Toronto, Ontario, Canada
The Well, a major urban development opened in 2023 on 8 acres in downtown Toronto, transforms a low-rise industrial area between the city’s rail corridor and heritage King West neighborhood into a dense, diverse all-pedestrian precinct redefining urban living.
The well by Hariri Pontarini Architects, won an 2025 International Architecture Award from The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design.
This mixed-use project stems from a partnership of leading developers and six architecture firms. It splits evenly between commercial (1.2 million sf office, 320,000 sf retail) and 1.5 million sf residential space.
Inspired by King West’s converted warehouses—now restaurants, hotels, and nightclubs linked by brick passageways—The Well extends this vibe with high porosity. Pedestrian desire lines flow seamlessly from the neighborhood. Rather than doors, it offers open access on all four sides via nine passageways (grand and discreet), with below-grade servicing hiding back-of-house functions.
Seven buildings connect via a “spine”—an open-air, multi-tiered promenade under an undulating glazed canopy. Pre-dating Covid, this fresh-air emphasis shines. Colonnades with retail set back buildings; bridges crisscross the spine to an amphitheater-like public space for events. Granite paving and dog-friendly design distinguish it from enclosed malls—unique in Toronto, perhaps North America, for blending density in an open, element-protected setting.
The spine hugs the north side for a smaller footprint, with three mid-rise residential buildings matching King West’s scale. The south side features three taller towers facing condos across the rail corridor. Heights step down to 19th-century homes on Draper Street, whose residents gained direct access via a new parkette.
Landscaping revives a mid-19th-century plan for Wellington Street (inspiring The Well’s name) as a linear park linking existing Clarence and Victoria Squares. Its wide right-of-way now bursts with benches, gardens, and restaurant terraces animating a treed boulevard.
The 38-story office tower anchors a key intersection. Side-loaded with a glazed north-side elevator core and aluminum-clad stairway, it maximizes views and open floorplates. Stepped massing minimizes shadows on Clarence Square; a marble lobby features a three-story café.
LEED Platinum certified, The Well uses Toronto’s Deep Lake Water Cooling: 38°F water from Lake Ontario’s depths feeds a heat transfer station and 8.5-million-litre underground tank acting as a thermal battery. It stores off-peak energy for low-carbon heating/cooling across the complex, with expansion potential in King West. This freed roof space for mechanicals, enabling a stunning 7,000 sf terrace atop the office tower’s top-floor restaurant.
Architects: Hariri Pontarini Architects; BDP; Adamson Associates Architects; architects-Alliance; Wallman Architects
Landscape Architects: Claude Cormier + Associés
General Contractor: EllisDon Corporation and Delterra
Clients: Allied Properties Real Estate Investment Trust; RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust; and DiamondCorp plc
Photographers: Doublespace Photography; Industryous Photography; Norm Li; Nick Caville
