Walkability: Garden District - 97
By Lucas on Apr 17, 2014
We hope you didn’t think for a second that we would let a little spring snowfall get in the way of our Walkability series. For this installment, we hoofed it up to Toronto’s Garden District neighbourhood.
Garden District on WalkScore.com
The Garden District doesn’t really come up in conversation as often as other Toronto neighbourhoods, like the Entertainment District or Yonge & Eglinton, but it is actually quite large and encompasses a good chunk of prime downtown real estate.
Sometimes it’s difficult to tell whether you’re even in the Garden District because of its irregular perimeter. Carlton Street borders the north, from Yonge to Sherbourne, and everything south, all the way to Queen Street East, is considered the Garden District...EXCEPT the Ryerson University campus occupies a little chunk of land surrounded by Gerrard, Yonge, Dundas, and Mutual Street. Also, the Moss Park neighbourhood stretches along Shuter to Jarvis.
On WalkScore.com, Garden District receives a Walk Score of 97! That scores makes Garden District a “Walker’s Paradise” because your daily errands do not require a car.
Once again, we see a Transit Score of 100. There is a streetcar line running along Carlton/College, one on Dundas, and another on Queen. For north-south travel, the Yonge Subway is just a few steps away. Garden District also pulls in a Bike Score of 90, mostly because of the dedicated cyclist lane that runs the neighbourhood’s entire length of Sherbourne.
The amenities of Garden District
First of all, why is this neighbourhood called the Garden District? The name was selected to recognize Allan Gardens, located at Jarvis and Carlton, which was founded in 1858, making it one of Toronto’s oldest parks.
One of the main concerns about moving downtown is “Where am I going to get my groceries?” Garden District features many grocery stores, including a Loblaws, which is located in the Maple Leaf Garden building (okay, so this is actually on the north side of Carlton, and is technically a part of Church-Wellesley Village, but Garden District residents have easy access to it).
One of the things we like about Garden District is the mixture of historic architecture mixed and urban amenities, such as sushi and breakfast restaurants, coffee shops like Starbucks and Bull Dog Coffee, and entertainment venues like Ed Mirvish Theatre and Massey Hall.
Also, with the Ryerson Campus right in the middle of Garden District, the streets are always lively with students, and the University keeps their grounds pristine, so it’s always a pleasure to walk through.
New home development in and around Garden District
Out of all the recent condo developments in the Garden District, you’ll find that the majority of them are in the preconstruction phase. What does this mean? It means the neighbourhood is on the rise, and by 2020, Garden District is going to be even more vibrant and way more walkable than it already is!
365 Church - Menkes - Preconstruction
Aura at College Park - Canderel - Construction (Penthouse remaining)
Core Condos - CentreCourt Developments - Preconstruction
Dundas Square Gardens - Easton’s Group of Hotels - Preconstruction
The Massey Tower - MOD Developments - Preconstruction
O2 Maisonettes on George - Identity Developments and Stal Inc. - Construction
- PACE Condos - Great Gulf - Construction (SOLD OUT)
