San Francisco's School District Spent $105M To Build Affordable Housing for Teachers — And That's Just the Beginning
SFUSD joins a growing list of school districts using their land holdings to address housing affordability challenges faced by their own employees.
The Tiny, Adorable $7,000 Car Turning Japan Onto EVs
The single seat Mibot charges from a regular plug as quickly as an iPad, and is about half the price of an average EV.
Seattle's Plan for Adopting Driverless Cars
Equity, safety, accessibility and affordability are front of mind as the city prepares for robotaxis and other autonomous vehicles.
As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?
With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.
With Protected Lanes, 460% More People Commute by Bike
For those needing more ammo, more data proving what we already knew is here.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Smith Gee Studio
City of Charlotte
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)