Skip to content
TravelHub
Lagos · Nigeria

Union Bank Building: what's nearby, how to get there and when to go · 2026

Students living in the tower reside directly above active training kitchens and dining rooms.

Map of places
Around here1
Exchange rate₦1,345.87per 1 $NGN — the local currencyas of Nov 2, 2026
About the place

The historic skyscraper combines early commercial architecture with an operational culinary institute and student housing.

Architects Frank Darling and John Andrew Pearson designed the tower in the Chicago architectural style. Builders George A. Fuller Company and Thompson-Starrett erected the frame using riveted interlocking girders from Dominion Bridge of Montreal. Exterior walls feature ochre brick supplied by the Lac du Bonnet brickworks. Federal authorities designated the preserved structure as a National Historic Site.

Read on

Red River College Polytechnic converted the property into the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute to house culinary arts, hospitality management, and professional baking programs. The original banking hall functions as Jane's Restaurant, flanked by the Culinary Exchange cafe. Modern glass-fronted wings occupy the former Leland Hotel parcel because the original tower could not contain central heating and cooling equipment.

Upper floors accommodate student housing configured as private bedroom suites directly above instructional kitchens. Residents share access to a rooftop patio and garden alongside quick-service dining at Grab-and-Go. Living inside an operating culinary campus requires adjusting to kitchen shifts, frequent catering deliveries, and public visitor traffic throughout the lower levels.

Associations
  • Chicago architectural styleThe tower exhibits early skyscraper engineering designed by Darling and Pearson.
  • Jane's RestaurantFine dining operates directly inside the preserved ground-floor banking hall.
  • Paterson GlobalFoods InstituteThe facility trains students in hospitality management and professional baking.
  • Institutional trafficLiving above public restaurants brings kitchen schedules and steady visitor footfall.
Facts
  • The structure holds official recognition as a National Historic Site of Canada.
  • Architects Frank Darling and John Andrew Pearson designed the original tower.
  • Dominion Bridge of Montreal manufactured the riveted interlocking steel frame.
  • The property houses the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute for Red River College Polytechnic.
Source: Wikipedia

Getting there and staying

2 sources · As of November 3, 2026
Source: TravelHub · OurAirports (public domain)