Weeks after SickKids Hospital unveiled their proposed B+H Architects-designed Patient Support Centre (PSC), and a full year after rezoning was sought for the site at 175 Elizabeth Street, an application for Site Plan Approval (SPA) has now been submitted to the City of Toronto. The SPA application marks one of the final steps in the planning process, reveals new details about the project, and comes with a number of new renderings.

Looking northeast to the Patient Support Centre, image via submission to City of Toronto

To be built as the first phase in SickKids' ambitious 'Project Horizon', the new PSC is set to replace the Elizabeth McMaster Building, a 1983-built 8-storey structure currently undergoing demolition at the corner of Elm and Elizabeth Streets. Plans call for a 39,652 m² 22-storey building reaching a height of 102 metres, consisting of 38,844 m² of hospital space and 500 m² of retail space in the form of a cafe.

In the time since the design was unveiled in January, minor refinements have been carried out and revealed in the latest submission. The arrangement of the stacked volumes has been adjusted slightly, most notably the removal of a cantilevered section above the base volume’s south elevation.

Looking north to the Patient Support Centre, image via submission to City of Toronto

Other changes include the addition of a spectrum of colours differentiating floor levels in stairwells, replacing the previous blue ribbon style stairwells with a style better matching the colourful design of the adjacent pedestrian bridge. The bridge itself has also been revised, with striated patterns added to the previously transparent multicoloured glass panels.

Looking east to the Patient Support Centre, image via submission to City of Toronto

The new documents also shed light on the various materials that would be used to clad the building’s exterior. The bulk of the building envelope would consist of curtainwall glazing, while a mix of white and gold vertical fins would be executed with pre-finished aluminum panels. The less prominent north and east elevations would feature large sections of white/grey pre-finished aluminum panels with vertical strips of translucent laminated glass, mirroring the arrangement of the fins on the south and west elevations.

Looking south to the Patient Support Centre, image via submission to City of Toronto

Another new rendering released with the SPA submission offers a closer look at both the bridge and the public realm. A network of angled columns would support the bridge, while a yellow soffit underneath would form a relationship with the tower fins. Similarly, yellow benches in polygonal shapes would line the Elizabeth Street frontage, while vibrant red bike locking rings would provide contrast.

Public realm, Patient Support Centre, image via submission to City of Toronto

Additional information and images can be found in our database file for the project, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum thread, or leave a comment in the field provided at the bottom of this page.

* * *

UrbanToronto has a new way you can track projects through the planning process on a daily basis. Sign up for a free trial of our New Development Insider here.