Glen Park, North York Neighbourhood Guide: A Cosmopolitan Community

Glen Park is a cosmopolitan neighbourhood situated in North York. Its boundaries include Lawrence Avenue to the north, Bathurst Street to the east, Stayner Avenue to the south, and the CNR tracks to the west.

Glen Park is home to a large Italian-Canadian population, and the neighbourhood features a colourful mix of housing styles and restaurants, along with popular shopping outlets like the IKEA landmark store. This community is a family-orientated neighbourhood situated near downtown Toronto, and homes can be purchased for much lower than in the downtown core.

Sir Sanford Fleming, the engineer of the Ontario, Simcoe, and Huron Railway, was an early settler to the area and built his home just south of Lawrence Avenue. In 1856, he drew up the plans for the area’s first subdivision; however, although the plans were created, the project never got off the ground.

Glen Park began transitioning from farmland to a residential area in the 1920s. It was after World War II that the area began to blossom into residential neighbourhoods. At this time, many war veterans settled there when they returned from the war.

Many of the houses in Glen Park were built in the 1950s and 1960s featuring bungalow and back-split styles. Larger brick bungalows were constructed between 1955 and 1972, though in the 1940s older homes were built, many with aluminum siding and painted in colourful pastel colours. The exterior of many of the family homes are in the Mediterranean style, due to the large Italian community located in this neighbourhood.

Recently, developers have bought valuable land here in close proximity to downtown and erected custom-built homes on these larger lots.

The neighbourhood is diverse with a range of low- and mid-rise rental apartments, and commercial and light industrial plazas along Lawrence Avenue and Dufferin Street. Also, new construction continues in the area, including condominiums.

North York is a cultural hub for arts and creativity, festivals, and special events — a host of festivals and events take place year-round at Mel Lastman Square, and fabulous theatre and musical performances can be enjoyed at the Meridian Arts Centre. 

Located just off Yonge Street, the Gibson House Museum is an educational exploration of Toronto’s early pioneer history, and the Aga Khan Museum, the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre, and the Ontario Science Centre draw locals and international visitors for cultural and educational enlightenment.

And don’t forget the popular Black Creek Pioneer Village, which will transport you back in time to the 19th century — you don’t have to be a tourist to enjoy some of the province’s most historic and cultural attractions that are nestled in this neighbourhood.

Shopping is plentiful in Glen Park, and there is an abundance of storefronts along Dufferin Street and Marlee Avenue featuring a range of retail shops, services, and restaurants. Orfus Road is a haven for those seeking a bargain, where you’ll find outlet stores dotting the horizon.

Additionally, several larger shopping complexes nearby, including the Lawrence Square Shopping Centre situated on Lawrence Avenue West. Another plaza in the area is the Lawrence Plaza at the corner of Lawrence Avenue and Bathurst Street, where you’ll find 61 stores, restaurants, and services.

Yorkdale Mall is only about a kilometre north of Lawrence Avenue on Dufferin Street and is a neighbourhood hub offering a gathering spot for indoor dining or browsing boutiques and specialty shops. Yorkdale features designer stores such as Banana Republic and Nest New York and high-end clothing from Club Monaco and Roots.

From meeting with friends in an indoor café to browsing designer goods, Yorkdale offers locals shopping in an easily accessible location.

Glen Park offers a range of appetizing eateries. Ristorante Boccaccio situated on Lawrence Avenue West features old-school Italian recipes and a menu that is revised each season. Slice N Bites on Bathurst Street serves international dishes from pizza and sushi to lasagna and shawarma.

Haida Sandwich on Northtown Way is a well-known Persian fast-food chain that also serves up vegetarian pizza and a veggie pizza sandwich for memorable plant-based cuisine. Darosa Cafe and Restaurant is a Portuguese eatery where you can enjoy your meal on the outdoor patio in the warm weather.

Toronto Pho, situated on Dufferin Street, offers appetizing Vietnamese food, including exquisitely cooked shrimp Pad Thai and Thai chicken. No matter what your culinary tastes, the restaurants of Glen Park offer a wide range of international cuisine catering to diverse appetites.

Green space dots this neighbourhood. Parks such as Viewmont Park and Wenderly Park offer families a place to relax with baseball diamonds and children’s playgrounds. A tennis club and tennis courts are also situated at Viewmont Park. Featuring lots of green space, flowering trees, and lilac bushes, this park provides a serene space within the city.

Don’t expect to find an abundance of recreation centres in Glen Park. The largest facility is the Glen Long Community Centre, a favourite gathering spot for locals, which features bocce courts, a gym, and offers preschool programs and martial arts, among other programs. The park located adjacent to this community centre has an outdoor hockey rink, a swimming pool, a bocce ball court, and two children’s playgrounds — there is a large festive Canada Day celebration in the park that attracts a lively crowd.

Dufferin and Bathurst streets are the main thoroughfares in this neighbourhood, travelling south to the downtown area and north to the suburbs. The TTC runs various bus routes in the neighbourhood, including the Glencairn, Dufferin, Lansdowne, Lawrence West, and Maple Leaf routes. 

The Toronto subway stops Glencairn and Lawrence West stations are conveniently located between Bathurst and Dufferin and provide access to the Yonge-University line, travelling into the downtown core. 

The Allen Expressway on-ramp is situated off Lawrence Avenue West and provides access to Highway 401, and downtown Toronto can be reached in under half an hour.

Glen Park’s roots can be traced back to the 1940s when houses were constructed for Second World War veterans returning from the war. Today, this community is a vibrant neighbourhood offering a range of cosmopolitan dining and landmark retail outlets, including IKEA and upscale Yorkdale Mall.

Within close vicinity to downtown, some developers have purchased the valuable land and erected custom-built homes among the smaller bungalows. If you enjoy a cosmopolitan vibe with close access to highways and downtown, this may be a neighbourhood for you to consider.