Toronto – The Toronto Urban Design Awards, held by the City of Toronto every second year, recognize achievements in urban design, architecture and landscape architecture. Designers, developers, project owners, community groups, design students and others are invited to enter eligible projects. The call for 2023 submissions is now open.
Submission categories include elements, private buildings in context, public buildings in context, small open spaces, large places or neighbourhood designs, visions and master plans, and student projects. Design students are also encouraged to enter theoretical or studio Toronto-related projects.
The Toronto Urban Design Awards promote and enhance quality of life through good urban design practices. Good design is the foundation of cityscapes that are functional and attractive. Celebrating excellence in urban design helps create a city that appeals to residents, businesses and visitors alike.
Submissions should outline how the project strives to meet the broad goals of the City’s Official Plan, supports equity, affordability, resilience, accessibility, integration and preservation of heritage resources, and environmental sustainability, and contributes to the City’s goals of reurbanization.
Successful submissions will take into consideration applicable Toronto Urban Design Guidelines, Toronto Accessibility Design Guidelines as well as the Toronto Green Standard, Green Streets, Toronto Resilience Strategy, TransformTO Net Zero Strategy, the Toronto Biodiversity Strategy and the Active City Report, all of which reflect the City’s expectations for high-quality, accessible and sustainable design. When heritage conservation is involved, the development/proposal should comply with good conservation practices and consider the Parks Canada Standards and Guidelines.
For the 2023 awards program, there are two additional focuses: a focus on sustainability that identifies how climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience have been included in the project design or concept will be included, as well as a focus on equity, reconciliation and diversity. Equity, reconciliation and diversity are core values at the City. Submissions can speak to how the project seeks to achieve equal outcomes for Indigenous, Black and equity-deserving groups amplifies their voices in how work was undertaken, strengthens relationships and builds trust. Submissions can also highlight how the project took an equity and reconciliation approach to its methodology and advanced them in its outcomes.
The Toronto Urban Design Awards program seeks broad representation from the design community, including representation from Indigenous, Black and equity-deserving groups or communities. In addition, the program seeks entries that represent design excellence in diverse neighbourhoods, particularly those underrepresented in the design space.
The submission deadline is Monday, April 24, at noon. The City will hold an awards ceremony in September to celebrate all entries and announce the winners. More information, including detailed program requirements and submission information, is available on the City’s Toronto Urban Design Awards webpage.