Toronto gets another amazing piece of architecture in which the exterior of an older brick or stone building is incorporated into a new bright glass one (e.g. Calatrava's BCE Place, Hariri Pontarini's Max Gluskin House, ... where else? I know these are far from the only ones). kyliep's comment is right on the money. Love x 1,000,000. This building is awe-inspiring, comfortable, classy, clean yet intimate, and historically fascinating. It is sensitive to its street context on Bloor, to its Flaneur/pedestrian context on Philosopher's Walk, and to its historical context within itself. Koerner Hall (the new theatre with the wooden waves on the ceiling) is gorgeous and acoustically divine. There is too much good to say about this project. Marianne McKenna was the lead architect from KPMB, by the way; brava to her.

There are a few minor issues. First, the pedestrian flow in this building kinda sucks, as I found out recently while at a concert in Koerner Hall. The bridges and stairways and doorways are unmarked and unintuitive. That said, who the heck cares when it's so beautiful? This is a building where I would LIKE to get lost or be stuck in a long line-up. The second issue is with its Bloor Street facade. Where is the main entrance? Can I sit on the steps? What is this building for? Can I go in? The old McMaster building is a little hostile and fortified; this is not helped by the somewhat haughty glass box to the west, though the transparency in that part is nice. Minor issues for an otherwise outstanding piece of work. Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of those involved for making our city a better place.