As reported in Canadian Architect,  Infrastructure Ontario (IO) has selected a team led by contractors EllisDon as the preferred proponents to design downtown Toronto’s new courthouse. Beating out a handful of qualified Canadian and international teams, the EllisDon team features the acclaimed — and Pritzker-winning – Renzo Piano Building Workshop and Canada’s NORR Architects Engineers Planners as lead architects. Read the full article here.

In 2014 Urban Strategies was retained by Infrastructure Ontario to lead the planning approvals process for the zoning envelope of the site, a process was undertaken concurrently with functional programming.  As the lead planning consultant, Urban Strategies undertook extensive land use planning analysis and the coordination of necessary approvals documents, including a planning rationale, urban design guidelines, additional background studies, testing design options, overseeing the submission of the zoning by-law amendment, and liaising with City staff and subconsultants to see timely project approval. Read more.