{"id":534897,"date":"2026-03-14T01:27:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T01:27:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/534897\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T01:27:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T01:27:16","slug":"montgomery-sisam-architects-designs-koffler-scientific-reserve","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/534897\/","title":{"rendered":"Montgomery Sisam Architects designs Koffler Scientific Reserve"},"content":{"rendered":"

Canadian studio Montgomery Sisam Architects has designed a university<\/a> research and teaching centre with an exposed mass-timber<\/a> structure that contributes to its ambitious net-zero<\/a> carbon and energy goals in Oak Ridges Moraine, Ontario<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The 2,680-square-metre (28,860-square-foot) University of Toronto Koffler Scientific Reserve<\/a> is set on 350 hectares just outside of Toronto.<\/p>\n

\"MontgomeryMontgomery Sisam Architect has designed a research centre for the University of Toronto<\/p>\n

Montgomery Sisam Architects<\/a>, which is based in the city, completed the research and teaching facility for ecology and environmental biology in May 2025. The client’s scientific pursuits informed the design.<\/p>\n

“Researchers there study the smallest changes in organisms to understand systems at a global scale, and that relationship between the micro and the macro became the lens through which we evaluated every design decision,” Montgomery Sisam Architects principal Robert Davies told Dezeen.<\/p>\n

\"MontgomeryThe facility is located just outside of Toronto<\/p>\n

“We wanted the architecture to mirror that interplay, to feel deeply rooted in the landscape while remaining highly attuned to the kind of careful observation and inquiry that happens inside.”<\/p>\n

The studio drew inspiration from the area’s ecological and agrarian history, dropping a barn-like form gently on the site, aligned with cardinal directions to accommodate sun, wind and rain.<\/p>\n

\"MontgomeryThe campus contains one main building and seasonal bunkhouses<\/p>\n

With cladding and detailing that echo vernacular architecture \u2013 as well as covered walkways, deep overhangs and glazing \u2013 the building is designed to be both durable and inseparable from the woodlands and fields.<\/p>\n

“The result is an architecture that feels native to its site and deeply responsive to the rhythms of the landscape,” the studio said.<\/p>\n

\"MontgomeryMass timber was used for the structure<\/p>\n

Constructed with an exposed mass-timber structure that defines the project’s identity and adds warmth to the interior, the U-shaped program is a place for students and researchers to live, gather, eat and collaborate.<\/p>\n

One arm of the plan is composed of five four-person sleeping quarters along a corridor with an amoeba-like bubbled shower facility in the corner. On the other side of a central courtyard, a large bay contains spaces for teaching, study and gathering.<\/p>\n

\"MontgomerySleeping quarters line one arm of the research building<\/p>\n

Off to the side of the dark-coloured, solar array-topped building are a series of small seasonal bunkhouses, arranged in a rectangle.<\/p>\n

“Architecturally, the two lantern-like roof forms draw light into the interior and create a beacon-like presence in the landscape, marking the building as a place of gathering and shared discovery,” the studio said.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"A<\/p>\n

Fifteen architecture and design projects from students at the University of Toronto\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

“The entire campus \u2013 from the seasonal bunkies to the outdoor circulation spaces \u2013 radiates outward from this central anchor.”<\/p>\n

High-performance enclosure systems, low-embodied-carbon material, and carefully integrated operational efficiencies support the project’s net-zero carbon and energy targets while accommodating the needs of an environment for living, learning and research.<\/p>\n

\"OntarioStudies are dedicated to ecology and environmental biology<\/p>\n

“The building needed to be comfortable year-round, durable, low-maintenance and deeply sustainable, all while remaining sensitive to its ecological surroundings,” the studio said.<\/p>\n

“Achieving this balance required extensive data-driven analysis and close collaboration to ensure that every design decision \u2013 from building siting to material selection \u2013 supported both environmental and functional performance.”<\/p>\n

Other recent higher education projects include an engineering building<\/a> with a folded form at Penn State University by Payette, a science center<\/a> with rippling stone panels at the University of Oxford by NBBJ and a mass timber student center<\/a> at Harvard by Studio Gang.<\/p>\n

The photography is by Doublespace Photography<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Project credits:<\/p>\n

Architecture: Montgomery Sisam Architects
Structural consultant: Blackwell Structural Engineers
Mechanical, electrical, Sustainability Consultants: Introba (formerly Integral Group)
General contractor: Van Horne Construction Ltd.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Canadian studio Montgomery Sisam Architects has designed a university research and teaching centre with an exposed mass-timber structure…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":534898,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[76,354,355,2023,49,71079,90762,48,356,75,26088,905,49626,49627,9605,3302],"class_list":["post-534897","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-black","tag-ca","tag-cabins","tag-campuses","tag-canada","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-mass-timber","tag-ontario","tag-sectionall","tag-sectionarchitecture","tag-solar-power","tag-toronto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=534897"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534897\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/534898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=534897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=534897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=534897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}