South Parkdale (Toronto, Ontario)

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Parkdale was founded as an independent settlement within York County in the 1850s. It became an incorporated village in 1879 and later joined Toronto in 1889. It was an upper income residential area for the first half of the 20th Century, with several notable mansions. The area changed dramatically with the building of the Gardiner Expressway, demolishing the southern section of the neighbourhood and the creation of a barrier between the neighbourhood and the lakeshore. This led to both an outflux of prosperous residents west, and a decline in the economy. Most of the residential buildings remain, but the demographic composition has changed considerably, including a higher proportion of lower incomes and newcomer families. Today, it is largely a working class neighbourhood, with a mix of low and high income residents, as well as new immigrants, and many artists and young professionals.