Terrence Donnelly Center for Cellular and Biomolecular Research (TDCCBR), University of Toronto
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
architectsAlliance / Behnisch Architekten

architectsAlliance and Behnisch Architekten collaborate on a sleek urban tower supporting cellular and biomolecular science

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	Click here for slide show. Photo © Tom Abran

By William Weathersby, Jr.

The architectural landscape of Toronto is ablaze with adventurous new work, with academia leading the charge. At the University of Toronto, down the block from a new pharmacy studies building by Norman Foster, a science center rises with colorful, transparent grace. The Terrence Donnelly Center for Cellular and Biomolecular Research (TDCCBR) is Canada’s foremost institution for the study of the human genome. Its home, designed by Toronto-based architectsAlliance, partnered with Behnisch Architekten of Stuttgart, Germany, is a sleek, 12-story tower that addresses the context of its historical neighbors while giving a modern presence to a progressive scientific hub.
The building houses 400 specialists who perform research on genetics and disease. Organized as a collaborative, interdisciplinary facility, it had to be functional, flexible, and technologically advanced.

Site restrictions were daunting. Located at the southeast corner of the university’s St. George campus, the TDCCBR is wedged within a densely built district. Formerly a parking lot and service corridor, the narrow site was flanked by two historic buildings on College Street, and a mid-20th-century medical sciences building to the north. To relate to the scale of the adjacent, lower-rise buildings, the tower is broken into two vertically stacked volumes. These are divided by an intermediate sixth level that houses mechanical systems supporting the lower floors. Cinching the facade like a belt, the mechanical floor allows the loftlike laboratory spaces to remain free of mechanical rooms. The architects organized laboratories along the eastern elevation on floors two through five, and again on seven through 12. Mechanical systems supplyng upper floors are housed within an amoeba-shaped, stainless-steel enclosure on the roof.

A granite-paved forecourt enhanced by landscaping serves as the main entrance to the TDCCBR. Inside, a five-level Winter Garden borders the adjacent Rosebrugh Building, whose restored, buff-colored brick facade (circa 1919) now serves as the skylit atrium’s western wall. Liriope grass and 45-foot-tall bamboo trees create an engaging microclimate where students, staff, and visitors gather.

Bordering the Winter Garden, a concourse level acts as a north–south campus thoroughfare. The concourse houses a cafeteria, lounges, and administrative offices, plus three 90-seat seminar rooms wrapped by glass-mosaic-tile enclosures—in either black, white, or red.

The design team created spacious laboratory interiors by omitting suspended ceilings, exposing services and superstructure, and specifying simple, durable materials. Shallow floor plates and glass walls allow a high degree of transparency, while work zones are differentiated by color, lighting, and millwork.

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Formal name of Project:
Terrence Donnelly Center for Cellular and Biomolecular Research (TDCCBR), University of Toronto

Location:
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Gross square footage:
248,378 sq. ft.

Total project cost:
$86 million

Owner:
University of Toronto

Architect:
architectsAlliance
205-317 Adelaide Street West
Toronto, Ont., CAN M5V-1P9
tel 416-593-6500
fax 416-593-4911
www.architectsalliance.com

Behnisch Architekten
Rotebühlstraße 163A
Stuttgart, 70197 GERMANY
tel [49] 711-607-72-0
fax [49] 711-607-72-99
www.behnisch.com

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