Baird Sampson Neuert Architects' Thomas L. Wells Public School garners top marks from the AIA.

Photos courtesy Tom Arban Photography 

An east-end Toronto public school was the lone Canadian recipient of an American Institute for Architects (AIA) 2008 Institute Honor Award for Architecture. In January, Thomas L. Wells Public School (designed by Baird Sampson Neuert Architects for the Toronto District School Board [TDSB]) was named one of 13 winners.

Billed as being part of “a new generation of high-performance green schools” for the city, Thomas L. Wells is the first public school in the country to have received Silver under the Canada Green Building Council's (CaGBC's) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED Canada) rating system.

In its review, the AIA jury lauded the project's union of learning enhancement, sustainability, and esthetic design.

“Classrooms and facilities that are arranged to capture daylight and provide ventilation in this great northern city surround the library, the centrepiece of this project,” the jury commented. “The plans, the scale of the corridors and classrooms, conducive to student interaction, create the sense education here is a worthwhile and enjoyable endeavour.”