Richard Silver

For years Cabbagetown residents awaited the long-promised reworking of the original Cabbagetown — reborn in the 1940s as Canada’s largest and oldest social housing project, Regent Park. It had a controversial history due in part to the design. The lack of through streets isolated the 69-acre neighourbood, creating a ghetto. 

In the past 10 years it has become home for many new Canadians and their families making for a lively and diverse neighbourhood as well as bringing lots more street traffic to Parliament St, south of Gerrard.

 In the past couple of years some of the tenement housing has come down; cranes have gone up and so have nicely designed apartment and condominium towers. Streets are starting to appear where barricades existed and now cars and residents can saunter on the newly landscaped thoroughfares. Banks, coffee shops and a new Sobey’s Fresh market is creating an extended shopping area south of Gerrard St.

The good news: There are some really well-priced and well-designed apartments in the new buildings as well as some excellent rental and geared-to-income housing. It is exciting to see the long-awaited changes and be a part of a new and changing community.

 The bad news: The next few years will be full of construction in the area: An aquatic centre is supposed to be ready for the Commonwealth Games, a large community centre is scheduled, as well as more new housing units over the next 10 years.  

The bottom line: Getting in early by buying into a project of this size will probably be a good investment as long as you are patient and look at it in the long term. Being a pioneer is sometimes risky but fun as you watch the development up close and personal.

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