Green Choi

BLENDIN

Environmental Design

2026

BLENDIN: A Civic BathhouseBlendin is a civic bathhouse in downtown Toronto that reclaims bathing as a shared urban ritual. By providing dignified access to cleansing, especially for those without it. The project fosters inclusion, restores humanity in public space, and creates a place for physical and spiritual renewal.

“Toronto’s growing homelessness crisis is driven by housing unaffordability, rising rents, and systemic failures. This is a complex social issue that cannot be solved quickly or through a single architectural intervention. However, this project asks how architecture can begin to respond to one fundamental need: access to cleansing, care, and dignity. For people experiencing homelessness, limited access to showers, laundry, and body care can make it harder to participate in everyday life. Blendin begins with the belief that cleansing is an essential human activity that everyone should be able to access. For those who are ready to renew and restart their lives, the project offers basic care as a form of dignity, renewal, and a second chance. Located in Allan Gardens, a visible site of homelessness in downtown Toronto, the project responds directly to the need for civic care. Its central location, transit access, green space, and connection to the conservatory make it a strong place for a public bathhouse. Rather than hiding social issues away from the city, Blendin places care within the civic landscape. The project understands bathing not only as physical cleansing, but also as mental and emotional renewal. It creates a place where people can restore themselves and gradually reconnect with the community. It is a shared civic space where everyone can cleanse, rest, and belong without separation or stigma.Architecturally, the bathhouse blends into the landscape, working with the site’s slope, sunlight, water, and greenery. The roof and skylights follow the downward movement of the topography, bringing natural light deep into the building throughout the day. The bathhouse also uses a geo-exchange system to stay warm year-round in a sustainable way, storing heat underground and reusing it during colder seasons. The spatial planning focuses on the balance between privacy and openness. Users can choose how deeply they want to engage with cleansing, from foot baths, doing laundry, and showering, to entering the communal pools. Through this curated sequence, Blendin becomes more than a bathhouse. It becomes a place of care, inclusion, and quiet transformation, where cleansing is treated not as a luxury, but as a basic civic right. ”