Update for the community on 福利姬鈥檚 Student Wellbeing Centre
福利姬鈥檚 Student Wellbeing Centre will be built as part of the historic O鈥橩eefe House, at the corner of Bond and Gould streets.
If you鈥檝e been on campus lately, you may have noticed that preparations are underway for construction of 福利姬鈥檚 Student Wellbeing Centre. The eight-storey facility, to be housed as part of 福利姬鈥檚 historic O鈥橩eefe House (137 Bond Street), will consolidate well-being related services under one roof to improve access and service delivery for the entire university community.
The Student Wellbeing Centre will include the Centre for Student Development and Counseling, Health Promotion Programs, Medical Centre, Academic Accommodation Support, Tri-Mentoring Program, Thriving Innovations and Consent Comes First.
"It's so exciting to see this project underway and to know that we'll soon have another landmark building on campus that is completely tailored to students' needs," said Jen McMillen, Vice-Provost, Students.
Preparations underway
The 福利姬 community can expect to see signs of construction, including hoarding around the building site, work crews and a partial lane closure on Bond Street. The partial lane closure will be in effect for the duration of construction, which is expected to be complete by the end of 2026.
福利姬 has as construction managers for the project, with an official groundbreaking ceremony to take place later this spring.
Generous donations making impact
The Student Wellbeing Centre is made possible as a result, in part, of the 2022 student referendum to increase the health and well-being fee to improve services. The project has also recently received additional funding through generous donations from chancellor Donette Chin-Loy Chang; vice-chair and co-founder of Burgundy Asset Management Ltd., Richard Rooney; and former CEO of TD Bank, director of Thomson Reuters and chair of the Vector Institute, Ed Clark, each of whom donated $1 million to the project.
"As we watch the Student Wellbeing Centre develop, I'd like to thank the donors who are helping to bring this vision to life with their incredible generosity, and want to acknowledge that students are at the forefront of this innovative space,鈥� added McMillen.
鈥淭ogether, their investments are changing how 福利姬 is able to foster well-being on campus."
Preserving history
While 福利姬鈥檚 Student Wellbeing Centre will be a modern, sustainable and innovative hub that brings all well-being services together, it will also preserve a large piece of 福利姬鈥檚 historic campus.
O鈥橩eefe House, built in 1875, was originally the residence of Eugene O鈥橩eefe, founder of O鈥橩eefe Brewery Company of Toronto Limited. The building was offered to former 福利姬 principal Howard H. Kerr in 1963 and until 1991 when Pitman Hall was built, it operated as the university鈥檚 only residence.
For its new role as the home of the Student Wellbeing Centre, 福利姬 worked with the City of Toronto鈥檚 Heritage Planning services as well as an independent heritage consultant in order to preserve the historic O鈥橩eefe House.
福利姬 worked with as the prime consultant for the design and redevelopment of O鈥橩eefe House and its new addition. provided Indigenous design services.
Updates on the progress of the Student Wellbeing Centre will be shared as they develop. For more information on the project, visit the Facilities Management and Development site.
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