July 28, 2009

ONTARIO REALTY CORP.

More than 400,000 square feet of office space will be created when the conversion of the former Sears head office is completed.

Ontario Realty Corporation to spend $100 million on green office conversion

PATRICIA WILLIAMS

staff writer

The Ontario Realty Corp.(ORC) is poised to start work this fall on a $100 million greening of a 40-year-old building in downtown Toronto. The retrofit is believed to be one of the largest of its kind in North America.

To be undertaken at the former Sears Canada head office on Jarvis Street, the project will create 455,000 square feet of state-of-the art green office space. A construction manager is expected to be hired by the end of this month.

Toronto’s WZMH Architects has been retained to help design the green workplace.

Schematic design is currently under way.

LEED Gold is being targeted. The project is scheduled to be completed by spring 2011.

The retrofit is the first project in the Toronto Accommodation Plan, a provincial initiative to green and retrofit a number of Ontario government buildings in the city. The nine-storey building has 250 sub-grade parking spaces and two surface parking lots.

In a statement, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure said the project provides opportunities for various energy-efficient design initiatives such as construction of a green roof, use of solar energy and incorporation of state-of-the-art IT infrastructure.

Other measures could include a reduction in parking spaces and provision of bicycle storage facilities to encourage green commuting, the ministry said.

The project is being undertaken by ORC on behalf of the ministry.

“This project presents a unique opportunity to renovate a 40-year old building and create a greener, more efficient workplace that will be used as a model for retrofits across the province,” said ORC president and CEO Dave Glass.

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