The New Era of UTS Begins: Our Renewed Building Opens At 371 Bloor Street West

UTS Principal Rosemary Evans at the ceremonial ribbon-cutting with UTS Co-Captains, S6 (Grade 12) students Caleb and Emily, and members of the Student Council.

This week, University of Toronto Schools (UTS) officially hailed a new era for the school with the opening of the renewed building at 371 Bloor Street West, welcoming students and staff back to our historic home on the University of Toronto campus.  

"The new school is breathtaking," said UTS Co-Captain S6 (Grade 12) student Caleb. "We came in from the foyer and the moment that we looked upwards toward the Fleck Atrium, we were all just in awe. It's really incredible."

"I am really blown away by the quality of the facilities," said S6 Layla (pictured right), a Prefect for Lewis House who was volunteering to help students find their way in the new building. "It's a huge upgrade from what we had before and we are so happy to be back now and spend time with our friends here before Graduation."

The Fleck Atrium is the heart of our new school 

UTS staff in the Fleck Atrium on their first day back. 

The refurbishment melds the school’s historic home, which originally opened its doors in 1910, with an iconic modern design created by lead architect Don Schmitt C.M. ’70, a UTS alumnus and principal of Diamond Schmitt Architects. The renewed school includes 60,000 square feet of renovations including the preservation of the historic facade, plus 60,000 square feet of new space, increasing the overall size by 33 percent. The sky-lit Fleck Atrium, named for UTS Board Chair Jim Fleck C.C. '49, P '72, lies at the heart of the new school. 

"I really like how the Atrium is designed to be so open and a space for everyone," said Caleb. "I think that one of the things that we've missed at our temporary school at 30 Humbert was not being able to gather and collect as a group and there are so many more spaces for that in this new building."  

The Withrow Auditorium is the centrepiece

If the Fleck Atrium is the heart, the iconic design’s centrepiece is the 700-seat, state-of-the-art Withrow Auditorium (not yet open to students), with white brick veneer and a dramatic cantilever that extends over an outdoor plaza, putting UTS on the map as a landmark building in Toronto. 

Other exciting new features include the Jackman Theatre, a new studio theatre space with a dedicated backstage and dressing rooms; the Lang Innovation Lab, where students can bring their visions to life with a laser-cutter, 3D printers and robotics equipment; and the new UTS Athletics Centre powerhouse of the McIntyre Gymnasium, a double gymnasium with room to host large sporting tournaments, and the new fitness facilities of the Ridley Centre that overlook the gymnasium, with treadmills, rowing and ski machines and weight equipment, including multi-purpose rigging and teaching stations.

"We're going to finally have room for spectators for all our home games ‒ just to see games being played in the gymnasium and to hear the UTS community come together and cheer on their sports teams with that pure UTS spirit is so exciting," said Health and Physical Education Teacher Virginia Ki. 

While the refurbishment took place, UTS students had attended school since September 2018 at the school's temporary 30 Humbert location, leased to UTS by the Toronto Catholic District School Board. The return to the school was staggered, with staff setting up on Monday, M4 to S6 (Grade 10 to 12) students returning Tuesday, and F1 to M3 (Grade 7 to 9) students returning Wednesday. 

A tribute to the power of our community 

On Monday, applause filled the Fleck Atrium for the first time as the UTS Board Chair, Jim Fleck C.C. '49, P '72 cut the ribbon in front of an audience of about 100 staff, with UTS Principal Rosemary Evans, who extended her thanks to Jim for his integral efforts in bringing us home to our renewed school. 

“Jim, you worked magic in creating this project – this is an amazing legacy and we are all in your debt,” said Principal Evans, adding that: “We also want to thank everyone in our school community who supported the Building the Future campaign to make this milestone in the history of our school a reality.” 

Principal Evans also thanked Eastern Construction, Diamond Schmitt Architects, JLL Project Management, our Project Steering Committee and the University of Toronto for their efforts in bringing this day to pass. 

The Building the Future campaign, led by Jim Fleck as the Campaign Chair, raised over $60 million to fund the renewed building, which broke ground on December 12, 2018. Total project costs are currently anticipated to be $90 million. 

With all of the students back in the building on Wednesday, a ceremonial ribbon-cutting also took place with student Co-Captains Caleb and Emily doing the honours at noon, as the sound of cheering roared in the Fleck Atrium. 

Students and staff marvel at our stunning new home 

Left and centre: Students love the new Learning Stairs in the Fleck Atrium. Right: Looking down into the new UTS Athletics Centre. 

Throughout the first few days, students and staff marvelled in amazement at their beautiful new home. 

I'm a big fan of the Learning Stairs in the Fleck Atrium," said M4 (Grade 10) Mia. "It's a nice space for us to sit, with room for lots of people, and also really fun to walk down.

UTS Biology and Science Teacher María Niño-Soto said it was well worth the wait. "The science labs are fantastic. We are equipped to do any kind of work the students want to do, such as molecular biology, extracting DNA and amplifying specific genes, material transformation and more. We have the potential to do great work here."
 

Students in a science lab. 

Geography Teacher Mike Farley said, “The classrooms are beautiful: simple, spacious and modern with a lot of natural light. It will be exciting over time to shape these classrooms and give them their own personalities based on the subjects taught within them, such as Geography. It will also be wonderful to use the spaces for co-curricular activities such as the Animal Justice Committee.” 

Drama Teacher Janice Keene raved, “When I walked into the Jackman Theatre for the first time I was instantly inspired by the expansive inviting space and the natural light. I can't wait to see the performances students bring to life here."  

M4 (Grade 10) Saachi summed it up simply. "The new building is so nice. The science classrooms are huge, about double the size of where we came from. I think the school is honestly amazing, and I'm ready to make new memories here." 

The future has arrived, and it is full of possibilities and unlimited potential for our students. 

“Collectively, the UTS community came together to secure the future for our students," said Jim Fleck.  "Now for the first time, UTS has a calibre of facilities that is on par with the extraordinary potential of our students, whose dreams and ambitions will flourish in this new building for generations to come.” 

The Huron Street entrance and the restored heritage facade.