Colleges Bring Mass Timber Firsts to Ontario

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Two Ontario colleges are breaking ground on significant mass timber projects that will heighten the visibility of the sustainable building method in the province.

Mass timber is a type of construction that utilizes large dimensional timber, as well as engineered wood, typically laminated together using various techniques.

Proponents of mass timber say the materials have low embodied energy and are easily reused at the end of their lives. They see the techniques as cutting waste and emissions while offering high building performance and airtightness, as well as occupant well-being.

Centennial College in Scarborough, Ontario has recently broken ground on an expansion project that will comprise Ontario’s first mass timber academic building.

The new 6 storey, 150,000 sq. ft. building is designed on an Indigenous concept called “Two-Eyed Seeing,” which involves looking at the world through both Indigenous and settler perspectives.

The college states that “Indigenous concepts of community, biophilia (reaffirming our connection with nature), and sustainability are embedded in the design.”

In addition to classrooms for the schools Engineering Technology and Applied Science programs, the expansion will hold administrative, communal and collaborative spaces.

Designed to be net zero, if not net positive, the building is also aiming at LEED Gold Standard and WELL certification. It’s scheduled to open in 2023.

George Brown Breaks Ground on Ontario’s First Tall Wood Building


Close behind, George Brown College in Toronto has begun construction on Ontario’s tallest mass timber building.

The 10-storey, 204,000 sq. ft. structure, named Limberlost Place, will house George Brown’s Computing Technology and Architectural Studies programs. It will also house the Brookfield Sustainability Institute and a childcare centre.

Since the building is 10 storeys, the college needed a special designation to meet current national and provincial building codes, which limit mass timber structures to 6 storeys.

The building’s net-zero design includes solar PV and solar chimneys, as well as deep-water cooling systems for air conditioning. It’s scheduled to be completed in 2024.

Image credit: JasonParis

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