Many Toronto neighbourhoods are rebuilding their identities through new investment in development and burgeoning shopping and dining scenes. With so much change unfolding, it's a tall order to narrow down ones that are on the cusp of something great.
Here are some neighbourhoods in Toronto undergoing some big changes you might not know about.
Six Points
The spaghetti plate of intersecting lanes that gave the Six Points intersection its name has been wiped off the map, replaced with a new fully at-grade interchange.
Correcting one of the most tangled intersections in the city has made the area much more hospitable to pedestrians and cyclists, and a new Kipling Station bus terminal has improved transit.
The upcoming Etobicoke Civic Centre is set to be the area's crown jewel, and other developments are opening up possibilities for a refreshed retail and dining scene in the area. Even Farm Boy has its eyes on the neighbourhood.
Clanton Park
The Clanton Park area of North York is really a tale of two neighbourhoods. At its east end, close to the Bathurst and Wilson intersection, Clanton Park is home to Little Manila, the heart of Toronto's Filipino community.
Top Silog is one of the many great restaurants you can find in Little Manila. Photo by Hector Vasquez.
A vibrant yet largely undiscovered restaurant scene is a constant draw for locals looking to discover another facet in the city's cultural mosaic.
The west end of the Clanton Park neighbourhood is an entirely different story. Pressed up against the Allen Road and Highway 401 interchange, a dense pocket of development has been growing for a few years now, building up the area's population of students and young professionals.
Downsview
Immediately west of the Clanton Park neighbourhood, this concentration of new development spills over into the Downsview area. Downsview Park, the area's main draw, has been given a recent facelift with picnic areas, a dog park and a new path around the park.
There's lots of development happening these days near Downsview Park. Photo by Olivia Little.
Townhomes and condos have added new life to the once-deserted park, while a 2017-opened subway station at the north end of the park has made the area much more accessible.
Pape Village
Often overshadowed by Greektown just to the south, Pape Village is a real hidden gem, proving that you can find so much more if you venture a little off the beaten path on the Danforth.
Hanamaru is a newcomer to Pape Village. Photo by Fareen Karim.
Representative of the broader cultural variety in the area, Hanamaru Market and Bento opened earlier this year, offering Korean and Japanese fare. There's also a new burger joint, the always popular Cafe Serano and its bakery sibling and lots of signs of new places opening soon.
Golden Mile
Neighbourhoods around the city are redefining themselves with big and tall developments, but few transformations compare with the vast skyline set to emerge from Scarborough's Golden Mile.
This strip of big box stores is getting a massive infusion of urbanity with the coming Eglinton Crosstown LRT. New transit is fueling a tidal wave of redevelopment plans that will line Eglinton Avenue with sky-scraping mixed-use developments in the coming years.
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