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.