mcCallumSather has completed 1120 Ossington — a three-storey supportive housing development in Toronto that provides 25 permanent rent-geared-to-income homes for people exiting chronic homelessness.
mcCallumSather's project demonstrates how prefabricated mass timber construction can accelerate affordable housing delivery on constrained urban infill sites. Developed by St. Clare's Multifaith Housing Society on a surplus portion of land beside an existing church that had previously been converted into supportive housing, the 1120 Ossington project increases the number of affordable homes on the site without expanding the urban footprint or requiring new infrastructure. The structural frame and enclosure were erected in just 17 days using three-ply cross-laminated timber panels CNC-fabricated by Element5 from Ontario-sourced wood, which were tilted up on the narrow infill site with minimal disruption to the surrounding neighbourhood.
Image Credit: Riley Snelling
What Makes This Trend Stand Out
- Prefab Supportive Housing
- Rapidly assembled modular and panelized buildings reveal new models for reducing timelines and costs in permanent housing for vulnerable populations.
- Mass Timber Infill
- CNC-fabricated timber systems are reshaping constrained urban sites into low-carbon housing opportunities with limited neighborhood disruption.
- Surplus Land Housing
- Underused institutional parcels create pathways for densification that adds affordable homes without major infrastructure expansion.
Sectors Adopting This
- Affordable Housing
- Rent-geared-to-income developments are evolving through faster construction methods that improve delivery capacity for chronic homelessness solutions.
- Construction Technology
- Digital fabrication and prefabricated structural systems introduce efficiency gains for builders working within tight urban footprints.
- Urban Planning
- Infill-focused development strategies support higher housing supply by reusing existing land assets while preserving surrounding community fabric.
