Ontario Place: Building On Our Legacy

Opened in 1971, Ontario Place was a project seeking to revitalize Toronto’s waterfront by creating a large urban park on a previously neglected segment of the shoreline. This multi award-winning project consists of 90 acres of man-made islands and lagoons, with the centerpiece of the complex being the five exhibition pavilions suspended high above the water and the world’s first permanent IMAX theatre – the Cinesphere. Ontario Place is part of Toronto’s history and a testament to a vision about its future – so the question now is, how do we continue to build upon this site’s remarkable legacy?

Join us for this special panel discussion that will convene a range of experts to discuss the important architecture and landscape design heritage of Ontario Place and how all Ontarians will benefit if we continue to build upon the site’s valuable cultural heritage legacy.

The evening will begin with the screening of footage of Ontario Place from the Retrontario archive, including rare footage recently transferred from 16m film.

Panelists:

• Michael McClelland, Architect, Heritage Planner and Founding Partner, ERA Architects

• Carolyn King, Moccasin Identifier Project, Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation

• George Baird, Architect and Partner, Baird Sampson Neuert Architects

• Philip Hastings, Architect and Partner, Gow Hastings Architects

• Moderator: Annabel Vaughan, Intern Architect, Project Manager ERA Architects, and principal publicLAB

We want to hear from you!

What does the cultural heritage, architecture and landscape design of Ontario Place mean to you? Please send a response limited to 280 characters by email to info@acotoronto.ca or tweet your response using #ONplacelegacy.

This panel discussion is co-hosted by the Toronto Society of Architects and the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario Toronto Branch.

This lecture is made possible thanks to the generous support of:

OAA MEMBERS: When registering, please include your full name as registered with the OAA to ensure your certificate of participation is credited properly. Please also include an email address you check frequently to ensure you receive our certificate in a timely manner.

LIMITED CAPACITY: While tickets for this event are free, this venue has limited capacity. Only those with registered tickets can be guaranteed entrance. Entry at the door without a ticket will be SPACE PERMITTING only.

PRESS INQUIRIES: For further information and for press inquiries contact:

• ACO TO - Catherine Nasmith, President, ACOTO at cnasmith@acotoronto.ca or 416-598-4144.
• TSA - Joel Leon, Executive Administrator tsa@torontosocietyofarchitects.ca

IMAGE CREDIT: ©2014 Dieter Janssen www.dieterjanssenphotography.com

About our panelists

George Baird, Founding Partner, Baird Sampson Neuert Architects, will preview his chapter on megastructures and high-tech architecture (including Ontario Place) in the forthcoming book Canadian Modern Architecture, 1967-2017 co-published by Princeton Architectural Press and Canadian Architect.

Philip Hastings, Architect and Partner, Gow Hastings Architects, will speak about their firm’s major refurbishment of the Cinesphere completed in 2012.

Carolyn King, as a First Nation person, participated in the design of the new Trillium Park, William G. Davis Trail and the Moccasin Identifier Project which has ongoing importance to the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation.

Michael McClelland, Founding Principal, ERA Architects, an architect and heritage planning expert will discuss Ontario Place as a cultural landscape and the processes that the Ontario Government has in place to ensure provincially owned heritage property is identified and conserved.