Abandoned Toronto movie theatre to become new civic centre

Since the Westwood Theatre closed in 1998, the site has lay in various states of ruin. The building lasted until 2013, but since then the sprawling lot near Etobicoke's Six Points intersection has been something of an urban wasteland. Now, it's set to come back to life.

Build Toronto has announced a short list of candidates in an international design competition to create what it calls "a new civic landmark." The site will include a public square, a library, civic offices, and recreation centre.

The entire area is in the midst of a major transformation with a new GO transit hub at Kipling Station, a host of condo developments, and the reconfiguration of the Six Points intersection. In a decade, the neighbourhood will desperately need the amenities offered by this civic hub.

The international presence in the competition is a nice signal that Build Toronto is taking the design component of this redevelopment seriously, but it's also nice to see a number of Toronto firms on the list.

Here are the candidates:

• Adamson Associates, Henning Larsen, PMA
• Diamond Schmitt, Michael Van Valkenburgh
• KPMB Architects, West 8 Urban Design & Landscape
• Montgomery Sisam Architects, Adjaye Associates, OLIN
• Moriyama & Teshima, MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller, FORREC Ltd.

City council will vote on the results of the design competition and business cases later this year.