Conceptualized as a prototype for laneway development, this contemporary 2-bedroom home was designed for young couple looking to enter the housing market. In order to sustain their mortgage, they rented the main house and converted an existing garage into a full sized, well-appointed urban home. The garage, hazardously occupied as an apartment, was legalized and converted into a sustainable, contemporary laneway house by maintaining the garage’s existing concrete block structure and constructing a new highly-insulated, thermally-broken building envelope. This approach preserved the industrial character of the building and exemplified the potential for contextually sensitive, responsible urban densification in Toronto.
