For Immediate Release: February 28, 2008
The Faculty of Law announced today that world renowned architectural firm Hariri Pontarini has been selected for the renovation and expansion plans for the Faculty of Law.
Dean Mayo Moran and architect Siamak Hariri in front of displays of the Hariri Pontarini design |
"We are delighted to announce that
Hariri Pontarini Architects has been selected from among the three short-listed architectural firms for the renovation and expansion of the Faculty of Law's building project," says law school Dean Mayo Moran.
"Over the past six months we have consulted broadly with our alumni, faculty, staff, students and friends and neighbours within the community to seek input and generate discussion about this important project for the faculty, the university, and the city of Toronto. In the end, the choice was overwhelmingly in favour of Hariri Pontarini's conceptual plans. We are looking forward to working with Hariri Pontarini, and confident that their design team will create a magnificent and inspiring space for our world class faculty," she adds.
The redevelopment of the Faculty of Law comes in response to external reviews carried out in 2001 and 2006 which called for significant upgrading of the buildings which house the U of T Faculty of Law, internationally acclaimed for its diverse faculty, highly sought-after students, and distinguished alumni.
Over the past decade, the law school's academic, extra-curricular, and co-curricular programs have grown dramatically and the number of faculty members has more than doubled. While these changes have enhanced the quality of legal education and ensured that U of T has remained Canada's preeminent law school, they have also left the law school in desperate need of space.
Firms submitting design ideas for the Faculty's new building project were instructed to take advantage of the law school's prominent location by introducing new physical and visual connections with both Queen's Park and Philosopher's Walk, keeping in mind that the precinct should not be considered in isolation, but rather as part of an integrated campus system. The request was for innovative design approaches for the creation of a landmark institutional precinct that will accommodate and augment the faculty's historic buildings, engage and inspire members of our community, reflect a commitment to leading-edge environmental sustainability and physical accessibility, and play an important part in the architecture of the city.
"We are truly thrilled and deeply honoured to be working with Dean Moran and her team on this project of a lifetime. Our proposed design is about building community - to create a strong, central, uplifting space that gathers the entire school, enables accidental encounters, and hosts celebrations. The central gathering space, dubbed The Forum, will be a welcoming place for major events and one that encourages intellectual dialogue between classes," says Siamak Hariri.
"In addition, this is one of the sweetest locations on campus, if not the city, situated between Queen's Park and Philosophers' Walk. The proposed design seeks to take full advantage of the potential of this amazing site. We are confident that the design will reflect the stature of this great law school in an understated, inspiring and enduring way," he adds.
Background
Three top Canadian architectural firms were selected in the Fall of 2007 by the U of T Faculty of Law to produce conceptual designs for the renovation and expansion of its historic buildings. The first public presentation of the designs took place on Thursday, October 11th at an evening event for the faculty's alumni community and members of the Bloor and Queen's Park communities.
Design principals of each of the three firms, Hariri Pontarini Architects and Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects both of Toronto, and Saucier + Perrotte Architectes of Montreal, presented their schemes, answered questions and explained their vision for the faculty's important institutional setting.
The Faculty of Law is prominently located on Queen's Park Crescent, with grand boulevard views to Queen's Park and a direct connection to the bucolic Philosopher's Walk. The faculty is also the centre point of the University of Toronto's downtown campus, bridging the university's western and eastern buildings.
In describing the proposals, Dean Mayo Moran says that the designs incorporate elements that enhance the faculty's heritage buildings and its location along Philosopher's Walk, and that reflect a commitment to leading-edge environmental sustainability and physical accessibility.
The redevelopment of the Faculty of Law comes in response to external reviews carried out in 2001 and 2006 which called for significant upgrading of the law school, internationally acclaimed for its diverse faculty, highly sought-after students, and distinguished alumni.
Following an international request for proposals, the search committee narrowed several competing firms to a shortlist of three highly-acclaimed Canadian firms. Their submissions respond to the law school's ambition to build an inspired, enduring work of architecture - one that is environmentally intelligent and sensitively aligned to its remarkable civic setting.
The reinvented Faculty of Law will accommodate a conference centre for students and the law community, a constitutional centre, new student study space and faculty offices, and a new Centre for Professionalism, Ethics and Public Service, among other enhanced features.
The Faculty of Law at the University of Toronto has a long and illustrious history. Established in 1887, it is a dynamic intellectual and social community with nearly 60 full-time faculty members and more than 25 annual distinguished short-term visiting professors from the world's leading law schools, as well as over 700 undergraduate and graduate students. The faculty's rich academic programs are supplemented by its many legal clinics and public interest programs, and its close links to more than 6,000 alumni, who enjoy rewarding careers in every sector of Canadian society and remain involved in many aspects of life at the law school.
Over recent decades, the law school's academic, extra-curricular, and co-curricular programs have grown dramatically. The number of faculty members has more than doubled; senior managerial staff, program directors, and support staff have also increased. While these changes have enhanced the quality of legal education we offer students and ensured that we have remained Canada's preeminent law school, they have also left us literally bursting at the seams and in desperate need of space. Our existing facilities and physical space (Flavelle House and Falconer Hall) can no longer support the law school's current programmatic needs or indeed our anticipated future needs.
In order to address our space needs, in June 2007, the faculty issued an "Expression of Interest" to firms across Canada and internationally, to seek a broad range of expertise and creative input on the kind of design space that could be created on the faculty's existing site.
The Faculty of Law is located in an important institutional setting. It is prominently located and accessed from Queen's Park Crescent, a main city thoroughfare, but also the formal symbolic edge to the largest open space in downtown Toronto. The Expression of Interest asked firms to take advantage of the law school's prominent location by introducing new physical and visual connections with both Queen's Park and Philosopher's Walk, keeping in mind that the precinct should not be considered in isolation, but rather as part of an integrated campus system. The request was for innovative design approaches for the creation of a landmark institutional precinct that will accommodate and augment the faculty's historic buildings, engage and inspire members of our community, reflect a commitment to leading-edge environmental sustainability and physical accessibility, and play an important part in the architecture of the city.
In order to ensure a broad and diverse range of design expertise and ideas, the faculty advertised both nationally and internationally, and specifically targeted a number of well known and highly acclaimed firms.
The response was overwhelmingly positive, with the faculty receiving submissions from a broad array of leading Canadian and international firms.
Following receipt of the submissions on June 27, 2007, a selection committee of university delegates and faculty members carefully reviewed each of the proposals. From the numerous firms that expressed an interest, six were short-listed, and asked to prepare and give presentation/interviews to a committee comprised of representatives from the architectural community, university delegates, members of the law school, and Lisa Rochon, architectural critic for the Globe and Mail.
On July 6, 2007, the selection committee met with each of the six chosen firms for presentations of ideas. The committee was extremely pleased with the quality and depth of the presentations, which were all highly creative with a number of innovative and exciting ideas for how the faculty's space needs could be met with new additions and extensive renovations. After lengthy discussion and deliberation, the selection committee reached a consensus around three exceptional architectural firms that were asked to produce development studies.
The following three leading Canadian architectural firms were chosen:
- Hariri Pontarini Architects of Toronto
- Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects of Toronto
- Saucier + Perrotte Architectes of Montreal
They were sent further information packages to assist them in their work. Over the following month there were continued consultations with the Faculty of Law community and neighbours of the precinct as well as City of Toronto staff.
On October 11, 2007, the Faculty of Law held a special open house to unveil the three conceptual designs to alumni, friends, and interested members of the university community and general public.
Throughout the fall and winter 2007/08, the models were displayed in the foyer of Flavelle House, 78 Queen's Park, and members of the community were encouraged to visit the law school to view the plans.
Key Dates:
| June 4th, 2007 |
Issuance of Expressions of Interest/RFP |
| June 27th, 2007 |
Submission deadline |
| Week of July 2nd, 2007 |
Interviews with selected teams |
| July 16th, 2007 |
Selection of up to three teams for Stage 2 |
| July 17th, 2007 |
Initiation of Stage 2 |
| September 21st, 2007 |
Design submissions due |
| October 11, 2007 |
Open House to unveil the three plans |
| Fall/Winter 2007/08 |
Public presentations and exhibits |
| January 2008 |
Online survey of students, alumni, staff and faculty to collect feedback about the plans |
| February 28, 2008 |
Announcement that Hariri Pontarini Architects has been chosen to design the new law school building |
| Winter/Spring 2008 |
Ongoing consultations by Dean Moran with alumni regarding the building campaign |
