This Heritage Week, I’d like to remember the Brigadier, or the Brig, as he was known, for the lessons he taught me.    Brigadier General John McGinnis was a larger-than-life figure. He was among the troops that liberated the Netherlands during the Second World War, and then after retirement he began a second career in the then unlikely field of heritage conservation. I met him first when he was the managing director of the Toronto Historical Board, a position that he held for over thirty years.  He was my boss and the only person I’ve ever called sir.   ..read more

Opened in 1984 in Agincourt, Scarborough, Dragon Centre was North America’s first indoor Chinese mall. Its developers — brothers Daniel and Henry Hung, originally from Hong Kong — adapted an old roller-skating rink into a mall serving the Greater Toronto Area’s growing Chinese-Canadian population. Combining Hong Kong’s dense commercial markets and the big box North American shopping mall, Dragon Centre was a retail centre providing Chinese goods that, at the time, could otherwise only be purchased in Toronto’s downtown Chinatowns. More than a collection of stores, the mall was a major cultural ..read more

Scarborough has long been a landing place for newcomers to Toronto. People from all over the world come to this sprawling borough to get a foothold and find community in a new megacity — often far from home in every sense of the word.  One of the ways people find that foothold and community is through food: it’s a way to establish yourself, make some money, carry on the traditions you brought with you to Canada, and establish yourself in a neighbourhood.  This is what the ERA team saw during a culinary tour of some of the incredibly diverse cuisine Scarborough has to offer. Howard Ta ..read more

It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since the marquee in front of the iconic El Mocambo nightclub announced the momentous occasion; “The Signs That Define Toronto book launch”. Held on the evening of December 1, 2022, the event played host to an enthusiastic crowd of people who gathered to celebrate Toronto signs and pick up their own copy of the The Signs That Define Toronto book. Published by ERA Architects in collaboration with Spacing, the book features the work of over 20 different contributors that delve into the history, culture, and stories of the city through its unique signage. At ..read more

Spacing magazine recently published an oral history reflecting on the five-decade life of one of Canada’s most recognizable Brutalist buildings: the University of Toronto’s Robarts Library. It features commentary by ERA’s Michael McClelland as well as Carole Moore (University of Toronto Chief Librarian, 1986-2011), Gary McCluskie (Diamond Schmitt), and writer Shawn Micallef. The piece explores Robarts Library’s design antecedents, materiality, and scale—it was the world’s largest academic library when it opened in 1973—while tracking the evolution o ..read more

After the passing of George Baird in October, ERA principal Graeme Stewart reflects on his relationship with the architectural theorist and educator and the great value of engaging with architecture and urbanism through an interdisciplinary prism. Baird has been described as a member of what is sometimes referred to as “The Toronto School of Economic and Urban Thought” along with Marshall McLuhan, Jane Jacobs, Naomi Klein, and Doug Saunders, a group exemplifying the power of collective, lateral thought. From his thesis at the University of Toronto to later collaborative research ventures with ..read more

Azure Magazine‘s Stefan Novakovic recently interviewed ERA principal Michael McClelland about the relationships between taste, social class, and conservation and how they determine the ways we see and live in cities. As our understanding of heritage continues to evolve and broaden to include more diverse forms of value, this historical and practical look at the state of the field offers fresh insights into a Toronto in motion. Read the interview here. Michael McClelland portrait by Stewart McInthosh. The post Michael McClelland talks taste, class, and conservation in Azure Magazine appear ..read more

The trailblazing Quebecois landscape architect Claude Cormier passed away two weeks ago after a thirty-year career spent creating many of Canada’s most lauded and inventive public spaces. Known for his joyful yet probing designs, Claude often upended status quos. Projects like Sugar Beach and Berczy Park resist traditional municipal aesthetics as much as they celebrate them. Both parks were initially criticized and then widely embraced and ultimately beloved, a progression that demonstrates just how insightful and courageous Claude was.    Claude had a longstanding relationship with ..read more

ERA is excited to welcome Daniel Rotsztain as the firm’s first Artist-in-Residence. Known as the Urban Geographer, Daniel is a Toronto-based illustrator, writer, and community activator who contributes to urbanist discourses, practices, and modes of thinking in a variety of ways. He received a master’s degree in landscape architecture from the University of Guelph and has been co-leading plazaPOPS with ERA collaborator Brendan Stewart since 2018.   ERA writer-researcher Alessandro Tersigni chatted with Daniel about illustration as a form of visual commentary, conserving heritage uses ..read more

Continuing our efforts to engage with landscape in foundational and innovative ways, ERA welcomes long-time collaborator Brendan Stewart back to the firm as a Senior Advisor on landscape practice. Brendan brings years of experience in landscape discourse and architecture from across the sectors of academia, industry, and nonprofit grassroots initiatives. Having studied with Randy Hester at the University of California, Berkeley, Brendan’s wide-ranging engagement with landscape includes teaching and research as Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture at the University of Guelph, suburban ..read more