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Megan Torza, OAA / FRAIC / LEED AP BD+C

Megan is an architect whose professional development has been influenced by a strong personal interest in adaptive reuse and the integration of contemporary architecture into historic urban fabric. She joined DTAH in 2006 and became a partner in 2012. She was fortunate early in her career to play a key role in the Artscape Wychwood Barns and Evergreen Brick Works projects, cementing her passion for community-based projects and meaningful public engagement. Her socially-minded, contextually-sensitive portfolio has grown to include the award-winning entrance pavilion to Tommy Thompson Park, the Niagara Falls Exchange: Farmers’ Market and Cultural Hub, and the Baker District One Planet Living Redevelopment in Guelph. As an architect and urban designer, she advocates for socially responsible projects that enrich the communities to which they belong.

With a background in art and architectural history, Megan has taught the history of Contemporary Architecture at the University of Toronto, and is a frequent guest lecturer and design critic at the University of À¶Ý®ÊÓƵ and Toronto Metropolitan University. She is former chair of the City of Vaughan Urban Design Review Panel and the Toronto Society of Architects.

DTAH has been engaged in placemaking for the last fifty years in communities across Ontario. As our region continues to urbanize, public projects such as parks, plazas and market pavilions are increasingly proposed within floodplains or on brownfields where the line between public amenity and infrastructure is blurred. These projects are also asked to incorporate adaptability and resilience (both relating to programming and climate) while delivering an authentic user experience unique to their time and place. Using recent work on the Niagara Falls Exchange, the Brampton Riverwalk Master Plan and Evergreen Brick Works as examples, Megan will elaborate upon the current placemaking design opportunities and some of the challenges faced by designers tackling projects intended to serve the public good.