2.3K 
Construction is underway for the redevelopment of Danforth Baptist Church in Toronto’s North Riverdale area, where an eight-storey mass timber affordable rental building is rising behind carefully retained portions of the heritage church at the southwest corner of Danforth Avenue and Bowden Street. Designed by McCallum Sather Architects for Assembly Corp in partnership with WoodGreen Community Services, the project includes preserved elements of the early-20th-century church, overseen by ERA Architects.
Seen from Bowden Street in July, 2025, blue weatherproofing has been applied to a temporary wall separating the retained portion of the sanctuary from new work. A telescopic hydraulic boom lift allows crews to access the upper portions of the retained tower on the east side of the site. To the right, the back of the heritage Danforth frontage can be seen in the site's northeast corner..
In September, 2025, excavation was well advanced across the site as work progressed on the project’s single underground level. To the right of the blue sanctuary wall, protective Tyvek wrap is installed across the back of the the retained church tower. In the excavation pit, rebar is in place for the lowest slab while wall forms are being assembled further back.
Captured in October, 2025, crews are working on forms for the below-grade structure, braced with timber walers and diagonal supports. Workers are seen aligning panels and preparing formwork connections.
Looking southeast across Danforth Avenue in November, 2025, the heritage frontage of the church is hidden behind perimeter scaffolding and green debris netting, providing safe access for ongoing stabilization, restoration, and integration with the new construction behind. Rising above the site at the southwest corner, the newly installed crane marks the latest milestone for the project.
By December, 2025, construction has reached grade as crews begin the transition from the below-grade concrete structure to a series of mass timber columns above, being installed in a regular grid. Diagonal bracing steel and timber kickers are in place temporarily. Adjacent formwork panels indicate ongoing work on grade beams and foundation walls.
This month, the mass timber superstructure is now clearly established, with the work rising three storeys so far behind the heritage components. Exposed glulam columns and beams support stacked floor plates, while large-format timber decking forms the horizontal structure, illustrating the project’s low-carbon construction approach. Bright orange tarping spans the first two levels to ameliorate interior work areas during winter conditions.
Once complete, the building will rise to a height of 28m and deliver 50 affordable rental units.
UrbanToronto will continue to follow progress on this development, but in the meantime, you can learn more about it from our Database file, linked below. If you'd like, you can join in on the conversation in the associated Project Forum thread or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
* * *
UrbanToronto's research and data service, UTPro, provides comprehensive data on construction projects in the Greater Golden Horseshoe—from proposal through to completion. Other services include Instant Reports, downloadable snapshots based on location, and a daily subscription newsletter, New Development Insider, that tracks projects from initial application.
| Related Companies: | Element5, ERA Architects |
