The Palm House Conservatory at Allan Gardens officially reopened its doors to the public Wednesday after an almost three year-long restoration project. Nearly 11 million dollars later, the work is completed.
The city’s mayor, Olivia Chow, told reporters yesterday at the greenhouse’ opening ceremony, the Palm House was the closest her family would get to a tropical vacation.
Not only is the space one of the first public parks in the city, but Toronto Centre Councillor Chris Moise, a champion for the garden, says it has long been a meeting place for activists with deep civic roots, “where voices have risen in solidarity, resistance and hope.”
The restoration of the Palm House was a collaborative effort involving the City of Toronto, Friends of Allan Gardens and Zeidler Architecture.
The glass greenhouse has undergone extensive renovations to maintain the historic building’s architectural heritage since closing in October 2022. According to a pre-construction report, the restoration work called for new window cladding, a thorough cleaning of the steel frame, among other alterations, for the site’s 12-metre high, 16-sided glass dome. New framing would avoid risking any injuries as the existing glass panels were known to fall at times.