The sad truth about gentrification in lower-class neighbourhoods

Culture Toronto Oct 12, 2022 Megan Bocchinfuso

Cabbagetown has long been a historic gem. With multiple roads of historically preserved houses, restaurants of so many different cuisines, and local farmers’ markets...

Cabbagetown has long been a historic gem. With multiple roads of historically preserved houses, restaurants of so many different cuisines, and local farmers’ markets at Riverdale Park in the summer, Cabbagetown has variations of cultures and a sense of community. There is, however, one flaw to Cabbagetown. It has been under threat of gentrification for years now.

Cabbagetown is a lower-class neighbourhood. According to Toronto.ca, the median household income in Cabbagetown is $41,016. The unsuitable housing rate is 22.9 per cent, and the unaffordable housing rate is 44 per cent. This is a neighbourhood that could easily be overcome by gentrification.

A man walks on the sidewalk in Cabbagetown. It is daytime and the trees are bare. it seems like the beginning of winter.

Cabbagetown Photo credit: Twitter @alexbozikovic

Once I moved to Cabbagetown two and a half years ago I became very aware of the symptoms of a neighbourhood affected by gentrification. There are ‘for sale,’ signs everywhere. There are massive condominiums casting shadows over our buildings, which need new heating systems and some fresh paint, as the high rises continue to be built floor-by-floor. There are people shopping and eating across town because the new neighbours are getting expensive shops put on their streets. Upper-scale French restaurants like L’Avenue are moving in, where a dinner plate is $40, costing more than my heating bill.

Cabbagetown has so much character and history. The neighbourhood is an old district from the 1840’s where Irish immigrants came to settle. The area was named ‘Cabbagetown’ after the Irish settlers planted cabbage in their gardens as a source of food in the midst of the famine. British settlers mockingly dubbed the town ‘Cabbagetown,’ but the name stuck as a source of pride rather than shame. The community has courageous roots, and the residents in Cabbagetown are proud of where they live. We want to preserve every shop, home and small business in our town.

A photo of a bakery from the outside. There is a window with baked goods on display. There is a banner above the store which reads "Absolute Bakery and Cafe"

Absolute Bakery and Cafe

Photo of a bakery from the street. There are black accents around the store, and the building is red brick. The sign is white which reads "Staij&Co."

Coffee shop and bakery on Parliament Street.

Since I moved to Cabbagetown in 2019, there have been three separate accounts of gentrification, the most recent being a few weeks ago. A strip of buildings and restaurants on Parliament Street were put up for sale two weeks ago for $16.5 million. Considering the size of our neighbourhood, losing our strip of six popular shops could hurt our community economically.

The fear of what will be built in their place is the bigger worry. The past has shown the residents of Cabbagetown that rebuilding usually results in more condos or stores for the upper-class.

A sign on a fence. It is a white sign with black lettering reading "Via Bloor" with an arrow pointing left.

Via Bloor sign during construction of the building.

In 2020 a condominium called ‘Via Bloor’, a 46-storey sky-scraper on the corner of Parliament and Bloor, was being built. Units in Via Bloor start at a price of $899,000 and go up to $2,450,000 for a penthouse. Sitting on the corner of Parliament and Bloor, Via Bloor is only a five-minute walk from my apartment building, where the rent is $2,300 for a two-bedroom apartment. One would think my building and Via Bloor were in completely different neighbourhoods.

A view of a condo outside from the ground floor. It is cloudy outside. There are some trees in the view.

Via Bloor

A view from the bottom of a condo. The two buildings are very tall and take up the entire frame. The condos are sleek looking, with blue and black colours. It is dusk.

A 46-storey condominium.

I can see the buildings up the street from my apartment building need external refurbishing. Some of the buildings farther down are unliveable in their state and sit vacant. They could house thousands of middle and lower-class residents if they were refurbished.

It seems the rebuilding and remodelling plans are going to the wealthy, rather than the needy. Gentrification has infected Cabbagetown. I hope we can survive.