The building of Artscape Youngplace was, for most of its history, a public school. In 2000, the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) shut down the school at 180 Shaw Street and transferred the school’s operations to the neighbouring Givins/Shaw Public School. The building sat empty until 2006, when the Toronto District School Board hired Artscape to conduct a feasibility study of its potential reuse. This study, which included extensive community consultation, demonstrated strong community support for re-purposing the site as community cultural hub. It indicated that cultural assets, heritage preservation, environmental leadership, educational programming and community partnerships could be brought together in a unique way to transform the Shaw building into a dynamic hub of creative activity and learning.