West Hill’s open spaces
Parks and schools abound in this family-friendly neighbourhood,
Once upon a time in Toronto, if you were searching for a place to live, you just looked at the neighbourhood that suited your lifestyle. And if the area you liked had become popular — and therefore a little too pricey — you just wandered a few blocks away.
But the combination of Toronto’s constant population growth and a sustained real-estate boom over the past decade and a half means you’ll wear out a lot of shoe leather now trying to find a deal.
However, there are still places where you can find a relative bargain — and a quality of life and amenities similar to what you’d find in more celebrated quarters of the city. Every Thursday until April 19, we’ll explore one of five such neighbourhoods. In east Scarborough, you won’t find anything like the strip of Bloor that runs through The Kingsway in Toronto’s west end — nor anything like its access to the subway — but West Hill does offer a slice of smalltown streetscape at Old Kingston Rd., where a mural depicts the history of Highland Creek, which borders the neighbourhood. In a part of town where driving is the norm, it makes you want to park and walk around for a few minutes.
The favourable comparison with The Kingsway (at less than half the price) becomes less of a stretch on the residential streets, which offer similar large, detached homes (many of them ranch-style bungalows) on wide, wooded lots.
Bordered by parkland on all sides, West Hill is home to top-notch recreational facilities, including a hockey arena, tennis courts and indoor and outdoor pools. University of Toronto’s Scarborough Campus is on the northern edge of the neighbourhood, and the historical architecture of Guildwood Village is on the western edge. In between, in the admittedly unattractive plazas on Lawrence Ave. E., you can find excellent Caribbean, Chinese and Middle Eastern restaurants served by mom-and-pop gourmets.
LOCATION
It’s not Pickering but it’s darn close. West Hill sits near Port Union at the city’s easternmost boundary line.
BOUNDARIES
West: Scarborough Golf Club Rd.; East: Military Trail; North: Ellesmere Rd.; South: East of Morningside, south to Lake Ontario.
TRANSIT
Getting to the 401 will require an eight to 10-minute trip depending on traffic, and you can zip downtown on GO’S Lakeshore East line from Guildwood Station.
APPROXIMATE TIME TO UNION STATION
By car: 32 minutes By bus-subway combo: 1 hour and
26 minutes
By GO train from Guildwood Station:
27 minutes
PARKS
West Hill borders Scarborough’s Highland Creek, an area teeming with forests and undeveloped greenery. To the north, Morningside Park offers residents lots of picnic space and opportunities to play “spot the deer,” courtesy of its wildlife and foot trails that connect to the Waterfront Trail on Lake Ontario. Highland Creek Park bookends the neighbourhood to the south.
RECREATION
Heron Park Community Recreation Centre is West Hill’s major hub for leisure activities.
Outside, a ball diamond and a large pool attract families and athletes in the warmer months; inside, a gym and two indoor rinks provide ample programming facilities. The centre also offers drop-in programs like ballroom- and line-dancing, table tennis and “progressive euchre.”
Programs requiring registration include sports, arts and dance for young children and fitness classes (including yoga and tai-chi) for older folks.
EDUCATION/SCHOOLS
There is plenty to choose from, academically speaking, in West Hill.
George B. Little, St. Margaret’s, Heron Park, Peter Secor, Joseph Brant, Galloway Road and West Hill are just a few of the elementary offerings from the public board, along with St. Malachy on the Catholic side. West Hill Collegiate Institute is the central secondary pub- lic option and Pope John Paul II Catholic Secondary sits just north of Ellesmere Rd. Nearby post-secondary options include Centennial College to the northwest and the University of Toronto’s satellite Scarborough campus to the northeast.
HIGHEST-RANKED ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
George B. Little Public School (6.8/ 10)
HIGHEST RANKED HIGH SCHOOL
Pope John Paul II Catholic Secondary School (5.3/10)
CULTURAL CAPITAL
Situated at the base of nearby Highland Creek Park, Cedar Ridge Creative Centre was built as a family home in 1912. It houses the Cedar Ridge Gallery, which hosts innovative art exhibitions. On-site studio space is used for all-ages creative programming, including a popular children’s fine-art camp and workshops on pottery, sculpture and water colours for the older folks. History buffs can visit the Scarborough Historical Museum, a 10minute drive west.
SAFETY RANKING
Ranked the 127th safest out of 140 Toronto neighbourhoods.
WHAT’S THE CATCH?
There isn’t much for a pedestrian to love about West Hill. Once you get to the parks and landmarks, a walk around is lovely, but the distances involved mean it’s an impractical way to get around.
GOOD TO KNOW
Former Muchmusic personality and Cbc-radio head Denise Donlon and Toronto’s favourite mysterious musical son, The Weeknd, are alumni of West Hill Collegiate Institute. Indy driver Paul Tracy’s nickname is “The Thrill from West Hill.”
NEXT WEEK: The alternative to Moore Park. More from The Grid at thegridto.com
Sources: Safety rankings based on composite data from City of Toronto website and include crimes committed against people (assault, murders, etc.) and property (robberies, thefts, etc.). Education rankings derived from 2010 statistics from the Fraser Institute, a research group that releases annual reports on the educational quality of schools across Canada and the U.S.