Situated in a park that it shares with the Aga Khan Museum adjacent to the Don Valley Parkway in North York, the Centre represents the permanent presence of the Ismaili Muslim community.

[2] In November 2002, the Aga Khan Foundation acquired the site and announced plans to demolish the Bata Shoes Head Office in order to construct it.

[5][7] The Ismaili Centre, Toronto was designed by Indian architectural firm Charles Correa Associates in collaboration with Toronto-based Moriyama & Teshima Architects.

A distinguishing feature of the building is the glass roof of the prayer hall, which recalls the corbelling in many of the traditional domes in the Muslim world.

Djurovic described his vision for the park as one that "captures the essence of the Islamic garden and translates it into an expression that reflects its context and contemporary age.