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[[Image:Weston st phillips.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Weston (taken from an airplane north of St. Phillips Road bridge looking south at Weston Road and Humber River valley)]]
[[Image:Weston st phillips.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Weston (taken from an airplane north of St. Phillips Road bridge looking south at Weston Road and Humber River valley)]]


'''Weston''' is a neighbourhood in [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]] in the north-west end in the City of [[York, Ontario|York]]. The neighbourhood generally lies south of [[Highway 401 (Ontario)|Highway 401]], east of the [[Humber River (Toronto)|Humber River]], north of [[Eglinton Avenue]], and west of [[Jane Street]]<ref>http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/images/weston.jpg</ref>. [[Weston Road]] just north of [[Lawrence Avenue]] is the "[[downtown]]" core of Weston, with many small businesses and services.
'''Weston''' is a neighbourhood in [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]] in the north-west end of the [[York, Ontario|York]]. The neighbourhood generally lies south of [[Highway 401 (Ontario)|Highway 401]], east of the [[Humber River (Toronto)|Humber River]], north of [[Eglinton Avenue]], and west of [[Jane Street]]<ref>http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/images/weston.jpg</ref>. [[Weston Road]] just north of [[Lawrence Avenue]] is the "[[downtown]]" core of Weston, with many small businesses and services.


In addition to its traditional Anglo-Canadian roots, Weston is currently home to people of various cultures and ethnicities from around the world<ref>http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/pdf2/cpa113.pdf</ref>.
In addition to its traditional Anglo-Canadian roots, Weston is currently home to people of various cultures and ethnicities from around the world<ref>http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/pdf2/cpa113.pdf</ref>.

Revision as of 17:15, 17 September 2007

Weston (taken from an airplane north of St. Phillips Road bridge looking south at Weston Road and Humber River valley)

Weston is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in the north-west end of the York. The neighbourhood generally lies south of Highway 401, east of the Humber River, north of Eglinton Avenue, and west of Jane Street[1]. Weston Road just north of Lawrence Avenue is the "downtown" core of Weston, with many small businesses and services.

In addition to its traditional Anglo-Canadian roots, Weston is currently home to people of various cultures and ethnicities from around the world[2].

History

The first European settlement was in the 1790s, when a saw mill was built on the west side of the Tanaouate River (which we now call the Humber River) on an old native trading path along the Humber River, named after the well-known Humber estuary in Yorkshire, England. In 1815, James Farr, a prominent local mill owner, named it "Weston" after the place of his birth north of London in Hertfordshire Britain. As this page on Weston notes, "Weston grew along both sides of the river until 1850 when a disastrous flood destroyed the west bank settlement. Improvements to Weston Road (then known as Main Street) and the arrival of the Grand Trunk Railway in 1856 stimulated substantial growth on the east side."

The Town of Weston grew, and over the 19th century became an important industrial centre for the Toronto area. The symbol adopted for the town, an outline of an old-fashioned bicycle, was based on this history of manufacturing and especially the old CCM bicycle factory on Lawrence Avenue just east of Weston Road. Models of bicycles now hang from the streetlights along Weston Road.

Weston was incorporated as a village in 1881, and then as a town in 1914; but in 1967 it became part of the Borough (later City) of York. In 1998, York was in turn amalgamated with the five other members of Metropolitan Toronto, (Toronto, Etobicoke, North York, East York, and Scarborough) in the new "megacity" of Toronto.

So in a sense, the Town of Weston has not existed as a legal reality for almost forty years, but the strength of identity of the area is such that it continues to be informally known as "The Town of Weston" to this day. In fact, many of the areas businesses and residents still use "Weston, Ontario" on the sender address for mail, without any reference being made to Toronto.

Today

File:Downtown weston.jpg
Google satellite image of downtown weston

Weston's building stock consists mostly of Victorian homes east of the railway with apartment & condominium towers on Weston Road overlooking the Humber River valley. Weston's main shopping district is located on Weston Road between Church Street in the north and Wilby Crescent (just south of Lawrence Avenue) in the south. Most shoppes in this stretch consist of your Main Street Ontario type architecture, old buildings with decorative masonary. The town has a historic library (previously a Mechanics' Institute and Carnegie library). The community is also dotted with grand old churches with historical architectural significance. There has been a recent move in Weston to designate certain areas as a historical district[3]. Most streets in Weston are lined with huge mature trees, some well over 100 years old. This is more common east of the railway tracks. Recently there has been some infill development on former industrial & commercial lands bringing some new housing stock in the area. The art community is beginning to call Weston home with art shoppes around Weston Road and John Street and the recent arrival of an art gallery called Artcube on Weston Road & St Phillips Road.

There is a Weston Farmers' Market every Saturday at 7am to 2pm from mid May to the end of October opposite the GO station on John Street. The Weston BIA also hosts a "Weston Santa Claus Parade" each November[4].

Public transportation

Weston is served by the Toronto Transit Commission and by GO transit's Weston (GO Station) which is part of the Georgetown (GO Transit) green line.

PUBLIC TRANSIT ACCESSIBILITY FOR THE DISABLED:

As of June 2007[5], the (79 Scarlett Rd.) which travels on Lawrence Avenue & the (35 Jane St.) which is on the eastern border of Weston, are the only accessible TTC bus routes in Weston.


Weston (GO Station) is accessible.[6]

Parkland & recreation

Weston has many small parks throughout but most notably is Cruickshank Park in the humber river valley with many mature trees and paved bicycle paths[7] lined with large weeping willow. The path continues south to Lake Ontario. The park is also home to some wildlife. Sometimes salmon can be seen swimming upstream. The park has a population of beavers and you can see the from the tell tale marks left behind on trees. In order to protect some trees, park staff have wrapped the tree trunks with wire screen in some areas. There are also some Frogs closer to the waters edge & Garter snakes hidden away in the more secluded areas. Canadian geese, Loons, Mallards & seagulls are a common sight. The entrance to park across from church street can be bustling with rock doves in the summer months. In some areas of the park, you can see exposed Sedimentary rock in the walls of the valley.

South of lawrence avenue is home to a 22.13 acre Weston Lions Park with football, rugby, soccer, tennis, swimming pool, ice rink & baseball sports facilities[8].

Current issues

Of late, the issue of the proposed Blue22 hi-speed rail link between Toronto Airport and Union Station downtown has become a hot political issue in Weston. So called for its 22 minute ride from end to end, it has been proposed for completion by 2009. Under the current proposal, there is no plan for the line to stop in Weston where the route would pass. Weston is currently a station stop on the Georgetown GO line. If approved, the link would see the construction of three additional tracks through the neighbourhood and would increase rail traffic more than fourfold. Community activists are worried about the link severing the community (vehicle traffic on one street will be permanently blocked from crossing the tracks, replaced by a pedestrian bridge) and the possibility of lower future property values due to increased noise and diesel fumes. It was an issue during the Canadian Federal Election being held on January 23, 2006 where incumbent liberal MP, Alan Tonks, supported the link, while the other candidates opposed it. It is also an issue in the February 2007 provincial by-election, where all local candidates came out against the link, but which was still supported by the governing Liberals.


See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/images/weston.jpg
  2. ^ http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/pdf2/cpa113.pdf
  3. ^ http://www.toronto.ca/heritage-preservation/hcd_weston.htm
  4. ^ http://www.westonbia.com/
  5. ^ http://www.toronto.ca/ttc/pdf/accessmap0706.pdf
  6. ^ http://www.gotransit.com/PUBLICROOT/station/station.aspx?station=WSGO
  7. ^ http://www.toronto.ca/parks/brochures/parks_trails_2.pdf
  8. ^ http://www.toronto.ca/parks/parks_gardens/westonlions.htm

43°42′04″N 79°31′11″W / 43.70099°N 79.519700°W / 43.70099; -79.519700

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