ACCOZZAGLIA

It was not part of the original city plan. But the Annex, established in 1887, is nevertheless an elder neighbourhood by Toronto standards (THA, ¶9). It was also deliberately planned with a “high class style of residences” in mind (Ibid., ¶10). Within this area, a broader narrative speaks of Toronto and its legacy as a former British surrogate; as home to founders of the first Canadian pop music wave; and as survivor of a scuttled expressway project.

This discussion analyses changes in Annex census data between 1961 and 2001. As a consequence of its placement (in terms of centrality, transit, planning, and cultural activity), the Annex now hosts some of the most sought-after homes in the GTA (Lemon, 2001, §84). Its architectural legacy is evident in late-Victorian, “bay-and-gable” houses along Brunswick Ave.; Edwardian estates on Huron St.; carriage houses predating the automobile; and modernist high-rise condos built for a Spadina Expressway that never was (Polo, 2001, §89). Recently, new, exclusive high-rise residences are adding a new façade of dimension to the neighbourhood along Bloor St.

The Annex, for sake of this discussion, is actually designated by Statistics Canada as Annex-University. Its six census tracts (CTs) — 59, 60, 61, 91 (later 91.01 and 91.02), and 92 — include the University of Toronto, and are bordered by the CP Railway along Dupont St. to the north; Bathurst St. to the west; Avenue-Queens Park to the east; and College St. to the south (Figure 1).

Compared to newer suburbs, much of Annex-University’s population growth, supported by streetcar transit dating to the 1920s (Bromley, 1999), happened well before World War II. In fact, a cycle of decline occurred between the 1930s and 1950s before a slow road to recovery began in the 1960s (Lemon, §84). By 2001, the head count was 22,924 — lower than 24,875 in 1961, but this varied dramatically during the interim.

In 1971, Annex-University’s population reached 31,566 before retreating a decade later to 1961-era figures. A cultural nexus in adjacent Yorkville was by 1970 nearing climax, and younger, transient residents found affordable housing in the Annex, often inside Edwardian houses that were divvied into boarding rooms (Pope, 2000, 9; Lemon, §84). This was also when Rochdale — home to “800 hedonistic boomers” (FitzGerald, 2000, 74) — and Tartu were opened along Bloor.

For the 1971 census, the most prominent age segment of those residing in the census area were overwhelmingly from the 20–29 bracket, with a 32.93 percent share. Deconstructed further, over a third of this age group came from CT 91, which, incidentally, is adjacent to Yorkville. While still high — given its proximity to the university — this age group by 2001 had fallen to 27.61 percent.

Was this spike of twenty-somethings prevalent for other ages? Well actually, no: those aged 40–49 comprised 9.82 percent of the census area’s population in 1971, while in 2001, that figure climbed to 12.84 percent — despite a 27 percent drop in Annex-University’s aggregate population. Interestingly, children aged 0–14 have steadily dwindled, indicating that any population growth the Annex has experienced is not originating from couples who are starting families (Figure 2).

Figures from CT 61, the University of Toronto area, revealed a curious drop: far fewer people lived within this tract in 1971 (1,325 residents) or at any time afterwards, than in 1961 when 4,383 residents were counted. Existing houses in 1961 were demolished by the university for building new facilities — one being the John P. Robarts Library which opened in 1973 (requiring an entire city block to realize its completion) (Montagnes & Christl, 1984, 51). This suggests another reason why populations for CTs 91 and 92, adjacent to CT 61, rose so quickly in 1971.

So what happened? As the neighbourhood became renown for bohemian culture, attracting university-aged Baby Boomers in the process, a public backlash against coffeehouses and boarding houses in Annex-University (and Yorkville) resulted in a gentrification plan. City councillors, addressing public outcries over controversial activity ascribed to restive youth, forged an alliance with developer Richard Wookey to raze original structures in Annex and Yorkville and erect high-stake projects such as the Four Seasons Hotel and Hazelton Lanes (Jennings, 194).

Also, indexed against 2007 dollars, cost of living in Annex-University was lower in 1971 than it was later, as gross rents climbed by 26 percent in 2001 (Figure 3). Property thus went “upmarket”, pushing out lower-income residents. Also, home ownership costs between 1981 and 2001 rose 40.28 percent, similar to property values (which climbed 30.31 percent, respectively).

The Annex now is far more educated (and moneyed) than it was in 1961: then, 5.34 percent of respondents held a university degree; in 2001, that figure leapt to 62.47 percent. As higher-wage employment typically demands higher education from its candidates, this higher incidence of post- secondary education is weakly linked to a prerequisite for affording a place in Annex-University.

So the neighbourhood became older, better-degreed, and wealthier. Whether this trend persists largely weighs on 2006 figures, but if more tony boutiques and upscale high-rises foreshadow an idea, it’s that CTs 91.01 and 91.02 are due for another wave of gentrification — what is now referred to as super-gentrification, or the “transformation of already gentrified, prosperous and solidly upper-middle-class neighbourhoods into much more exclusive and expensive enclaves,” much like housing in New York’s Brooklyn Heights neighbourhood (Lees, 2003, 2487–2489).

Meanwhile, the TTC’s Bloor-Danforth subway opened in the late 1960s. This public investment complemented — not replaced — private enterprise along Bloor and its major intersections (notably where subway stops are placed), supporting Eberts’s argument (1990) that “the existence of public infrastructure is a necessary precondition for economic growth.” This value of fixed route transit is not lost on developers. Where once it was anticipation of an expressway that wooed developers to build residential high-rises along the north-south axis of Spadina, new demand for this kind of denser housing has spurred activity along an east-west Bloor axis, most recently borne out by the One Bedford project (Wanagas, 2005, ¶14). Ironically, Annex resistance to this high-rise condo, before changes were made in response to community input, were fierce on a level rivalled only by the Spadina Expressway protests of the 1970s (Ibid, ¶14).

The social benefits from this form of denser housing is questioned by urban development experts such as Katie Williams of the Oxford Centre for Sustainable Development. Williams argues that land might be conserved by adding high-rise residences to a pre-developed area, but when those dwellings are priced beyond affordability for most, then it becomes unlikely those projects will meet “a social housing need or an affordable housing need” (Cotroneo, 2006, ¶53).

Herein lies the rub for Annex-University: what culture is desired for preservation? Is it that of historically registered, single-family dwellings whose average value in 2001 was nearly $428,000, segregating those who can afford living there against those who cannot, or is it that denser affordable housing ushers a socio-economic heterogeneity feared by neighbourhood stalwarts?

The Spadina Expressway, which would have bisected Annex-University (along with a 400 extension replacing Dupont), was scrapped after severe neighbourhood reaction, led largely by urban guru Jane Jacobs — who incidentally lived in CT 92, both on Spadina Rd. (where her home was to be razed) and later, Albany Ave. (Wilson, 2000, 38). In 1969, Jacobs charged, “Probably the biggest single menace to Toronto right now is the Spadina Expressway” (Lefolii, 1969, 3m36s). The social implications of community partitioning via expressway development had become known by 1970, and this helped to usher a community-based resistance to new urban expressway development — Spadina being an early example (Bunting & Filion, 2006, 328).

An ethnic snapshot of Annex-University reveals a strong English, Irish, Welsh, and Scottish base, both in 1961 (36.63 percent) but especially so in 2001 (53.99 percent). The latter was tallied by combining single and mixed responses; single responses were actually 8.26 percent, reflecting a drop as the census area diversified. The 2001 number, however, must be weighed in consideration to how Statistics Canada polled respondents: in 1961, they could only select one ethnic origin, whereas choosing multiple boxes was later allowed. Separately, the Jewish population in 2001 was 8.8 percent, slightly higher than 5.63 percent in 1961. And groups with significant minority populations in 2001, such as Korean and Filipino residents, were largely absent in 1961. While ethno-cultural heterogeneity is now integral to the GTA, it is more conservatively so in the Annex.

Despite changes, Annex-University has retained a reputation for being a historic key to Toronto’s origins, not only because it hosts a major university, but also because much of the original architecture remains intact and in generally good repair — notable for a city with a track record for demolishing structures to erect new development.

So what next? Given its strong economic base and centrality, just as the city is trying to densify developed areas, it is likely that Annex-University property values will climb. As new attractions arrive — the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal; the Royal Conservatory of Music; and two new high-rise residences — this census area is likely to have more appeal to educated, affluent residents in new ways, though it’s unclear whether densification will, practically speaking, raise the population within its bounds.

It’s a matter of wait-and-see.

References

Bromley, John F. 1999. Toronto streetcar & radial loop history. Transfer Points, March 1999, 4–10. Toronto: The Upper Canada Railway Society.

Bunting, Trudi & Filion, Pierre. 2006. Canadian cities in transition: local through global perspectives. 3rd edition. Don Mills: Oxford University Press Canada.

Cotroneo, Christian. 2006. Toronto’s growing sky-high. Toronto Star, 24 September 2006, A10. Toronto: Torstar Publishing.

Eberts, Randall W. 1990. Public infrastructure and regional economic development. Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland Economic Review, 26(1), 15–27. Washington: U.S. Treasury Department (via EBSCOhost).

FitzGerald, James. 2000. Faulty Tower: 1960s counterculture co-op Rochdale College is refurbished as a senior citizens home. Toronto Life, 34(2), 74–75, February 2000. Toronto: Toronto Life Publishing Company Limited.

Jennings, Nicholas. 1997. Before the gold rush: flashbacks to the dawn of the Canadian sound. Toronto: Viking-Penguin Group.

Lefolii, Ken. 1969. Jane Jacobs. The way it is, aired 2 March 1969, 11:21 (running time). Digitized edition retrieved on 14 January 2007. Toronto: CBC Television.

Lees, Loretta. 2003. Super-gentrification: the case of Brooklyn Heights, New York City. Urban Studies, 40(12) 2487–2509, November 2003. Carfax Publishing.

Figures

^{Prepared 6 April 2007 for Prof. Damian Dupuy, GGR124Y1Y, University of Toronto.}