In the heart of Toronto’s Discovery District, life-changing and life-saving research is a part of daily life amidst Toronto’s hospital row along University Avenue. The district is known as the home of biotechnology, life sciences, research and health care, with university campuses and university affiliated research hospitals like the University Health Network (UHN).

Sitting at the southwest corner of University Avenue and Elm Street sits a little piece of history, the former National Life Building; a 15-storey office tower designed and built between 1971 to 1974. This property at 522 University Ave was built for the National Life Assurance Company of Canada established in Toronto in 1899, which later became a subsidiary of Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc (iA Financial Group) in 1988. The building exemplifies Toronto’s monumental modernist architecture with precast concrete cladding and uniform grid of punched windows.

A Trusted Relationship Helps Guide the Future

Colliers’ expert Michael King, Senior Vice President, is known in Toronto for his depth of knowledge and network particularly around Toronto’s Discovery District. With his three-plus decades of commercial real estate experience, Michael is a trusted advisor to his clients with meaningful relationships that transcend the transaction. His track-record is filled with completed transactions for clients in office leasing, building acquisitions and dispositions, many of them originating off-market, in the Greater Toronto Area.

Throughout the years, Michael has cultivated a deep relationship with UHN, Canada’s leading research and cancer hospital network. UHN’s Princess Margaret Cancer Centre is one of the top five cancer research centres in the world, with Toronto General Hospital known for its leading surgical oncology in the country. As the demand for cancer diagnosis and treatment continued to surge, UHN needed more than incremental expansion; they required a transformative solution that could propel their research and patient care into the future.

Writing the Next Chapter for 522 University

For the last few years, iA Financial Group was looking to reimagine the future of 522 University Ave, to acknowledge its history but reinvent its purpose for the future. The site has been part of National Life Assurance Company of Canada and iA Financial Group for almost a century in various forms, replacing a Beaux-Arts style building that occupied the site since 1930. After a few blue-sky plans, they recognized the building deserved a new chapter in its history.

Through Michael’s extensive network of trusted relationships, he sourced 522 University Ave in an off-market transaction with the help of Canderel and iA Financial Group. With the implementation of innovative and leading workplace strategies, iA Financial Group had right sized their footprint, signaling a transition of the building to a renewed purpose that could benefit society.

The immaculately maintained space and its proximity to UHN’s network of hospitals and research made it the perfect fit to help facilitate the expansion of UHN’s cancer program.

For iA Financial Group, it was a deserving next chapter for the 522 University Ave property to help increase capacity for innovation and research in cancer prevention, early cancer detection, diagnostics and treatment. During the 2024 holiday season, the transaction was finalized by turning over the keys from iA Financial to UHN in a media ceremony held on December 20th.

One of the GTA’s Largest Office Transactions of 2024

In an uncertain office market, the transaction at 522 University Ave is in the top three office sales in the GTA for 2024. Despite its age, the building’s strategic location and proximity to top research institutions and medical centres along hospital row make it a premier asset in the GTA.

Office transactions since the pandemic have largely involved private buyers, diverting from the usual profiles of REITs or Canadian pension plans demonstrating a new wave of innovation and value for office. Particularly in the surrounding neighbourhood of 522 University, there has been exponential in life sciences and health care research, cultivating a community fueled by the knowledge economy.

This transaction is more than just its real estate — it represents a collaborative commitment to advancing cancer research and care. By reimagining 522 University Avenue, Colliers, UHN, and iA Financial Group have created a pathway for groundbreaking medical innovation in the heart of Toronto’s Discovery District.