Sherbourne Subway

Inside Sherbourne Station
(click to enlarge)

The Sherbourne  Subway station is on the Bloor-Danforth Line of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC).  It was opened in 1966 and serves 25,000 people a day.  That number isn’t surprising at all since it serves St. James Town, which the largest highrise district in Canada.  St. James Town houses over 20,000 people in one area making it the most densely populated area in North America.

Sea of Buildings in St. James Town
(click to enlarge)

There are 19 high rise buildings in one area, some of them rising 34 stories up (yes, I counted them).  Four of the buildings are Public Housing and are home to new immigrants to Canada.  St. James Town is also statistically the poorest neighbourhood in Toronto with the average income less than $20,000 per year, but the northern portion of Jamestown is Rosedale  (see “Rosedale” on my blog) which is one of the most affluent neighbourhoods in Toronto.  

Bike racks, phone booths and dumpsters
(click to enlarge)

I stood there in the centre of a sea of buildings around me, and felt small and insignificant,  though people were friendly.   It didn't take long before I struck a conversation with some.  One person asked me "Oh, you don't live around here?" I replied, "No, I haven't seen anything like this before."  They laughed and said, "Well you haven't seen anything yet.  People jumping off balconies..." I didn't catch the rest of what was said.  I thought it strange they laughed about it but it was the way of life they grew accustomed to.  
In front of some buildings were racks and racks of bikes for those unable to afford cars and a collection of dumpsters. 

The Ongoing Construction in St. James Town
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St. James Town Park
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In every zone you could see ongoing construction signs, notices to amend, fences up, gates across and unfinished works always in progress.  Priorities are least here, I suppose.  The St. James Town West park was more of a walkway or a grassy clearing and then when the snow falls, it will become more like an ashen blanket.  One might think this all would become so uninspiring, but I noticed immediately such a strong sense of community.  


In large cities around the world, there are always the poverty stricken areas and Toronto does its best to offer the less fortunate a hand in opportunity to work, to live with dignity, shelter and food, regardless of race, religion or financial status.  Instead we embrace all our differences in way of food, culture, music and religion.  There are over 240 neighbourhoods in the GTA, each with its own identity and this is why Toronto is called, "the city of neighbourhoods."

Ossington Subway Station

Inside Station-difference in lighting from one
end of the track to the other

1 of several artists murals outside
Daycares in Neighbourhood

 The Ossington Subway station is on the Bloor – Danforth Subway line and was opened to the public in 1966 and serves about 25,000 people a day.   There are great bus connections going in every direction.  On the outside of the station I noticed a beautiful wall mural that was drawn on a wall outside of a daycare center. The painting depicts a varied race of parents and babies in a mythological setting.  One onlooker had told me that it once was a police station.  I ponder at the image and just take it in as an elaborate form of advertisement since there are more than one mural in the neighbourhood that adorn other daycare walls.  I would still rather see this type of thing instead of the usual stereotypical form of advertisement.

Janes Walk 2010

Ossington station is also a meeting place of many once of year who come to gather for “Janes Walk – The Wizard of Ossington” . There are over 40 “Janes Walks” across Toronto – all meeting up at various subway stations throughout the year.  The walks were originally the brainchild of  the late Jane Jacobs, who believed that we were losing 5 important pillars in our lives. To quote her, these are the lists that culturally if we lose them, she believed we may as well be entering the Dark Ages again.

“

1. Community and Family

2. Higher Education

3. The Effective Practice of Science

4. Taxation and Government

5. Self-policing by Learned Professions             “

The walks are designed to bring us together as a community, to learn about our culture, our neighbourhoods and to stop, and look around at a slower pace. 

You can find a list of walks to get involved in at www.janeswalk.net