Brockville’s 48 King West Hotel Recognized as 2026 OAA Queen’s Park Pick

Toronto – The Ontario Association of Architects (OAA), which regulates architecture in the province, has revealed the nine projects comprising the 2026 Queen’s Park Picks.

For the eleventh year in a row, the OAA invited Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) to nominate a building within their riding that highlights the community’s unique architectural heritage, celebrates the rich legacy of architecture in Ontario, and aligns with this year’s theme, Collaboration Powering Innovation.

The theme was also the focus of the 2026 OAA Conference in the Waterloo Region earlier this year and speaks to a central challenge for the profession: achieving a resilient, adaptive, and functional built environment requires better tools for cocreating with project teams, clients, citizens, and municipalities.

It also reflects the Association’s commitment to regulating the practice of architecture in the public interest and underscores the essential role of adaptability in design as the profession
works toward sustainable solutions for a rapidly changing world.
This year’s Queen’s Park Picks program drew 41 submissions from 28 MPPs of all political parties.

A jury of Architects selected nine projects, including the 48 King West Hotel in Brockville, nominated by the Hon. Steve Clark, MPP (Leeds–Grenville–Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes). Originally a 1922 Bank of Toronto branch by W. & W.R.L. Blackwell, it was converted in 2019 into a seven-suite boutique hotel by renovation Architect Cora Lia Taraciuk, designer Brandy Gould, and developer Rob Thompson.

With no heritage designation to guide decisions, the owner kept the historic exterior, including the banking hall’s tall arched windows, and created loft suites that celebrate their full height.

Two of the three vaults were removed to make room for the suites, but the vault door was kept and the scars left exposed, while a 170-year-old limestone wall uncovered during the work now anchors one suite. Reclaimed wood and pressed tin ceiling tiles became headboards and staircases, with custom art and metalwork by
local artists.

Supported by the City’s Downtown Community Improvement Plan, the project shows a building saved by conviction rather than obligation.