Photo Credit (Above): Tom Arban
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Architecture Practice: Brook McIlroy Inc.
Chosen by a jury of respected design experts, the 20 projects comprising the OAA’s 2026 Design Excellence Finalists represent a diverse range of building types, including sustainably designed community centres, innovative housing solutions, revitalized academic and cultural facilities, and transformative public spaces. These finalists serve as the shortlist for the OAA’s 10 Design Excellence Winners, which will be announced next month and honoured at the OAA Conference in the Waterloo Region in May. The biennial OAA Design Excellence Awards program offers Ontario practices the opportunity to display the transformative influence of architecture, promoting broader public recognition and appreciation for the field. The following media statement has been supplied by the submitting project team:
Located at Hart House Circle, one of the most prominent landscapes at the University of Toronto and the eastern gateway to the St. George Campus, the Ziibiing project is a space for learning, gathering, and ceremony.
The name ‘Ziibiing’ means ‘at the river’ in Anishinaabemowin—a fitting name for a landscape located along the historical course of Taddle Creek, which is now buried far below. Through the inclusion of ceremonial space, cultural markers, and a teaching garden, Ziibiing encourages reclamation of Indigenous knowledge and asserts its presence within the context of a Western academic colonial campus.
Photo Credit: Tom Arban
Photo Credit: Tom Arban (left) and Brook McIlroy (right)
Photo Credit: Brook McIlroy
This blOAAg post is part of a series exploring the OAA’s 20 Design Excellence Finalists for 2026, as selected by our jury.