Rockcliffe–Smythe

Rockliffe-Smythe
Neighbourhood
Location within Toronto
Coordinates:
Country	Canada
Province	Ontario
City	Toronto
Community	York
Changed Municipality	1998 Toronto from York
Government
• MP	Ahmed Hussen (York South—Weston)
• MPP	Laura Albanese (York South—Weston)
• Councillor	Frances Nunziata (Ward 11 York South-Weston)

Jane Street bridge over Black Creek at Smythe Park, 1949

Jane Park Plaza at Jane Street and Dalrymple Drive

Rockcliffe–Smythe is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was part of the former City of York before the amalgamation of Toronto in 1998. The boundaries as defined by the city are Eglinton Avenue West to the north, from the Humber River to Jane Street. It then proceeds south along Jane to Lambton, and follows Lambton past Weston Road to the north-south railway lines to the east. The boundary follows the railway south to The eastern boundary then veers south and west along neighbourhood streets until it reaches St. Clair Avenue West, then south along Runnymede Road to the east-west railway line. The boundary then follows the railway line to the Humber River, and follows the Humber River north to Eglinton. It is in Ward 11 (York-South Weston) of the City of Toronto.

As with many neighbourhoods defined by the city, there are often more traditional names for pockets of the city. Directly north-east of Jane Street and St. Clair West is an area called Syme, named after George Syme. Further to the east (beyond Hilldale road) is another pocket called Harwood. Harwood is bordered by creek in almost all directions.

Development

The area had been farmed since the 1800s. One of the first large-scale developments in the area was the opening of the Smythe gravel pit in the 1920s, by Conn Smythe. After World War II, after the gravel pit was used up, the pit and surrounding area was sub-divided and developed. Smythe made homes available to returning servicemen and families, losing money on each. The neighbourhood has retained the Smythe name ever since. Smythe Park exists today on the site of the pit and is the site of the Smythe Park Recreation and Community Centre.

Character

The area is predominately residential in nature, and mostly single-family detached homes. There are apartment buildings in developments along Jane Street, Scarlett Road and Humber Boulevard. There is industry along the rail lines to the east and south and in pockets. There is some retail along St. Clair Avenue and Weston Road.

This neighbourhood has large amounts of green space including the centrally located Smythe Park. The entire western boundary is green space including Lambton Park, and Lambton and Scarlett Woods golf courses. Black Creek meets the Humber in the neighbourhood. The Black Creek enters the neighbourhood from the north-east, travelling through a concrete culvert in the center of Humber Boulevard and through concrete through parks and to the Humber.

Schools

• Archbishop Romero Catholic Secondary School - A Catholic high school located on Humber Boulevard. Established in 1989 as the first Catholic high school in the City of York. It was previously called York Humber Secondary School. November 1992 marked the start of a $12-million construction project that transformed the original building into a state-of-the-art facility. At a special ceremony on May 7, 1995 the school was officially opened and blessed.
• Cordella Avenue Junior Public School - A public elementary school located at 175 Cordella Avenue, at the end of Black Creek Drive on the west side of Weston Road. It first opened in 1960 and was expanded in 1970 to include additional classroom space.
• George Syme Community School is a large public elementary school on Pritchard Avenue, near Jane Street and St. Clair Avenue. The original four-room George Syme School opened in 1909 and was replaced by the current building in 1970. It is a shared use facility, and is also home to adult ESL classes, the Syme-Woolner Neighbourhood and Family Centre, George Syme Daycare, International Language Programs and Escuela Pioneros de la Paz. The school celebrated its centennial in 2009.
• Harwood Public School is a public elementary school located on Leigh Street, off McCormack Street, west of Weston Road. It was founded in 1928.

Rockcliffe Middle School

• Rockcliffe Middle School is a middle school is a school for grade 6-8 students, on Rockcliffe Boulevard, close to the intersection of Jane Street and St. Clair.
• Roselands Junior Public School is a public elementary school located south of Eglinton Avenue on Jane Street. The school celebrated its 75th anniversary in 1997 and has gained a reputation for "Excellence in Education". The school is wheelchair accessible with handicapped parking spaces located close to the building.
• Santa Maria Catholic School is a Catholic elementary school located on Avon Avenue just west of Weston Road and south of Humber Boulevard.

Demographics

This neighbourhood is one of the lowest in Toronto in terms of average income and average house price according to the 2001 Census (source:Statistics Canada 2001). It is culturally diverse with an above average number of Latin American descendants. There are also large groups of Portuguese ethnicity (mainly in Harwood) and Caribbean ethnicity (mainly in the Jane-Woolner area) descendants.

Home languages

In 2006, the top 11 languages used at home by residents of Rockcliffe–Smythe were:

1. English: 61.40%
2. Portuguese: 7.28%
3. Spanish: 6.83%
4. Vietnamese 3.91%
5. Italian 2.28%
6. Chinese 1.45%
7. Polish 1.16%
8. Ukrainian 1.03%
9. Tagalog 0.85%
10. Urdu 0.76%
11. Somali 0.63%

At 0.11%, French does not rank in the top 11.

Ethnicity

According to the 2011 National Household Survey.

Harwood

50% Immigrants

62% Visible Minority

27% Black

20% Latin American

6% Southeast Asian

4% Filipino

3% Native

2% Other

Cordella/South Mount Dennis

48% Immigrants

39% Visible Minority

11% Latin American

11% Black

7% Southeast Asian

4% Filipino

3% South Asian

3% Other

Woolner/Rockcliffe

60% Immigrants

68% Visible Minority

21% Latin American

20% Black

10% Southeast Asian

8% South Asian

3% Chinese

3% Filipino

3% Other

Smythe Park-Roselands

47% Immigrants

23% Visible Minority

7% Black

5% Latin American

3% Chinese

3% South Asian

2% Southeast Asian

2% Filipino

1% Other

Syme

46% Immigrants

45% Visible Minority

11% Southeast Asian

10% Latin American

7% Black

6% Chinese

5% South Asian

3% Filipino

3% Other

Main streets

The area is centered by Jane Street a north-south four-lane arterial road, which enters the neighbourhood from the south and continues north out of the neighbourhood. To the west, Scarlett Road is another arterial road running north-westerly from Dundas Street to the north-west corner of the neighbourhood. The central east-west artery from Jane to Weston is Alliance Avenue and Humber Boulevard. To the east, Weston Road is a major four-lane arterial road in a north-westerly direction.

The Stockyards

The area bounded by Gunns Road, St. Clair Avenue West and Weston Road was once home to various meat packers including Canada Packers (now Maple Leaf Foods and since 2009 being converted into a retail big box mall called The Stockyards.

Transportation

The area is served by several Toronto Transit Commission bus lines, including the Route 35 Jane along Jane Street from Jane subway station and the Routes 71 Runnymede and 79 Scarlett Road along Runnymede Road, which originate at Runnymede subway station. Along the east, the Route 89 Weston bus line runs along Weston Road to Keele subway station and the 161 Rogers Road loops within the neighbourhood and goes to the east, meeting the subway at Ossington subway station.

New light rail transit routes are planned for both Jane and Eglinton.

See also

• List of neighbourhoods in Toronto

External links

• City of Toronto demographic profile
• City of Toronto Ward 11 profile