MArch Thesis
Access Interconnectivity: Toronto Tourist Hub
This thesis leverages three extant infrastructures within downtown Toronto to create a new Tourist Hub: the city’s underground pedestrian system, the PATH (itself an attraction to tourists); a long and short-haul bus terminal connecting with local and regional destinations; and downtown Toronto and Ontario-based tourist attractions, events, and itineraries (such as the CN Tower, Nuit Blanche, Niagara wine-tasting).
Central to each infrastructure is a presumption of access; the Tourist Hub as a hybrid building type brings inter-connectivity and access between them. A new collection of uses — hotel, offices, performance spaces — creates a site of activity, exchange, services, shelter, and entertainment.