GBC hosts ceremony to celebrate next steps in Limberlost Place development.  

George Brown College (GBC) has reached a new phase constructing a building of the future. 

Nearly two years after breaking ground on Limberlost Place, the college held a ceremony to celebrate the top being added to the structure. 

Taking place Aug. 9, many were invited out for an afternoon of camaraderie at the Waterfront campus. College dignitaries like Dr. Gervan Fearon, president of GBC, and Nerys Rau, project director for Limberlost, spoke about the milestones the building has passed before even opening. 

“Limberlost Place is a 10-storey mass timber net zero carbon emissions building. We’ll be using district energy to both heat and cooling including deep lake water cooling. We have photovoltaic panels on the roof to actually generate energy. And we will be meeting the Tier four Toronto green standards of sustainability, which will put us anywhere from six to seven years ahead when we open the building,” said Rau, “The mass timber work moves very quickly in terms of construction, and we’ve seen that, and we were doing floors in you know two weeks really with a mass timber so it’s a very fast, fast construction method.” 

She added that the building is set to open January 2025 with programs such as architectural studies and computer programming moving into Limberlost. Rau mentioned this could potentially happen with a phased-in approach which could see students move into the campus between January and September of that year. 

When speaking on the progress of the building and the long road to get here, Fearon mentioned that the building came about from consultations with students.  

“One of the amazing things about Limberlost Place was that it actually came out from engagement with students and asking the question, ‘what could the college do in terms of stewardship, sustainability, addressing climate change,’ and part of the ideas that came out of that work… from that idea, when the next building was going to be built, that idea of a mass timber building and net zero carbon emission building became the foundation for imagining what was possible. Out of that imagination, that then informed the bid and formed what was being requested of architectural firms and builders,” he said. “To be able to take that idea at George Brown College and make it real, that’s the kind of college that we are where we take student ideas and their ingenuity, and their creativity and we ask ourselves ‘how can we make it real and how can we make it a part of the learning experience.’” 

Before the building even received its top, it had already reached heights other buildings had not.  

Earlier this year, Limberlost received the 2023 Research and Innovation in Architecture Award from the Royal Architecture Institute of Canada. In addition to being the tallest mass-timber building in Ontario, Rau mentioned that they had to work closely with the city, “outside of the code with alternative solutions,” to get the building constructed. 

Also in attendance at the event was Rosalyn Miller, general manager with the Student Association of George Brown College (SAGBC). Miller expressed her enthusiasm at the building reaching its halfway point, while also speaking on the importance of collaboration within the college. 

“Although Limberlost, which has been something that we have been monitoring and engaging with for over six years, this wasn’t just the Student Association attending an event. This was the Student Association, from the first moment that George Brown started contemplating building a campus, we were dialoguing and communicating and asking questions and asking critical questions about the purpose of the building and the role that we might play in the development of the building. So, it’s, it is good that we are here. It’s good for us to continue to monitor and track the journey of this development. It is extremely important for us to hear where their vision is and what their thoughts are, so that we can communicate to our student members,” said Miller. 

She adds that the work of the SAGBC in its nearly 30-year history will continue as strong as ever. 

“The journey of the Student Association and monitoring, supporting, collaborating, partnering, advising, [and even] challenging George Brown College will continue. We will continue up until the day they cut the ribbon, and the doors are open and beyond that as well.”