Gentrification of Leslieville – Good for retail!

As the news circulated this week that a new store, Good Neighbour, is opening soon in Leslieville, it’s apparent that the neighbourhood is continuing on its expected gentrification trajectory. Critics might say that this is one more nail in the coffin, for the accessibility of the neighbourhood. I believe it’s a natural and positive progression. And a good thing for retail.
 

Gentrification: a bad word? (Or the natural order of things?)

By definition, gentrification is the renewal or transformation of urban working class neighbourhoods into middle or even upper-class neighbourhoods. The term can conjure fear and ire in long-time residents and social activists due to the significant implications it can have on property values and existing working-class residents. Ubiquitous across Toronto, it is part-in-parcel with being both an international city and an urban city of neighbourhoods, where people still choose to reside, rather than flee to the sprawling suburbs.

Retail is an integral part of the metamorphosis of any neighbourhood. Just as the demographic profile changes, so too does the retail mix. First, brave and savvy independents including galleries, quirky niche retailers, coffee shops and restaurants take up shop followed by more independent niche retailers and small chain retailers. At best, the area maintains the grittiness, realness and diversity that attracted people to the neighbourhood in the first place; at worst, the neighbourhood becomes over-popularized and over-gentrified, as large chain retailers and big box retailers appear, forcing both small retailers and discerning residents to flee.
 

The walkable neighbourhood

While gentrification is a hot button for some, I believe that sometimes it’s simply a natural progression. It’s the natural ebb and flow of urban neighbourhoods, particularly as industry vacates, opening up once undesirable or uninhabitable neighbourhoods. With a new influx of residents, dying neighbourhoods can be brought back to life and desolate main streets can thrive again, creating neighbourhoods where residents can live, work, play and shop, all within a short walk.

Don’t all urban dwellers (creatives, professionals and working class alike) have a need for a walkable neighbourhood? Whether by choice or situation they rely on easy access to amenities within their own neighbourhood. Everyone wants to be able to pick up fresh bread, produce and their morning coffee within a short walk. And most people enjoy being able to walk along a main street where there are shop windows to peruse, shops providing to their needs and restaurants to explore, rather than auto shops, plumbing company offices, dodgy convenience stores and pawn shops. Who doesn’t want to walk into a local pub where they at least recognize your face (even if not everyone knows your name)? Really, don’t we all want to live in an active thriving community?- That’s what’s happening in Leslieville.
 

Leslieville

For nearly a decade now, Leslieville has been a neighbourhood in this transition. With the departure of manufacturing and industry, it has reinvented itself from a neglected and decaying neighbourhood in post-industrial demise, into a pleasant and desirable neighbourhood for singles, couples and young families. With the departure of manufacturing and industry it’s appealing location within easy access to downtown has been revealed and fully appreciated.
Leslieville, has been gradually transforming through incremental and organic development rather than by plan (think Liberty Village where a neighbourhood was essentially created by developers). What this means is that new retail (including restaurants) has sprouted up slowly – emerging in vacant storefronts and responding to the needs and desires of the changing demographic – which with the unique combination of lofts and affordable houses has attracted both the creative class and young families. Whether trendy comfort food (Prohibition, Leslieville Pumps, Rashers) hip coffee shops (Mercury Espresso, Te Aro) or busy mommy needs (Baby on the Hip, Leslieville Cheese, Rowe Farms) Queen St. east is now dotted with pockets of vibrant new retail sitting side-by-side with stalwarts like Value Village.

Recent additions within the last few months have included restaurants Eastside Social and Braised as well as the renovation of Shoppers Drugmart to expand their food offering, all of which add to the complementary retail mix that is taking form. Yet, Leslieville remains a neighbourhood of contrasts where raw food store (Belmonte Raw) sits side-by-side with a shabby laundromat and vacant storefronts.

Now with the addition of Good Neigbour, which will feature a mini-store for hot retailer, Drake General Store, the gentrification of Leslieville continues. It’s not a bad thing. It’s not gentrification that should be feared but rather over-gentrification when small independent and innovative retailers who have their finger on the pulse of the consumer, no longer see the neighbour as desirable and existing independent retailers are forced out. For now, as their name implies, this is a good neighbour to the existing retail mix and the neighbourhood.