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Is the west side of Toronto more prominent than the east side?

Memph said:
And the Sunbelt isn't really more prosperous, just faster growing.
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Yeah, I think the northeast US (BosWash) is still disproportionately powerful and economically influential as a region and incomes are still higher there (though then again, cost of living is too).
 
Meanwhile, our "west side" gets City Hall, U of T, ROM, AGO etc. But few people see these areas as "west side." The area from roughly Spadina to Jarvis is really kind of a zone that's neither east to west. What is notable though is that Spadina is further from Yonge than Jarvis is. Stuff that really isn't any further from the city center to the east feels more removed than areas to the west (i.e. Cabbagetown and Regent Park vs. Kensington and Queen West.)

For whatever reason, the area east of the CBD saw much more "urban renewal" in the postwar years than the area immediately west of it.
 
King of Kensington said:
Meanwhile, our "west side" gets City Hall, U of T, ROM, AGO etc. But few people see these areas as "west side." The area from roughly Spadina to Jarvis is really kind of a zone that's neither east to west. What is notable though is that Spadina is further from Yonge than Jarvis is. Stuff that really isn't any further from the city center to the east feels more removed than areas to the west (i.e. Cabbagetown and Regent Park vs. Kensington and Queen West.)

For whatever reason, the area east of the CBD saw much more "urban renewal" in the postwar years than the area immediately west of it.
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Some parts of the east are still clearly rougher, Queen East for example.

And welcome back! Ae you updating your blog soon?
 
Interestingly in the interwar years there was more activity on the east side of Yonge, since the poorest area of the city was The Ward. According to novelist Michael Redhill (from "The Ward"):

"No division exists as starkly today in Toronto as the one that separated St. John's Ward to the west of Yonge Street from St. James Ward to the east. The east side of Yonge Street was Protestant, wealthy and respectable. It was home to the city's lordly bank buildings, some of the vaudeville theatres and the best of the new movie houses. In the middle of it, on Mutual Street, the Toronto Maple Leafs (having just changed their name from the St. Pats) packed the arena, home ice before relocating to the Gardens in 1931. The Ward, by contrast, was where the rich went for vice and the poor huddled together in one-room apartments in falling-down shacks."
 
I was in the Yonge-Dundas area last night and I realized (thinking of this thread) how rarely I spend time on Yonge (I live between Spadina and Bathurst). Ran into a friend who lives in the Cabbagetown area. I suspect Yonge is much more of a destination for those living between Jarvis and the Don then it is for those between University and Bathurst.
 
King of Kensington said:
I was in the Yonge-Dundas area last night and I realized (thinking of this thread) how rarely I spend time on Yonge (I live between Spadina and Bathurst). Ran into a friend who lives in the Cabbagetown area. I suspect Yonge is much more of a destination for those living between Jarvis and the Don then it is for those between University and Bathurst.
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Well as a Ryerson student, I practically live on Yonge street, I am somewhere between College and Yonge pretty much every day. I can attest to Yonge street being perennially packed with pedestrians too.

But it does serve a interesting question. Should Yonge Street be more of a destination in of itself?
 
WislaHD said:
Well as a Ryerson student, I practically live on Yonge street, I am somewhere between College and Yonge pretty much every day. I can attest to Yonge street being perennially packed with pedestrians too.

But it does serve a interesting question. Should Yonge Street be more of a destination in of itself?
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No doubt. I didn't mean to imply Yonge was simply a "local" destination or had nothing go on. Just that I think those living near say Sherbourne are probably more reliant on Yonge as an entertainment compared to those near Spadina.
 
As far as downtown and south Etobicoke goes I would say there is still greater life west of Yonge but the south east is certainly bridging the gap quite a bit with revitalization efforts. On the contrary nudge up just a tiny bit and from Bloor to all the way to Steeles id say the east is far more affluential on the east side of Yonge. And the west side of Yonge from above Bloor to Steeles faces many of the same challenges we see East of the Don river. The Don river is a better dividing line if we discuss the variance in East vs. West Toronto

Aside from a few areas like Riverdale, rejuvenating Leslieville, the rejuvenating Western Beaches/Hunt club, and Bluffs there has been minimal effort to revitalize certain neighborhoods for the better and this decay will only continue until we dont put more effort into the details of what we build in the future. Better to build nothing new than allow building without a clear focused plan when it comes to certain parts of the City.

I dont think its so much East vs. West problem whatsoever as it is money flowing to where it feels safe. Established neighborhoods with character and/or quality transit will be highly desirable no matter what side of the City. Its also being proven in areas like Cabbagetown, Leslieville, South west Kingston Rd, and Port Union that If we put effort to create something new and revitalize money will follow in due time. Obviously these areas will never be as attractive as certain established neighborhoods, but we will certainly bridge the gap. Im interested to see the area surrounding Victoria Park and Eglinton as they plan to transform it over the next few decades. It should be quite a drastic change and hopefully get the ball rolling for some other areas along Eglinton east.
 
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