Runnymede is a neighbourhood in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada located north of
Bloor Street West
Bloor Street is a major east–west residential and commercial thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Bloor Street runs from the Prince Edward Viaduct, which spans the Don River (Ontario), Don River Valley, westward into Mississauga where it e ...
between
Jane Street
Jane may refer to:
* Jane (given name), a feminine given name
* Jane (surname), related to the given name
Film and television
* ''Jane'' (1915 film), a silent comedy film directed by Frank Lloyd
* ''Jane'' (2016 film), a South Korean drama fil ...
and
Runnymede Road
Runnymede Road is a street in the west end of Toronto, Canada. It runs from Morningside Avenue at its south end (west of High Park) and ends at Henrietta Street, just north of St. Clair Ave. There is a small section continuing but ends in a Cul ...
north to
Dundas Street West
Dundas Street is a major historic arterial road in Ontario, Canada. The road connects the city of Toronto with its western suburbs and several cities in southwestern Ontario. Three provincial highways— 2, 5, and 99—followed long sections ...
. It is located directly north of the former village of
Swansea
Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe).
The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...
and west of the
High Park North
High Park North, or often simply High Park, after the park, is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is bounded on the south by Bloor Street, on the west by Runnymede Road, on the north by Annette Street, Quebec Avenue and Humberside Av ...
neighbourhood. The immediate area around Bloor Street is commonly known as
Bloor West Village
Bloor West Village is a family-friendly residential neighbourhood and vibrant shopping district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Bordered on the south by Bloor Street, it encompasses all businesses along Bloor Street between South Kingsway and Ellis P ...
after the shopping area along Bloor Street, whereas the area to the north is considered the Runnymede neighbourhood.
Character
![Runnymede Road](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Runnymede_Road.JPG)
Houses in this neighbourhood are generally (often
American craftsman
American Craftsman is an American domestic architectural style, inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, which included interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts, beginning in the last years of the 19th century. Its ...
style) two story brick houses, however renovations are becoming popular and many of the traditional homes are being torn down to create larger, more modern homes. The tree-lined streets in this area, which was annexed by the city of Toronto in 1909 make this a popular residential neighbourhood. Much of its development was originally due to the creation of a streetcar line along Bloor Street, which the
TTC later replaced by the
Bloor-Danforth subway line, built in the 1960s.
In the Toronto Official Plan, Runnymede is predominantly designated as a neighbourhood. In addition to housing, this classification allows for uses which meet resident needs such as schools, small shops, parks, etc.
Great care is taken to ensure the character of Toronto neighbourhoods is preserved, thus the addition of high-rise apartments is not permitted, and new businesses in the community must prove that they will not produce adverse effects to residents, such as noise pollution or increased traffic. They must also fit well with existing businesses, and reduce frequency of automobile use in the neighbourhood (i.e. by providing a needed service within walking distance).
History
The name Runnymede originates with the estate of
John Scarlett
Sir John McLeod Scarlett (born 18 August 1948) is a British senior intelligence officer. He was Chief of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) from 2004 to 2009. Prior to this appointment, he had chaired the Joint Intelligence Commit ...
, an early land owner in the area. Scarlett owned land in the area as early as 1817. He gave the name Runnymede to his house on Dundas Street. In 1856, Scarlett's holdings bounded by Jane, St. Clair, Clendenan and Annette were purchased by Marcus Rossin, who sub-divided the lands as the "Runnymede Estate". The sub-division was vacant until 1878.
![Runnymede Theatre Toronto](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Runnymede_Theatre_Toronto.jpg)
The neighourhood's first residents were largely Irish and Anglo-Saxon, followed eventually by immigrants of
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...
an origin.
The neighbourhood has a history of opposing large scale redevelopment. In 1966, Romark Developments proposed the construction of a giant apartment complex at Bloor and Jane streets. The plan proposed the construction of 15 apartment buildings (one as high as 38 storeys), shopping centres and open space. The project was estimated to cost $60 million to construct. It would have ranged from Bloor and Jane Street east to Runnymede Road and north to Colbeck Street. Over 1,000 ratepayers came out at a public meeting on March 7, 1966 at Runnymede School to oppose the project.
A great furor accompanied the arrival of a
Chapters
Chapter or Chapters may refer to:
Books
* Chapter (books), a main division of a piece of writing or document
* Chapter book, a story book intended for intermediate readers, generally age 7–10
* Chapters (bookstore), Canadian big box bookstore ...
bookstore at the
Runnymede Theatre
The Runnymede Theatre is a historic building located in Bloor West Village, an affluent west end Toronto neighbourhood. The building has operated as a vaudeville theatre, a movie theatre, a bingo hall, and a Chapters (bookstore), Chapters booksto ...
in the late 1990s. Aside from discontent about the effect of a large bookstore undermining older local businesses, many residents were upset that the local historic movie theatre was going to be gutted to make room for the new store. However, the arrival of Chapters allowed restoration of the historical Runnymede Theatre. At the time, Chapters was the only company willing to make the $5 million investment necessary to restore the building. The movie theatre closed in February 1999.
Culture
The neighbourhood has two Toronto Public Library locations, Runnymede and Annette, and there is a nearby location in Swansea.
The BIA hosts:
*Annual Ukrainian Festival in September (music, foods and crafts).
* July Festival, which is a local fair of amusements and entertainment.
*Halloween Festival on Armadale Avenue, Beresford Avenue and Glendonwynne Road (family-friendly activities).
*Participates in the Toronto citywide "Cavalcade of Lights" (December)
Bloor West Village shopping district
![Bwv](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Bwv.jpg)
Bloor West Village is a shopping district in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. Bloor West is perceived as a district because the elements and characteristics that make it up make it easily identifiable both from the inside and from the outside. These same characteristics make it stand out and give it a different feel from adjacent areas. Located along
Bloor Street
Bloor Street is a major east–west residential and commercial thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Bloor Street runs from the Prince Edward Viaduct, which spans the Don River Valley, westward into Mississauga where it ends at Central Parkw ...
, it encompasses all businesses along Bloor Street between Jane Street and Ellis Park Road, consisting of more than 400 shops, restaurants and services. The mix of stores, which include specialty clothing stores, book stores, restaurants and cafes, creates a vibrant, positive space for residents to fulfill basic needs and interact with the rest of the community.
The district includes many features which contribute to its lively character. It promotes pedestrian activity through the use of wide sidewalks, benches, tree-lined streets, and frequently used outdoor cafes. This atmosphere makes Bloor St. West the predominant public space in the neighbourhood, and it is full of activity at any given time during the day.
Bloor West Village caters mainly to neighbourhood residents, it has a number of small-scale, resident-owned stores which meet needs of community members, but lacks the uniqueness which would generate significant activity from non-residents.
Demographic
In the 2006 Census of Canada, 10.7% of immigrants identified their place of Origin as the United Kingdom, 11.4% said Polish, and 9.6% said Ukrainian.
[2006 Census of Canada] 18.8% of residents (omitting those whose first language was English or French) identified Ukrainian as their first language. This is the most common non-official language spoken in the neighbourhood. This census estimated the number of residents within the neighbourhood as 9,565. 37% are between the ages of 30 to 49, 26% between the ages of 0 to 19, 11% between the ages of 20-29 and 15% are 60+. From the total population only 13% of the residents do not belong to a census family. This indicates that one of the main characteristics of Bloor West is that it is largely made up of young families.
Education
![Runnymede Collegiate Back View](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Runnymede_Collegiate_Back_View.jpg)
The
Toronto District School Board
The Toronto District School Board (TDSB), formerly known as English-language Public District School Board No. 12 prior to 1999, is the English-language public-secular school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The minority public-secular franco ...
(TDSB) is an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
secular public school board that presently serves the City of Toronto, including the neighbourhood of Runnymede. The school board operates numerous
secondary school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...
s in the neighbourhood, including
Runnymede Collegiate Institute
Runnymede Collegiate Institute (colloquially known as Runnymede CI, RCI, or Runnymede) is a public high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school first opened in 1927 and is operated by the Toronto District School Board. Runnymede has a pop ...
,
Ursula Franklin Academy
Ursula Franklin Academy (colloquially known as UFA; pronounced as oo-faa) is a public high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located in the High Park neighbourhood, it was owned by the Toronto Board of Education until its merger into the Toront ...
,
Western Technical-Commercial School
Western Technical-Commercial School is a high school in the High Park North neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada oversighted by the Toronto District School Board. It shares the same building with Ursula Franklin Academy and The Student Scho ...
, and
Humberside Collegiate Institute
Humberside Collegiate Institute (also known as Humberside CI, HCI, or Humberside), formerly known as Toronto Junction High School and Toronto Junction Collegiate Institute is a public high school located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It serves the ...
. In addition, TDSB also operates several
elementary schools
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
in the area. They are:
* King George Junior Public School is a public
elementary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
located on Rexford Road. It first opened in 1911, the year of
King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936.
Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...
's coronation, it replaced Elizabeth Street School, built in 1882. The present building opened in 1964. King George houses a Learning Enrichment Before and After School Program for children 6 to 12 years of age.
*Runnymede Public School is a
public
In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...
elementary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
on Runnymede Road. It has grades JK-8 and has around 1100 students enrolled. The school was founded in 1913 as a one-room schoolhouse.
In addition, the city's public English
separate school board,
Toronto Catholic District School Board
The Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB, known as English-language Separate District School Board No. 40 prior to 1999) is an English-language public-separate school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada, headquartered in North York. I ...
(TCDSB), also operates several schools in the neighbourhood. The TCDSB operates one secondary school in Runnymede,
Bishop Marrocco/Thomas Merton Catholic Secondary School
Bishop Marrocco/Thomas Merton Catholic Secondary School, officially Bishop Marrocco/Thomas Merton Catholic Secondary School and Regional Arts Centre (referred to known as The Regional Arts School @ Marrocco, BMTMCSS, Bishop Marrocco/Thomas Merton ...
. In addition, TCDSB also operates two elementary schools. They are:
* St Pius X Catholic School, an elementary school located on Jane Street, just north of Bloor Street. The school has a mandatory blue and white
dress code
A dress code is a set of rules, often written, with regard to what clothing groups of people must wear. Dress codes are created out of social perceptions and norms, and vary based on purpose, circumstances, and occasions. Different societies an ...
. The school's religion program teaches
Catholic faith
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a p ...
and is integrated closely to St. Pius X Catholic Church.
* James Culnan Catholic School, an
elementary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
located on Willard Avenue and offers Junior
Kindergarten
Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...
to
Grade 8 education, with an extended
French program starting in
Grade 5. The current enrollment is 421 students and the principal is Gianna Helling. The school, named for
trustee
Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...
James Culnan, was opened in 1970 with the official opening and blessing 6 June 1971. Although the main entrance is on Willard Avenue, houses on both it and Windermere Avenue were
expropriated
Eminent domain (United States, Philippines), land acquisition (India, Malaysia, Singapore), compulsory purchase/acquisition (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, United Kingdom), resumption (Hong Kong, Uganda), resumption/compulsory acquisition (Austr ...
to allow for the building of the school. In 1995 the school celebrated its 25th anniversary with a special
mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
at St. James Church. James Culnan was a trustee for 37 years, until his death in 1964, and was knighted by
Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...
in 1957 in honour of his work with the Metropolitan Separate School Board, today the Toronto Catholic District School Board. The school has a mandatory blue and white
dress code
A dress code is a set of rules, often written, with regard to what clothing groups of people must wear. Dress codes are created out of social perceptions and norms, and vary based on purpose, circumstances, and occasions. Different societies an ...
. The school's religion program teaches
Catholic faith
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a p ...
and is integrated closely to St James Parish.
In addition to the TCDSB and TDSB, two other public school boards also operate in the City of Toronto.
Conseil scolaire Viamonde
The Conseil scolaire Viamonde (CSV) is a public-secular French first language school board, and manages elementary and secondary schools in the Ontario Peninsula and the Greater Golden Horseshoe. The school board operates 41 elementary schools and ...
is a secular
French public school board, while the
Conseil scolaire de district catholique Centre-Sud
Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir ( en, My Future Catholic School Board) is a Roman Catholic French first language public- separate school board that manages elementary and secondary schools in the Greater Golden Horseshoe. The school board o ...
is a French separate public school board. However, neither French-language school board operates a school in Runnymede.
Transportation
![Jane Subway Station (Armadale)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Jane_Subway_Station_%28Armadale%29.jpg)
Two major transportation nodes are defined in the neighbourhood by subway stations at either end of Bloor Street (served by the Bloor-Danforth line), at
Jane Street
Jane may refer to:
* Jane (given name), a feminine given name
* Jane (surname), related to the given name
Film and television
* ''Jane'' (1915 film), a silent comedy film directed by Frank Lloyd
* ''Jane'' (2016 film), a South Korean drama fil ...
and
Runnymede Road
Runnymede Road is a street in the west end of Toronto, Canada. It runs from Morningside Avenue at its south end (west of High Park) and ends at Henrietta Street, just north of St. Clair Ave. There is a small section continuing but ends in a Cul ...
. Buses runs north from Jane Station and north and south from Runnymede Stations. Annette Street is served by a bus line from Jane Station. A night bus replaces the subway line during the early morning hours along Bloor Street. Bike Lanes have been incorporated into the neighbourhood as well along Runnymede st. This is something new and adds to the transit modes of the neighbourhood. This is a positive implementation because there has been an increase – from 1.75% to 3.13%- in the number of residents that use cycling as a mode of transportation.
Main streets
The major streets are Bloor Street, Jane Street, and Runnymede Road. Bloor Street, the main thoroughfare, is a four-lane major arterial road, lined with mainly commercial and retail, predominately two-storey buildings with a retail first floor and residential on the upper floors. Most businesses are local stores and restaurants and there are some chains of fast-food restaurants. Most businesses found along Bloor are local and in this respect they are unique but they still have to compete with modern chain businesses in the area, such as clothing stores, cafes and grocery stores. In the Official Plan –which discusses the intended pattern of future growth – Bloor Street has been identified as an area for potential intensification which will turn this street into an avenue. In order to allow for this density intensification, zoning amendments are to take place. For instance the maximum height for buildings in the area is 5 stories, however along Bloor, they are allowing for a maximum height of 8 stories.
![Jane and Annette, 2014 06 09 -a (14230449238)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Jane_and_Annette%2C_2014_06_09_-a_%2814230449238%29.jpg)
The businesses are organized into the Bloor-West Village Business Improvement Association. The Runnymede Library is also located on Bloor. Jane Street, which is a four-lane major arterial road running north from Bloor, changes along its length within the neighbourhood, being predominantly commercial and retail around Bloor Street and Annette. Annette, in the northern part of the neighbourhood, is a four-lane minor arterial road, which runs east-west and is predominantly residential with some schools and the Annette Library located along the street. Bloor Street and Jane Street, as the main streets in the neighbourhood, serve as both edges that separate BWV from adjacent neighbourhoods and as paths to connect people from one place to another. Any activity or social interaction only really occurs along Bloor Street; part of the reason is that it has many points of interests along the way. That the sidewalks are quite lengthy also contributes to this activity. However, the opposite is true for the minor roads; they serve strictly as pathways, not as a place to interact. Runnymede Road, which runs north-south, is also classified as a minor arterial road with predominantly residential land use, and includes Runnymede Junior and Senior Public School, as well as Runnymede United Church. The land use becomes more mixed approaching Annette St. and Dundas St. W. Dundas is another major arterial in the neighbourhood, but it is not as dominant as the other four.
While Bloor St. West is always full of life, local roads within the neighbourhood are very quiet. For the most part, these roads are used simply as pathways to get out of the neighbourhood, and not as public space where people choose to spend time, as is the case with Bloor. As the inner neighbourhood consists almost entirely of housing, rather than a mix of businesses, the streets are relatively quiet. This is an advantage to the many residents who have young children.
In Toronto’s zoning maps, which designate the permitted land uses in a given area, the arterial roads making up the borders of the neighbourhood (Jane, Runnymede, and Bloor) are zoned as mixed use. The local roads within are predominantly residential, with the exception of Annette (a minor arterial road).
[http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/bylaws/2010/law1156-Schedule-A/law1156-zoning-west-maps09.pdf ] This creates clearly identifiable boundaries around the neighbourhood. The creation of such a hard edge may discourage residents from interacting with adjacent neighbourhoods.
References
{{authority control
Neighbourhoods in Toronto
Streetcar suburbs