| Type | Charitable trust |
|---|---|
| Founded | May 31, 2000 |
| Location | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Key people | Ilse Treurnicht, CEO |
| Focus | Technology transfer, commercialization |
| Method | Consultancy, market research, venture capital |
| Website | www.marsdd.com |
MaRS Discovery District is a not-for-profit corporation founded in Toronto in 2000. Its stated goal is to commercialize publicly funded medical research with the help of local private enterprises and as such is a public-private partnership.[1] [2]
The name MaRS was originally drawn from a file name, and later attributed with the title “Medical and Related Sciences.” As MaRS also works in other fields such as Information and Communications Technology, Engineering, and Social Innovation, it has since abandoned this association.[2]
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It is located on the corner of College Street and University Avenue in the city of Toronto’s Discovery District, adjacent to the University of Toronto and its affiliated research hospitals at the University Health Network.
The MaRS development consists of two phases.
MaRS Discovery District Phase I includes:
The Heritage Building
Inside the Heritage Building's four-storey brick façade (preserved) are tenant spaces occupied by professional services, industry associations, pharmaceutical companies and offices of Canadian universities and the Province of Ontario. In 2006, the MaRS Centre received the Heritage Toronto Award of Excellence for Architectural Conservation and Craftsmanship.
The Atrium
The MaRS atrium is a glass-roofed public thoroughfare that provides walkway access to Heritage Building tenants and retail vendors, as well as access to the South Tower and Medical Discovery Tower. Its bottom level features a sub-dividable conference area that hosts public and private events. MaRS encourages events from across Toronto's arts, culture and broader urban community. The Atrium's lower level also features media centre, videoconferening rooms and a public food court.
The South Tower
This 11-storey structure houses incubator programs and shared laboratory and research facilities. The 200,000-square-foot (19,000 m2), wet-lab-capable building spans eight floors in the MaRS Centre. The tower boasts advanced mechanical and electrical systems, floors with enhanced load bearing capabilities and 15-foot (4.6 m) slab-to-slab clearances.
Occupying the second and third floors of the South Tower—directly above the MaRS corporate offices, is the MaRS Incubator – a dedicated space that houses offices and laboratories for approximately two dozen life science and technology firms.
Toronto Medical Discovery Tower
With 400,000 square feet (37,000 m2) of state-of-the-art wet labs, the 15-storey Toronto Medical Discovery Tower accommodates leading-edge scientific equipment and houses the basic research activities of two of Canada's premier research hospitals: the University Health Network and the Hospital for Sick Children.
Situated on the corner of College and Elizabeth Street, the building was designed with typical research and development lab floors configured with a side core arrangement and sheathed in metal and glass. The tower portions rest on a three-storey limestone podium that aligns with the heights of the adjoining College Wing and the formal landscape forecourt that extends the full block.
The shell and core of the TMDT is designed to accommodate a full lab program based on 80% wet lab and 20% dry lab. The lab floors have been configured to maximize future flexibility. The mechanical and electrical rooms, power and communication distribution systems, general and special exhaust risers, floor drains and service zones, have been established to allow for fit-out by future tenants.
Phase I began operations in 2005.[2]
Phase II, designed by Bregman + Hamann Architects, will constitute a 800,000-square-foot (74,000 m2) addition to the MaRS centre in the form of a 20-story tower on the complex’s west wing. Construction began in late 2007, and was scheduled to be completed in spring 2010.[3] In November 2008, Phase II construction was put on hold due to the economic downturn.[4] Construction resumed in July 2011, with a target completion date of Fall 2013.
In April 2010, criticism of the $471,874 salary collected by MaRS CEO Ilse Treurnicht in 2008 was raised[5] It also criticized government-led funding, lack of accountability and rigor in measuring results, claims of public-private partnerships and the absence of visible-minorities among MaRS's team of advisors.
On Aug. 27, 2010, the National Post relayed some of these criticisms[6]
Renewed criticism was published in 2011, pointing in particular to the $100,000 increase in salary of MaRS CEO, her $534,000 salary in 2010, and questioning the public and private funding of the phase 2 expansion.[7] The Toronto Sun published articles on the topic as well, questioning the high compensation levels at the institution.[8]