Projects

Reside On Richmond

Reimagining the public realm.

The ask: to design a transit-oriented mixed-use building that incorporates the retained heritage façade and components of the building at the immediate corner, provides for a range of residential and retail uses, and activates the public realm.

Team Members

Partner

Partner

Senior Planner

Senior Project Manager


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The Challenge

The project required a multidisciplinary team and a creative response to site and area opportunities and constraints, including:

  • the integration of on-site heritage resources (the building at 164-166 Bathurst Street)
  • existing rental dwelling units
  • the adjacency of low-rise uses including existing residential and school uses
  • a public realm that lacked presence

Our Solution

Bousfields provided strategic planning and urban design advice to overcome policy and design considerations associated with a site located just outside of the delineated Downtown and along an important Avenue. The siting and massing of the building above the on-site heritage resource required consideration of its unique context and of the Tall Building Design Guidelines.

The project also required leadership from our Community Engagement Team who worked with existing tenants and adjacent landowners, including the condominium to the immediate south, as well as City Staff to overcome challenges with respect to transition and rental housing replacement.

The Outcome

We supported our client group through an iterative process that led to a City Council approved and community-supported mixed-use project that balanced meaningful development and design with appropriate transition in its context. 

The development provided for a much needed reinvigoration of the public realm and enhanced streetscape along both frontages of the block and the project provided prominence to the street corner through the integration of the retained heritage elements of the existing building at 164-166 Bathurst Street.

At the outset there were concerns by the adjacent residents with respect to a mid-rise or tall building being proposed on the site. However, through the process we worked with the community to ensure that the building was well designed, with appropriate transition, and the result was a building that fits within its context and provides for an enhanced public realm and pedestrian experience.

Reside On Richmond

Originate

Address: 152-164 Bathurst Street and 621-627 Richmond Street West

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Kate Cooper

Partner

Planning
416-947-9744x234
kcooper@bousfields.ca

Kate is a Partner with the firm and a registered professional planner with extensive experience in the practice of land use planning.  She works collaboratively within multi-disciplinary teams, building strong relationships with clients, consultants and public sector staff to resolve issues and navigate complex projects.  Kate has been involved in a broad range of community and city-building projects in the City of Toronto and Greater Toronto Area and is able to resolve land use issues and steer her clients and project teams toward a common goal. Kate has appeared as an expert planning witness at the Ontario Land Tribunal.

Jocelyn Deeks

Partner

Community Engagement
416-947-9744x284
jdeeks@bousfields.ca

Jocelyn Deeks is a Partner at Bousfields and leads the Community Engagement practice. Jocelyn is a Registered Professional Planner and brings several years of experience working at the intersection of planning, development, and community engagement in the public and private sectors. She has developed and executed stakeholder engagement strategies for some of the GTA’s most complex and challenging development projects. Jocelyn also has experience developing strategic plans for Ontario municipalities.

Jocelyn has a Master in Planning (M.Pl) degree from Queen’s University.  She is a member of the Ontario Professional Planning Institute and the Canadian Institute of Planners. She is a regular presenter at conferences including those hosted by the International Association of Public Participation and the Ontario Professional Planners Institute, speaks on panels, and enjoys sharing ideas with peers on podcasts. 

Charlie Smith

Senior Planner

Planning
416-947-9744x279
csmith@bousfields.ca

Charlie first joined Bousfields as a summer intern in 2017 and was hired as a Planner in 2019. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Geography from the University of Guelph and a Master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from Queen’s University. In the final semester of his Master’s degree, Charlie participated in an international exchange to Perth, Australia. He studied at the Australian Urban Design Research Centre (AUDRC) and focused on the conceptualization of a redevelopment master plan in the Perth CBD. Charlie has experience in both the construction management sector and the planning profession. During previous internships, he has worked for EllisDon, notably on Waterfront Toronto’s Port Lands Flood Protection Program.

Charlie is involved in multiple projects in the Toronto area and conducts site-specific policy research, development application submissions, and assists in the writing of planning rationale reports. He relies on his research and interpersonal skills to collaborate with a broad range of stakeholders to address planning concerns. Charlie is currently a student member of OPPI and CIP, working towards full membership. He is passionate about sustainable city building and how planning can provide dynamic solutions.

Alex Smiciklas

Senior Project Manager

Community Engagement
416-947-9744x238
asmiciklas@bousfields.ca

Alex joined Bousfields in November 2020 as a Project Manager in the Community Engagement Practice. Originally from Vancouver BC, he moved to Toronto in 2018 to shift his career path and learn in a bigger urban playground. Prior to joining Bousfields, Alex worked at Swerhun Inc. as an Engagement Specialist while completing his Master of Planning at Ryerson University.

Since joining Bousfields, he has been involved with creating and managing stakeholder engagement plans and public consultation strategy reports for development applications across the GTA. Experienced in communications and facilitation, Alex diligently works to ensure that the engagement process is specific and meaningful to the needs of every community. Passionate about how communication and planning intersect in everyday life, Alex aims to find innovative and creative ways to ensure that dialogue around urban issues is made more accessible.