An Unconventional Toronto Development Offers a Template for "Gentle Density"

All architecture is public. Whether or not a house is a gorgeous addition to a historic neighborhood or an awful eyesore, housing exists as part of interconnected, communal systems—urban infrastructure and the natural environment among them. Janna Levitt and Dean Goodman, cofounders and principals of LGA Architectural Partners, had that in mind when they designed one of their most recent projects. An unconventional condominium in Toronto’s Harbord Village neighborhood, it addresses housing as part of these larger systems that, for the most part, have restricted density, damaged the environment, and disconnected residents from the landscape.

Located on a corner lot that was once zoned for single-family homes and is surrounded by mixed-density housing, LGA’s Ulster House includes four condos, one of which the couple live in. Unlike much of the postwar development in Toronto—which Levitt characterizes as "tall or sprawl"—Ulster House is what she calls "a proof of concept" for the way that design can create modest-size units that are harmonious in layered contexts. In Harbord Village, duplexes and fourplexes hearken back to the early 20th century, when an influx of immigrants transformed larger dwellings into multifamily units; the single-family homes constructed later speak to rezoning that took place decades ago, which restricted the area to single-family (or highly limited multifamily) buildings and helped to create the current housing pressures across the city.