It’s hard to believe that the Rogers Media Television Production Centre, a unique example of adaptive reuse and innovative design, was once an experiential sports centre built on a budget. Under the creative vision of Quadrangle Architects, it’s evident that a remarkable transformation has taken place.

The production centre seen today at 33 Dundas Street East at Dundas Square, was formerly the Olympic Spirit Building, a purpose-built project that opened in August 2004 in support of Toronto’s bid for the 2008 Olympics. When Beijing won the bid, the building was used as an experiential sports building until its closure in 2006. Now, it is home to Rogers’ 3 television stations: Citytv, OMNI 1 and OMNI 2.

Les Klein, the principal of Quadrangle Architects guided our tour of the centre, which began with a short video of the construction process. The tour group got a taste of the complexity of the construction process. Quadrangle added an extra 10,000 sf to the existing 45,000 sf structure without expanding the physical footprint. Holding up the building is a central truss weighing 34,000 lbs, equivalent to up to 10 Citytv trucks!

Quadrangle worked within the confines of a particular design philosophy. “We wanted this place to feel alive 24/7”, Les explained, “The inside goes out and the outside goes in, we wanted to be a part of the life of this city!” This requirement for the Centre to be connected with the rest of the city necessitated a great deal of glass. This allows observers outside the building to look in and feel a part of the action, providing a “noses to the glass” experience.

All the mechanical systems were replaced to support the exceptional demands of a communications centre. The $25 million worth of production equipment, including backup generators, ensures Rogers Media is always on the air, no matter what. With more efficient systems now in place, the Centre has realized emissions savings equivalent to taking 55 cars off of the road each year.

When the tour group arrived on the Citytv production floor, Les drew attention to the lighting grids across the entire ceiling which is repeated across all production floors. This allows the whole building to act as studio in order to be able to shoot anywhere at any time. With flexibility being paramount, everything was designed to be easily moved, relocated, and rebranded at a moment’s notice.

As airing of Toronto’s trusted CityNews at Six fast approached, the group was lucky enough to be greeted by two very well known Citytv personalities – Gord Matineau and Mark Dailey, right before they sat down to deliver the news. After a quick and friendly chat, the two got to work and the tour group moved on.

Once the tour wrapped up, it was evident to the group that Quadrangle’s design ideally matched the dynamic and fast-paced environment of Rogers Media. As Les describes it, “An infectious spirit happens in this building.” No doubt then, the Media Centre is perfectly at home in the thick of the energy, community and excitement of Dundas Square.

Adrienne Smith
ULI Communications Committee
Oxford Properties Group