Renovation
Following a comprehensive site search, Parkin assisted the Canadian Red Cross Society (now Canadian Blood Services) in securing a century-old building to house its new blood centre for Toronto and Central Ontario. This Victorian building had suffered years of neglect and required major restoration work. As a designated historical site, the design had to maintain the character of the 1891 brick and stone building, while housing advanced laboratory facilities. The restored six-storey structure accommodates sophisticated, state-of-the-art laboratories, comprising areas for blood collection, holding, testing and distribution, research blood donor recruitment, administration, regional tissue typing and transplantation research. The Toronto Historical Board awarded the site a Commendation of Adaptive Re-use.

Location
Toronto, Ontario

Area
110,000 sq. ft.

Construction Cost
$23 million

Completion Date
1993

Award
Toronto Historical Board, Commendation of Adaptive Re-use