The starting point of the tour was the origin story of the 9 Madison Avenue site and the adjacent historic house (from 1890) that will connect to all floors of KESKUS and serve as the headquarters for some Estonian organizations, in addition to containing a library on the top floor. Inside the historic house, the team was shown plans illustrating the symbolic shape of the centre’s exterior. Key materials that will make up the structure of the centre (including cast foam aluminum panels and acoustic ceiling tiles) were on display, together with explanations of how the building will stand securely over the TTC subway tunnel and overcome challenges like noise reduction. It was very interesting to hear about how the huge glass panels that have been made exclusively for KESKUS will be installed with new, first-of-its-kind technology.
From there, each floor was explored via extensive scaffolding, making clear where everything from the suur saal (large hall) to classrooms that could be used by the Eesti Kool or as meeting rooms for organizations, and a rooftop event space will be situated. Throughout, construction workers were hard at work.
Taking place on a beautiful, cloudless day, the tour not only showcased the interior developments of the centre, but what will be visible at various angles, including a view of the Annex neighbourhood to the west, all the way out to Trinity-St. Paul’s United Church. The CN tower was also visible.
Between August 15th and August 23rd, 2026, KESKUS will celebrate its grand opening. But even now, the structure of the centre is clearly defined, giving a glimpse of how it will join VEMU and Tartu College to form an active Estonian neighbourhood in Toronto.
Click the gallery below to view photos of what was seen on the tour.
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