Runway Reimagined: A Masterclass in City Building

By: Dr. Nadia Amoroso

At Northcrest, we know that the future of city-building depends on bold ideas and new perspectives. Students from the University of Guelph’s School of Environmental Design and Rural Development bring exactly that—applying academic rigour and creative thinking to real-world urban challenges. On March 3rd, they had the opportunity to visit YZD, experiencing the vast potential of the former Downsview Airport lands firsthand.?

Under the guidance of Dr. Nadia Amoroso, a leading voice in landscape architecture and urban design, these students are using YZD’s Runway as a hands-on learning opportunity, applying their skills to a real-world design challenge. While our Runway Design RFP process operates separately from this student-led initiative, their work provides a valuable space for exploration and innovation, demonstrating the potential of fresh perspectives in shaping urban transformation.?

Dr. Nadia Amoroso shares her insights.

The transformation of YZD—the 370-acre former Downsview Airport lands—presents an unparalleled opportunity to reimagine urban spaces with sustainability, connectivity, and community well-being at the forefront. The YZD site, with its unique scale, adjacency to major transit connections, and industrial past, offers an extraordinary learning opportunity for students exploring contemporary urban design.?

I have been a faculty member at the University of Guelph’s School of Environmental Design and Rural Development since 2010 and a full-time professor since 2017. My work focuses on landscape architecture and urban design, and for years, I have encouraged students to push past conventional thinking. When the YZD Runway Competition was announced, it aligned perfectly with our class focus, offering students the opportunity to see what it’s like to develop creative, real-world solutions for a major redevelopment project.?

This project challenges students to work within an existing urban fabric while considering history, infrastructure, and future needs. The opportunity to engage with a large-scale site like this early in their careers gives them invaluable experience in complex urban design, and I’m grateful for this rare opportunity to provide such incredible access for my students.??

A Personal Connection to the Site

This neighbourhood has long been an area of personal and professional significance for me. I grew up in the area and continue to have strong ties through family and friends. Watching YZD’s transformation unfold has been compelling. The shift from military airfield to industrial corridor to a site poised for a new future reflects the evolution of urban environments.

Seeing YZD Through Fresh Eyes

Walking the site for the first time gave students a tangible sense of the scale and potential of YZD. We asked my students how they felt seeing the Runway, the hangars, and the emerging spaces of the YZD Experience Centre in person, and in a word—"awe-inspiring” was the common theme.

Bryan Bruce, a second-year master’s student, reflected on the sheer vastness of the site: “It’s a massive scale. It’s almost intimidating because it’s just a giant blank slate.” The challenge of designing for such a large, open space pushes students to think critically about function, movement, and place-making on an urban scale.

For some, the project sparked memories of international design precedents. “This reminds me of a place in Berlin,” noted Stefi Rescheleit, another second-year master’s student. She saw the potential for YZD to be shaped by global urban principles while still rooted in the local character of Toronto.

Learning from the World’s Best Urban Transformations

The students have been studying successful post-industrial redevelopment projects, such as the High Line in New York City, which transformed an abandoned railway corridor into a vibrant, highly utilized linear park. Similarly, Parc de la Villette in Paris demonstrates how innovative programming and landscape architecture can redefine underutilized spaces. YZD provides a parallel opportunity to reimagine a former aviation and industrial site as a dynamic, inclusive public space.

The scale of the Runway, its connection to key transit routes, and its surrounding industrial edges create design challenges that demand thoughtful integration of mobility networks, green infrastructure, and public programming. The students are considering how these elements can come together to serve future residents, visitors, and businesses. “It’s real life. We could possibly be presenting some ideas that may be informing or be part of [the] pool of knowledge [for this project],” Bryan observed. “The whole competition is bringing in talent from all levels.”

The Student Design Process

The students are working within the same scope and guidelines as professional competitors in the YZD Runway Design Competition—currently underway, with a winner expected this summer. The students are developing conceptual frameworks, master plans, sectional studies, 3D models, and programmatic analyses that align with industry standards. This project requires them to analyze site conditions, explore connectivity strategies, and propose environmental and community-driven solutions.

Having a 'blank slate' of this magnitude challenges them to think critically about what makes an urban space function effectively. “I’ve never had such a large project to work on. The possibilities of what we can do here [are incredible],” Stefi shared. This project is teaching them not only to be creative but to develop ideas grounded in practical urban design strategies.

A Vision for YZD’s Future

We envision YZD as a self-sustaining community, offering diverse housing, employment opportunities, retail, cultural spaces, and abundant green areas. The project has the potential to be a live-work environment where public plazas, markets, parks, and gathering spaces contribute to a vibrant urban fabric. A strong transit connection will allow it to integrate seamlessly with the broader city.

This project allows students to develop forward-thinking ideas that reflect these aspirations. It is their chance to propose design solutions that could influence the future of YZD and, more broadly, urban redevelopment across Canada.

Opening Doors to New Perspectives

One of the most exciting aspects of this project is its ability to bring people from outside communities into YZD. Northcrest Developments is opening its doors to students, professionals, and urban thinkers from across the country to experience the transformation firsthand. This kind of exposure allows fresh eyes to see the possibilities of the site and contribute new ideas to its evolution.

For students, stepping into YZD and engaging with its scale, history, and potential offers a rare opportunity to learn beyond the classroom. "Finding ways to improve public space is really important," Stefi noted. "To have more impact on how public space is used and developed [is exciting]." Their experience at YZD demonstrates how city-building is shaped by collaboration, innovation, and a shared commitment to creating livable, future-ready communities.

The Next Generation of City Builders

This design competition provides University of Guelph students with a rare opportunity to take part in a real-world urban transformation. They are responding to a detailed design brief, analyzing the site, developing innovative proposals, and presenting their concepts on professional panels for review. This process is equipping them with essential skills that will shape their careers.

As a student in the early 2000s, I worked on the Downsview Park competition, a separate 291-acre park owned by Canada Lands and adjacent to YZD, following the Tree City winning submission. I was hired as a student intern by the planning firm to assist with the promotion and exhibition of the final competition submissions. That experience was pivotal in shaping my understanding of large-scale urban design. Similarly, for many of my students, this Runway redesign university project will serve as a defining moment in their academic and professional journeys.

The students taking part in this exercise represent the future of Canadian urban design. The skills, critical thinking, and creativity they develop through this project will inform their contributions to city-building in the years ahead.

YZD is much more than a site—it is a space where the next generation of designers are defining what our urban future could be.