close
close

People have different ideas about the boundaries of downtown Toronto

Posted on by Neons

The boundaries of downtown Toronto can vary depending on which part of the area a person lives in, and those inconsistencies are evident in a heated online debate that erupted Thursday afternoon.

A post shared by Globe and Mail reporter Oliver Moore on X is currently sparking a debate about how people define downtown Toronto. In what began as a Globe newsroom interview, Moore went to the X to poll the public about where downtown begins and ends.

It's an increasingly polarizing question amid Toronto's generational boom, where high-density development has pushed far beyond the traditional boundaries of downtown.

The idea of ​​”downtown” has changed over the generations, one notable example of which is the former Uptown Theater at Yonge and Bloor, so named when it was located just a few miles north of the heart of the city. After the core expanded northward, many consider the original location of the theater to be on the northern border of the present downtown.

Dozens of people responded to Moore's post with their own interpretations of downtown's boundaries, though the only thing people seemed to agree on was Lake Ontario as the southern edge of downtown.

This is a debate that some have been having for years.

Some answers were more specific than others, like former Toronto chief planner Gregg Lintern.

Google Maps appears to agree with many commenters' interpretation of the boundaries as being the River Don to the east, Bathurst to the west, the lake to the south and Bloor Street to the north.

Other answers are less black and white. A journalist in one answer John Lorinck “The city center, like the middle class, is a very flexible concept.”

Another echoes this sentiment, explaining how for suburban and outer 905 residents, broad areas of the city are referred to as “downtown” in reference to their location.

Speaking from personal experience, I can think of at least two instances where visitors from the 905 referred to my midtown neighborhood as “downtown.”

One commenter explained how this comparability widens with increasing distance from downtown, noting, “If I talk to someone in France, Milton is in Toronto.”

To that last point, I say we have to draw the line somewhere.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *