Interior view of office space on main level. The building ceased to function as a municipal city hall after North York was amalgamated into the Toronto Metropolitan Area in the late 1990s. It now serves as the North York Civic Centre, located on Yonge Street north of Sheppard Avenue.

The Joseph Shepard Building is located in the urban core of the North York region of Toronto. The fourteen-storey, modern office complex is pyramidal in form with stepped massing and an asymmetrical plan. The building's walls are clad in rust-red and brown clay brick and have continuous bands of windows and brick spandrels that create a strong horizontal emphasis. Prominent features of its design are its five-storey atrium, many open-air terraces, public courtyard and accessible mall. A strong architectural vocabulary unifies the interior and exterior. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.