T3 Bayside

T3 Bayside 

3XN

T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

ARCHITECTS
3xn

INTERIOR DESIGN
Partners By Design

GEOTECHNICAL
Exp

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT
Janet Rosenberg Studio

VERTICAL TRANSPORTATION
Soberman Engineering

TRANSPORTATION CONSULTANT
Ba Group

ACOUSTICAL CONSULTANT
Hgc Engineering Limited

SUSTAINABILITY CONSULTANT
Purpose Building

DESIGN LEADERSHIP/3 XN PARTNERS
Jens Holm, Audun Opdal

PROJECT MANAGERS
Matthias Altwicker, Catherine Joseph, Laura Wagner

KEY TEAM – COMPETITION PHASE
Jens Holm, Audun Opdal, Kim Herforth Nelson, Elizabeth Nichols, Sai Ma, Monty De Luna, Sean Lyon

KEY TEAM – DESIGN PHASE
Jens Holm, Matthias Altwicker, Elizabeth Nichols, Laura Wagner, Sai Ma, Catherine Joseph, Jacquelyn Hecker, Ida Fløche, Thomas Herve, Aleksandre Andghuladze, Farzana Hossain, Benji Magin, Christian Harald Hommelhoff Brink, Lydon Whittle, Sang Yeun Lee, Ann Christina Ravn, Thomas Lund, Eliana Nigro, Dora Lin Jiabao, Majbritt Lerche Madsen, Morten Norman Lund

KEY TEAM – EXECUTION
Matthias Altwicker, Catherine Joseph, Elizabeth Nichols, Jens Holm

WIND ENGINEERING
Gradient Wind

SIGNAGE
Kramer Design Associates

LOCAL ARCHITECT
Wzmh

ENVELOPE
Entuitive

CODE CONSULTANT
Vortex Fire

AREA
23000 M²

YEAR
2024

LOCATION
261 Queens Quay W, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

CATEGORY
Office Buildings

T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

Text description provided by architect.

T3 Bayside is a pioneering timber office building in Toronto's new mixed-use community, Bayside, on the shore of Lake Ontario. At 42 metres high, it is the tallest timber office buildings in North America.

Having established itself as a world leader in timber office development, Hines' ambition for the project was to set a new standard for sustainable timber construction while providing a world-class office building which reflects the integrated 'live-work-play' ethos of the emerging Bayside community.

T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

Enhancing the Public Realm. Occupying an important position in the neighbourhood, T3 Bayside has been designed to enhance the existing masterplan and to transform the formerly industrial shoreline into a vibrant urban destination.

Arranged around a public plaza, the building is a welcoming pedestrian gateway to the Bayside development, drawing visitors into the site and connecting it with the adjacent park and the waterfront promenade beyond.

Retail and café units at street level will create a hub of activity and make the plaza a natural meeting place and a lively social space to be shared by visitors, workers, and residents alike.

T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

One of the building's most distinctive features is a sequence of stepped interior spaces which forms a continuous loop around the building's outer edges. The first three 'steps' are open to the public, acting as an extension to the plaza, creating an urban living room softening the transition from public to private space.

In addition to providing space to meet friends, or simply pass time, the flexible double-height spaces will host pop-up events such as exhibitions, films, and performances.

T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

The steps are clearly articulated externally through the arrangement of fins and façade detailing framing the interior spaces. This relationship between interior and exterior makes the building easy to read and visually connects the plaza with the interior programme to encourage visitors into the building.

Flexible and Healthy Workspaces. The upper 'steps' belong to the office spaces and act as double height spaces joining two office floors. A key element of the design was offering tenants flexibility and the option to personalise their space.

'Soft spots' in the slabs can be removed or restored, allowing tenants to adapt the space to their preferred arrangement. The building's open and flexible floorplates can also meet the needs of a diverse range of tenants, from small start-ups requiring only a small area, to large, established businesses who may want to occupy an entire floor, or multiple floors. These design elements allow the building to adapt to changing needs as businesses grow or as work practices evolve over time.

T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

Targeting WELL Certification, the design is strongly centred on occupant wellbeing to provide world-class office space which can cater to modern methods of working and attract the best tenants.

Internally, the timber is fully exposed, celebrating the building's structure while providing a warm, natural aesthetic and contributing to a healthy interior environment.

Exceptional amenities, including a tenant lounge and a rooftop terrace with views over Lake Ontario, provide workers with a variety of break-out areas, encouraging a diverse workday experience and access to the outdoors.

A Model for Sustainable Timber Construction. Amongst the many benefits of T3 Bayside's timber structure is the minimised environmental impact in construction, resulting in an estimated 40-50% reduction in embodied carbon when compared to a traditional office building.

T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

Targeting LEED Gold certification, the building incorporates a number of low-energy solutions and, as part of an ambitious whole-life sustainability strategy, is also designed so that it can be disassembled.

Mechanical joints between the timber components mean that once T3 Bayside has reached the end of its life it can simply be undone and the building disassembled, minimising waste, extending the life of the materials and contributing to a circular economy.

T3 Bayside
© Rasmus Hjortshøj