T3 Sterling Road is located in Toronto’s Lower Junction neighbourhood, south of Bloor St. West and west of Lansdowne Avenue. Bordered immediately to the west by the West Toronto Railpath and the Kitchener GO Transit Line, the site incorporates the new MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) housed in the iconic Tower Automotive Building.

The T3 project (Timber, Transit, Technology) is 415,000 square feet of mass timber across three multi-tenant office buildings (6, 8 and 11-stories) with private at-grade landscapes from property line to building face, streetscape along Sterling Road, green roofs, amenity terraces, a tree-lined pathway to connect to the West Toronto Railpath, and privately owned publicly accessible spaces (POPS).

A dynamic and engaging public realm strategy is underway for the site, with a design language sensitive to the balance of new development and the cultural heritage of the surrounding neighbourhood. The landscape design will integrate place-making principles to create functional, accessible, comfortable, and beautiful spaces with seamless flow and cohesive connections across the broader site.

JRS’s scope of work includes:

• Block 3A (mass timber building)
• Block 3D – POPS
• Block 4A (mass timber building)
• Block 4C – POPS
• Block 5A (mass timber building)
• Sterling Road Streetscape (including streetscaping and base park for Block 2)

The Block 3A and 3D POPS connect to the west entrance of MOCA, functioning as a welcoming shared green space. The design features berms, linear timber benches, brick unit pavers, ample passive green space, and brick unit paving. The planting design includes clusters of trembling aspen spaced amongst singular large canopy trees – honey locust, Kentucky coffee trees, oaks, and black locust – with a variety of Southern Ontario perennials and pollinators, shrubs, and hardy, drought-tolerant native grasses. JRS worked with MOCA and Hines to secure a seamless transition between the POPS and the west entrance to the museum.

The 3A, 5A, and 3D POPS will be complete in 2024. Both 3A and 5A buildings have been granted occupancy. Blocks 4A and 4C are in the site plan approval process, construction timing is TBD. The project is targeting LEED Gold certification and TGS Tier 1.