The hotel was designed by Vancouver architect Reno C. Negrin, who worked alongside local firm Searle Wilbee Rowland.

Others in this group include the Four Seasons Sheraton, Sutton Place, Harbour Castle Hotel, and Hyatt Regency.

The history of the Hilton Toronto began in early 1970, when Western International Hotels acquired the property on the eastern side of University Avenue between Richmond and Adelaide.

[2] Before it demolished the fire hall, Western removed the lighted map of the city to be used as a decoration in the bar of its new hotel.

Western contracted the architecture firm Reno C. Negrin & Associates of Vancouver, which had designed its five previous Canadian hotels.

In July 1970, the Toronto Star published an image of the planned hotel and described a brochure that Western International had released announcing the project.

The site would include a 28-storey hotel aligned on the east–west axis would face Richmond, and two office towers would be built on the south side of the property.

The Barrister's, a law-themed restaurant catered to nearby Osgoode Hall, included menu items such as Plaintiff's Platter and Bailiff's Beef, and was decorated with bookshelves of law books.

One of the design highlights was the pair of hexagonal glass elevators that sit outside the building's west wall.

However, the congress was cancelled by the federal government after protests from Jewish organisations over the attendance of observers from the Palestinian Liberation Organization.

[12] After the cancellation, the Hotel Association of Metropolitan Toronto appealed directly to prime minister Pierre Trudeau for assistance to compensate for lost business.