The infrastructure required to process water?both as it enters our cities and homes, and returns to our lakes and streams?is vital to our everyday lives, and often taken for granted. Buildings that elevate this infrastructure underscore the importance of water, and the right to clean water for all. Through architecture, these often invisible systems enter the public eye, and begin to solidify the place of waterworks in our collective consciousness.
 
Stormwater Facility by gh3*
Toronto, Ontario
The cast-concrete stormwater facility is located in a rapidly developing section of Toronto, at the junction between the Canary District, East Bayfront, and Portlands neighbourhoods. Photo by Adrian Ozimek
TEXT Elsa Lam
The most recent project by Toronto-based architecture and landscape firm gh3* is actually one of its first. Architect Pat Hanson and her team were awarded the contract to design a stormwater facility on Toronto?s waterfront in 2009?just three years after their firm was established. The initial design, for a stone-clad building half the size of the present facility, came in over the budget at the time, and was subsequently put on hold. Since that time, the development of the east waterfront area has progressed by leaps and bounds. A larger facility was required, to not only handle stormwater runoff from the Canary District as per the original remit, but also from the developing East Bayfront and part of the Portlands.
After an initial filtration that removes debr...