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Weston Village

Recently, I went for bike ride around Weston at around 3 in the afternoon. I found that some of the impressions I encountered here at UT didn't quite correspond with what I saw. For instance, one person said there were dozens of vacant storefronts, when there weren't that many and the sidewalks were filled with people. It almost felt being in old Toronto. Weston Road in Mount Dennis, on the other hand, is like the Dundas in The Junction in the 1990s: characterized by many vacant storefronts.

Weston is also quite multicultural as opposed to an area with only one group of people; I saw many Muslims, Asians, whites, and blacks walking on the streets. The neighbourhood has some presently downmarket apartment buildings, but also leafy streets with well-maintained old houses. The public realm on Weston Road needs a lot of investment and urban design, but a small park on Little Avenue, surprised me with its historic stone cenotaph and bandshell. Unlike The Junction, Weston maintained its identity as a distinct municipality into the mid-20th century. It only became a part of York in 1967. Weston Road has some interesting architecture, including a couple of sleek Streamline Moderne banks. So it's another walkable Toronto neighbourhood that will hopefully appeal to more people in the future with vibrant streets, diversity, and interesting architecture.
 
junctionist - You are right, there are not that many empty storefronts. Perhaps 'underutilized' is a better word. I am not sure why there are so many dollar/general stores.

beware96 - The northern part of Weston, north of St. Phillips has a very different feel and built form than the rest of Weston. North of St. Phillips, it is much more of a typical suburb, with giant malls and parking lots. (Actually, technically anything north of Oak St. is North York, not Weston)
 
@the_yellow_dart thanks for the information, I know the area well but I have never actually lived there, so I am thinking of purchasing a condo specifically in 2464 Weston Road. I have heard rumours of bad things happening there, anyone know much about that building and the surrounding area north of Philip Street?
 
2464 Weston fees are ultra high with little amenities..no full time security and iffy renters.I know a few people who bought at the start and complaining about thin walls,very very sketchy tenants,some time wild parties.You got the weston train tracks only about 45 meters away and you got 2450/2460 Weston apartments which to say the least seen better days.Problem is the lack of choices in this area for decent condos...the best has to be Hickory Condos at Weston and Lawrence but fees are very high and even though its tucked in the back near the park Weston and Lawrence is a mecca of drug dealers and booze cans.
 
junctionist said:
Weston is also quite multicultural as opposed to an area with only one group of people; I saw many Muslims, Asians, whites, and blacks walking on the streets. The neighbourhood has some presently downmarket apartment buildings, but also leafy streets with well-maintained old houses...
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And contrary to post I've read in UT, I do not believe this will repel young middle class families from setting up in neighbourhoods like Weston.

And of course, it takes a period of time before storefronts and main streets begin to reflect the new generation of families in the area. Heck, the residential demographic of East Danforth (Donlands to Main) have changed dramatically in last decade, yet the main strip remains largely the same, albeit for some minor Asian cultural shifts - Pakistani and Italian towards Ethiopian and Balkan. Of course, the soon to be open Red Rocket Coffee and a few other hints suggest gentrification is not far behind.

As someone in their 20's, Weston is definitely an area I'm keeping an eye on. Heck, a 20 minute GO commute to Union station, bungalows for 300 and change, and century detached homes for under half a million? :D
 
A big part of attracting and keeping young families in an area is the quality of the local schools. Revitalization of The Junction was due in part to the reputation of the CI and the elementaries that feed it. I am not sure that Weston has much wind to its back on that front.
 
AnnetteMeetsJane said:
A big part of attracting and keeping young families in an area is the quality of the local schools. Revitalization of The Junction was due in part to the reputation of the CI and the elementaries that feed it. I am not sure that Weston has much wind to its back on that front.
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Where would one get the stats on the quality of the schools? I went to St. John's as a kid and as far as I know it is still a decent school. For the Separate Schoolboard folks, Chaminade College (my high school) is about 5 minutes walking East from Jane Street -- not technically Weston anymore, but easily accessible by kids in the neighbourhood.

One of the issues now overshadowing the neighbourhood is the closing of the hopsital. I'm not sure when it is planned, and I haven't heard of any plans for the current lot once the hospital moves out.
 
all i see is condos going up in that location. It would be nice if the place was redeveloped so that some some big employers came in.
 
tendim said:
Where would one get the stats on the quality of the schools? I went to St. John's as a kid and as far as I know it is still a decent school. For the Separate Schoolboard folks, Chaminade College (my high school) is about 5 minutes walking East from Jane Street -- not technically Weston anymore, but easily accessible by kids in the neighbourhood.
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I'm not very up on the Separate Boards because they exclude my family on the basis of religion and language.

Weston CIs EQAO for 2010-11 show less than three-quarters of their grade 9s are at grade level for literacy (74%) and academic math (71%), and 23% pass rate on applied math. As a comparison, the CI which serves The Junction is Humbercreast CI, whose equivalent scores are quite a bit higher: Literacy 96%, Academic Math 86% and Applied Math 60%. Given that the Gr. 9 scores reflect elementary education rather than the CI itself, which family of elementary schools would you buy into if you have kids?
 
tendim said:
Where would one get the stats on the quality of the schools? I went to St. John's as a kid and as far as I know it is still a decent school. For the Separate Schoolboard folks, Chaminade College (my high school) is about 5 minutes walking East from Jane Street -- not technically Weston anymore, but easily accessible by kids in the neighbourhood.

One of the issues now overshadowing the neighbourhood is the closing of the hopsital. I'm not sure when it is planned, and I haven't heard of any plans for the current lot once the hospital moves out.
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That hospital off Church St sucks. I see nothing being lost with it moving out. The hospital being built at the new location at Keele and Wilson is suppose to be all digital and high tech (the first digital hospital in Ontario) so it will be a much improvement.
 
Hey All,

Looks like it's been a while since someone has posted about this area. It is a little run down in some areas but in others there is A LOT of potential.

On this day, October 11, 2012 (or 10/11/12), I would like to state that things are beginning to change for many parts in this neighborhood. Unfortunately, this neighborhood is going to take a bit of work but hopefully within a year we'll have a few Starbucks popping up!

Sincerely,

Mr. Shirts
 
MrShirts said:
On this day, October 11, 2012 (or 10/11/12), I would like to state that things are beginning to change for many parts in this neighborhood. Unfortunately, this neighborhood is going to take a bit of work but hopefully within a year we'll have a few Starbucks popping up!

Sincerely,

Mr. Shirts
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2 years later....mmmnope. No Starbucks.

Moved here in December. I think the potential is still pent up though. The Georgetown South Project is going to be a big driver here. I'm gonna call it, 5-10 years from now, Weston will be gentrified with condos for white collars that want to take the GO downtown or international business brokers that want to take the UP Express to Pearson.
 
I've always thought Weston will be a hot spot eventually. It's also got urban bones, so there's nothing really stopping creative types from starting the trend as they would/could in more 'traditional' neighbourhoods in (old) Toronto.
 
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I think it'll be revitalized as well. The area must have been hot in the 1960s and 1970s before losing its vitality, considering the large number of apartment buildings that were built in that time. Back then, it must have been the riverside setting and proximity to the new freeway (the 401) that made the area popular. It's a neighbourhood where you can live a suburban or an urban lifestyle--you can drive everywhere if you want without worrying about parking, but it's also quite walkable. The problem is that it isn't well connected by transit to other traditional neighbourhoods in the city, but that'll change with investments in GO.
 
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