Trinity-Bellwoods is an inner city neighbourhood in Toronto. It is bounded on the east by Bathurst Street, on the north by College Street, on the south by Queen Street West, and by Dovercourt Road on the west. It has a large Portuguese (mostly originally from the Azores and Madeira Islands) and Brazilian community, and many local Lusitanian-Canadian businesses are located along Dundas Street West, continuing west into Little Portugal. This stretch further west along Dundas is known as Rua Açores.
The History of Trinity Bellwoods
Trinity Bellwoods Park was the original site of Trinity College, one of the colleges that now make up the University of Toronto. The college building, which was completed in 1852, stood roughly at the centre of the park, and remained there for just over 100 years. Today the only remaining artifacts of the school are its restored gates at the south end of the park.
By 1900, the Trinity College, and its picturesque surroundings, attracted residential development. Most of the surrounding streets were filled in with tall, narrow houses of the Bay-and-Gable or Gothic Revival style characteristic of much of Toronto's housing stock from that era. A number of fine homes from the period are scattered throughout the neighborhood.
During the 20th century the neighborhood became a landing site for immigrants of various nationalities, setting a pattern for the next six to seven decades. From the 1920s and 1930s the area became home to many Polish and Ukrainian immigrants; the Bathurst-Queen area was the heart of the city's Polish and Ukrainian communities until the 1960s. By the 1960s, the area had become popular among the immigrants from Portugal, who now define much of the neighborhood's character. The businesses along Ossington Avenue, just north of Queen Street, have changed in the last decade, with former sports bars and social clubs becoming trendy restaurants, bars and cafes. Some of this conversion has been due to higher commercial rents along Queen Street relative to Ossington Avenue properties. The high conversion rate into bars and the accompanying late-night noise prompted a city-ordered halt to conversions and new liquor serving licenses along Ossington.
Trinity Bellwoods Park
Trinity Bellwoods Park is 15.4 hectares (38 acres). It has a community recreation centre, managed and owned by the City of Toronto, on the west side of the park. It has two indoor pools, gymnasium, fitness centre, indoor walking/running track and multi-purpose rooms. Adjacent to the centre, in the park, are a volleyball court, a large playground, and children's outdoor wading pool. Also in the park are eight outdoor tennis courts located in the south-east corner and an outdoor ice skating rink at the north-east boundary and volleyball court just north of the recreation centre. There is also field space for soccer, football, and rugby, as well as three softball fields along the east boundary. Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation Division maintain a marked Discovery Walk and shared pedestrian/cycling trail above and parallel to Garrison Creek, which runs through the park from the northwest to the southeast. Trinity Bellwoods is a favourite place for local residents to walk their dogs. The ravine, known as the dog bowl, is the designated leash-free area. The park is a destination for many to picnic, play sports, and enjoy nature.
The park is home to white squirrels, the subject of urban folklore in the city. The true albino squirrels have pink eyes. It is deemed good luck to have spotted one, or two. As there are families of them.
The diverse variety of native and imported trees planted throughout the park, in various stages of growth from young to mature, provide a brilliant display of fall colour against the deep green grass. The Friends of Trinity Bellwoods Park run the volunteer adopt-a-tree program that helps ensure the survival of newly planted trees. In winter, the night view of the Toronto skyline rising above the ravine is extraordinarily beautiful, especially looking east from the Discovery Walk pathway near the western boundary. Tall black Victorian-style iron lamp poles along the main paths provide safe but soft illumination and a charming touch of character.
Trinity Bellwoods Real Estate
Trinity-Bellwoods houses were built largely between 1880 and 1905. They are small to medium in size, and are typical of the Victorian period of architecture found in Toronto’s downtown neighbourhoods. Many of the houses in this neighbourhood either front or back onto Trinity-Bellwoods Park. Many of Trinity-Bellwoods’ larger houses surround the park. There are also many spectacular Victorian homes on Shaw Street, a pretty tree-lined boulevard that is twice as wide as the other streets in this neighbourhood. Trinity-Bellwoods also contains a handful of interesting hard loft buildings that were formerly used for manufacturing and industry and have since been repurposed into residential condominiums.
Looking for the best of Trinity Bellwoods?
Parks
Schools
Please click here for a comprehensive list of schools in Trinity Bellwoods.
Restaurants
Bar Isabel: Spanish-influenced, creative plates and craft beers in a cozy space with an old-world vibe.
.Foxley: Cozy destination known for its ceviche, plus a small plates menu mixing Asian and Pan-Latin tastes.
Le Swan: Handsome art-deco style French diner offering bistro classics and comfort fare plus wine and cocktails.
Cafés
Tampered Press: Quaint café with windows overlooking the park for gourmet coffee, homemade sweets and healthy snacks.
White Squirrel Coffee Shop: Chill café serving organic coffee and Greg’s Ice Cream, with breakfast sandwiches and homemade sweets.
Northern Belle: Hip spot with a vintage feel serving java by day & cocktails, charcuterie, cheese and more by night.