After over a quarter century of waiting, planning, construction, and even more waiting, Toronto's new St Lawrence Market North building is finally rounding the finish line.

The new five-storey replacement building for the North Market building will provide a permanent space for the Farmer's Market (housed in a temporary tent since 2016) on its ground floor, while the upper floors will house new Toronto Court Services courtrooms and administrative offices.

The City of Toronto first floated plans to replace the 1967-built north market building on the northwest corner of Front and Jarvis all the way back in 1998. 

Over a quarter century later, the project has weathered significant challenges, including delays, design changes, a swelling budget, and even the death of a key visionary. 

The design at the time construction began has changed slightly in the years since, including the removal of design elements like colourful vents. Image via City of Toronto.

But after all this time, the completion of the new landmark is now in sight.

Even before the current construction and budget woes, the project took a dozen years to get off the ground between the late 90s conception stage and the crowning of a winner in an international design competition back in 2010.

The St. Lawrence Market North building features a design from Toronto-based Adamson Associate Architects and London-based Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners — helmed by legendary British-Italian architect Richard Rogers — though this design would be substantially altered in the years that followed the 2010 reveal.

Demolition and archaeological excavation of the site commenced in 2016, but it wouldn't be until 2019 that shovels finally hit the ground for the new building.

Sadly, architect Richard Rogers would pass away in 2021 as construction for the building pressed on, never seeing his vision realized.

A construction crane working on the project was dismantled in mid-2022 after the building achieved structural completion, and over two years later, the fences surrounding the building have been removed and the structure is looking closer to readiness by the day.

The new building at night. Photo by Jack Landau.

While the City has not yet announced an opening date for the new North Market, the project team reported that the building was 98 per cent complete as of June 2024.

At that time, crews were in the process of commissioning the building's mechanical and electrical systems, installing the final sections of interior glazing, and nearing the completion of interior finishes, painting, and millwork installation for the building's courtrooms.

Outstanding work to be completed as of June included final building inspections, cleaning, and the preparation of tenant spaces for the fast-approaching move-ins.

While things looked just months away at the time of that update, it was revealed during that same month that the City required another $9.5 million in emergency spending to complete the nearly-ready project, driving the already-inflated cost up to $128 million.

blogTO has reached out to the City of Toronto seeking comment on the current construction status and an updated timeline on the opening of the new North Market building.