|
The Annex is a neighbourhood in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is generally considered to be bounded by Bathurst Street to the West, Avenue Road to the east, Dupont St. to the North, and Bloor Street to the South. It is an affluent neighbourhood with well-educated residents and it borders the University of Toronto. It has traditionally been home to many of the university's faculty, as well as housing the university's student body.
European settlement of this area began in the 1790s when surveyors laid out York Township. The area east of Brunswick Avenue became part of the village of Yorkville, while the region west of Brunswick was part of Seaton Village. In 1883, Yorkville agreed to annexation with the City of Toronto. In 1886, Simeon Janes, a developer, created a subdivision which he called the Toronto Annex.
It is mainly residential, with quiet, tree lined one-way streets lined with beautiful Victorian and Edwardian homes and mansions, most of them built between 1880 and the early 1900s. During the 1950s and 1960s, an influx of Hungarian immigrants moved into the neighbourhood after the 1956 Hungarian Revolution was suppressed, and many of the businesses and properties along Bloor are owned by Hungarian-Canadian families.
Many of these homes have been converted into buildings that offer multi-tenant apartments. However, the stretch of Bloor Street between St. George and Bathurst is a vibrant social and retail area, offering to Toronto a wide range of services from upscale dining to discount retailers like Honest Ed's. When someone says that they are "going to the Annex," this stretch of Bloor St. is usually what they are referring to.
The Annex is one of the most expensive neighbourhoods in Toronto in which to rent or own a home. Because of its proximity to the university, it has a high rate of seasonal tenant turnover, and its residents range from university students to long-time residents, including well-established and wealthy families. The neighbourhood's appeal sometimes results in the stretching of its borders by realtors and residents of surrounding areas. For example, Seaton Village, the architecturally-similar area to the west (between Bathurst St. and Christie St.), is considered by some to be the "West Annex", although the street signs on that stretch of Bloor call it the Korean Business Area. The area between Bloor and College Street is also sometimes referred to as the "South Annex" (again, most often by realtors).
The neighbourhood has a thriving cultural scene, with the Tranzac (Toronto Australia-New Zealand) Club, the Bathurst Street Theatre, the Bloor Theatre (repertory cinema), the Jewish Community Centre, and, until recently, the now closed Poor Alex Theatre at Bloor and Brunswick. Stores are open late and some restaurants are open well past midnight.
The Annex is well served by public transit, including four Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) subway stations: Bathurst, St. George, Spadina, and Dupont. Bus services operate on Bathurst north of Bloor and on Spadina Road; streetcars operate on Spadina Avenue, Bathurst Street south of Bloor, and College Street.
The Annex is in the political riding of Trinity--Spadina.
The Annex is home to the Canadian writer Margaret Atwood and the former Governor General and broadcaster Adrienne Clarkson. The noted urban theorist and activist Jane Jacobs lived at 69 Albany Avenue for the 37 years up to her death in April 2006.Members of the rock band Sloan also reside in the neighbourhood.
The ANNEX was subdivided in the 1870's and 1880's. It immediately became one of Toronto's elite neighbourhoods, whose first residents included the likes of Timothy Eaton and George Gooderham, president of the Gooderham and Worts Distillery. The Annex's Golden Era lasted until the 1920's, when the upper classes began to migrate northward to newer, more fashionable suburbs in Forest Hill and Lawrence Park.
Those who stayed behind helped form the Annex Residents Association, a powerful lobby group that saved the Annex from the proposed Spadina Expressway which would have divided the neighbourhood in half, had it been built. The Annex has endured and is now over one hundred years old. It remains one of Toronto's premier neighbourhoods, drawing its energy from the University of Toronto and its strength from diversity. Its residents include prominent artists and writers such as Margaret Atwood, politicians, community leaders and successful business people, academics, media personalities, University of Toronto students and faculty, and people from all walks of life.
Many of the rooming houses and multi-unit homes in the Annex have been converted back to single family houses, reflecting the return to prominence of this historic Toronto neighbourhood. The Annex houses, built between 1880 and 1910 are fine examples of Victorian, Queen Anne and Richardsonian Romanesque architectural styles. Plum and pink colored Credit River sandstone, rich red brick, and terra cotta clay tiles, make up the exterior facades of many of these homes. The architectural detail is among the finest in the city, ranging from pyramidal roofs and turrets to recessed grand archways and wooden spindled porches. A second wave of less elaborate Annex homes built in the English Cottage, Georgian and Tudor styles, dates from 1910 to 1930.
The Annex's main shopping district is on Bloor Street. This stretch of stores from Bathurst to Avenue Road includes a shopper's dream mix of clothing boutiques, major-league bookstores, food markets, home furnishings & decor, restaurants, and outdoor cafes. The health-conscious will love the great variety of stores and restaurants featuring organic and health foods and supplements (Juice for Life, Eternal Abundance). There is a plethora of acclaimed ethnic restaurants (The Indian Rice Factory, Bangkok Express, Aida's Falafel) and plenty of delightful shops and boutiques where everything from the latest fashions (Risque, Secrets from your Sister) to whimsical gifts (SWAK, Annex Books, The Outer Layer) are on display.
To the north, Dupont St. offers large chain stores such as the LCBO and a huge Shopper's Drug Mart, as well as professional services such as the landmark Creeds, which now offers such diverse things as cooking classes and home furnishings. The Mirvish Village shopping district on Markham Street, south of Bloor Street, is a quaint collection of great restaurants such as True Grit and Bordello, bookstores, art galleries, antique stores, and one-of-a-kind specialty stores. The Annex really comes alive at night when people from all over the city converge upon its restaurants, bars and nightclubs.
Fitness enthusiasts can get in shape at either the University of Toronto's Athletic Centre, or the Miles J. Nadal Jewish Community Centre at Bloor and Spadina. The Native Canadian Centre of Toronto located in the Annex at 16 Spadina Road, offers a variety of programs and services for Toronto's Native community as well as the general public. The Spadina Road Public Library at 10 Spadina Road, offers a wide variety of programming for neighbourhood residents. Casa Loma and Spadina House are nearby, offering acres of cultivated land, historical tours and demonstrations, and lavish architecture to be explored.
The Annex is well served by public transit. There are subway stations both at Spadina and at Bathurst on the Bloor-Danforth line, and at Dupont Street (at Spadina), on the Yonge-University-Spadina line. Motorists are within minutes of Toronto's business and entertainment districts and are approximately twenty five minutes from the commuter highways.
Call Anna Tulman at 416.909.2662 today!
Anna speaks English, Hebrew, and Russian. |
|
