Four little letters — LLBO — are making a big difference in a west-end Toronto neighbourhood that was under prohibition for almost a century.
The Junction has been dubbed one of Toronto’s “up and coming” neighbourhoods.
But the west-end area already looks ultra modern — for a community that just kicked prohibition.
The district banned liquor sales in 1904 in an attempt to shed its blue-collar barroom image.
Passengers travelling on five merging Canadian Pacific Railway lines — the area’s namesake — were often greeted by the sight of drunk and rowdy railway workers and farmers, and the area wanted to be known for something else.
Then in 1997, a referendum put booze back in The Junction. But it only takes a short jaunt along Dundas Street West to realize the neighbourhood’s still struggling with its identity.
Out with the old ..
Rent in The Junction is increasing with its popularity. But foot traffic isn’t going up as quickly, according to Chris Haskim, project and communications coordinator for The Junction Business Improvement Area.
You don’t have to be a business whiz to solve this lopsided equation; the writing’s on the storefront windows.
For rent. Retail opportunity available. Business for sale. About 30 signs in a seven-block stretch between Keele Street and Quebec Avenue tell a story of who’s left the buildings.
Clearance Electronics is clearing out. T&D Appliance Refrigeration’s inventory “must go.” 3 Way Retail Clothing, Apparel and Footwear took a one-way ticket out of 2957 Dundas St. W. And the post-dry LLBO eateries weren’t enough to keep a restaurant supply shop in business.
One awning sign, next to an optical store, is even preemptively selling the occupied space, advertising “Corner Retail 8,144 sq. ft available (then, in smaller letters) by May 2008.”
But despite the commercial growing pains, Haskim says the prohibition lift saved the neighbourhood and made it easier for the BIA to promote.
“We’ve been working to change our mandate … to bringing more upscale, more diverse businesses to the area,” Haskim said.
“Now we’re able to have food, the restaurants, the art galleries, but also everything you need for day-to-day living; convenience stores, clothing stores and a lot of specialty retailers that you won’t find in other neighbourhoods.
He also hopes The Junction will emerge from the transition more focused on the arts.
“We have a small emphasis on [the arts] now, especially with The Junction Art Festival,” Haskim said.
“In the next 10 years, I see a lot more foot traffic in the neighbourhood and a place where artists and the community can get together.”
Take a chance on me
Michelle Vella and her business partner decided to place their Beet — an organic café and market — on The Junction after a location in trendy Bloor West Village fell through in the summer of 2007.
“We looked at The Junction for a few reasons; one was the rent was much more affordable than Bloor Street West,” she said.
“But beyond that, we just felt that the community really needed something like us in the neighbourhood; they didn’t have a café that was nutritious and organic.”
To get to the cafe, customers venture through the foyer of an old Toronto Dominion Bank building, a heritage site that can’t be altered. And since The Beet opened in early 2008, Vella says the steady flow of people coming through the two sets of doors has confirmed she and her partner made the right choice.
“There was a bit of nervous anticipation about not having a lot of foot traffic,” she said.
“But the response has been amazing. So many people have come forward and had been waiting for us to open; there’s such great enthusiasm for our product.”
Ivan Martinovic was also looking for a home for an art gallery and architectural practice with his business partner when they discovered a high-ceilinged heritage building, kindred spirits, and a lot of inspiration on Dundas Street West.
“We wanted something on a main street, in an area that is interesting and has some inclination towards art and design,” he said.
“We looked at different areas — The Danforth, Queen West, and so on — and we were surprised to find out that a huge number of architects actually live and work [in The Junction].”
They opened Urbanscape in September 2007, just in time for The Junction Arts Festival. But Martinovic thinks the community has an appetite for art year-round.
“We are trying to marry art and design and urbanism. What we do is have events and exhibitions that are tied to those themes; not just the buildings, but how living in the urban environment is affecting people; how they relate to each other, how they communicate, and how they live,” he said.
“We hope that by doing this, little by little the spaces in The Junction will be improved and ... modernized and that will bring more and more business into the area.”
You’ve gotta know when to hold ‘em
While most businesses and developers in The Junction are focused on the future, one organization is trying to emphasize the past.
Just one block south of the changes on Dundas Street West, members of the West Toronto Junction Historical Society are plotting the area’s centennial celebration in the basement of a library that’s been a neighbourhood staple for almost as long.
Neil Ross, the driving force behind the April 14 festivities, wouldn’t take “no funding” for an answer when he discovered the BIA had promised their entire budget to the annual arts festival.
He insisted the City of West Toronto’s birthday be celebrated — even though it died shortly after its first anniversary. So the WTJHS canvassed local retailers, recruited volunteers, and even got Mayor David Miller to proclaim “Junction City Centennial Day.”
The Junction may be an “up and coming” neighbourhood, but Ross thinks the area’s rich past shouldn’t be lost in the shuffle.
"[The Junction] represents so much of what this country is all about; the railway, the merging of art, culture and business," he said.
"It's always had an independent spirit, and it remains a place that's just a little bit outside the box."