Oakwood-Vaughan, Toronto

Infobox City
official_name = Oakwood-Vaughan
subdivision_type2 = Country
subdivision_name2 = Canada
subdivision_type1 = Province
subdivision_name1 = Ontario
subdivision_type = City
subdivision_name = Toronto


mapsize=150px
map_caption=Location of Oakwood-Vaughan within Toronto

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Oakwood-Vaughan, also known simply as Oakwood, is a neighbourhood in the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada bordered by Eglinton Avenue West to the north, Dufferin Street to the west, St. Clair Avenue West to the south, and Winnett Avenue and Arlington Avenue to the east. [cite web |url=http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/cns_profiles/cns107.htm |title=Oakwood-Vaughan neighbourhood profile |accessdate=2008-05-09] It was in the former city of York before it amalgamated. The neighbourhood's northern half is nicknamed Five Points for the intersection of Oakwood Avenue, Vaughan Road, and Belvidere Avenue. The western half of Oakwood-Vaughan was called Northcliffe .

Character

The three Roman Catholic elementary schools in this neighbourhood are St. Thomas Aquinas, D'Arcy McGee, and St. Alphonsus. The main public in this neighbourhood is Vaughan Road Academy, offering the IB Diploma Programme. It is located at Vaughan Road between Alameda Avenue and Winona Drive. There is another public secondary school at its periphery, Oakwood Collegiate Institute, at the corner of Oakwood Avenue and St. Clair Avenue. Public elementary schools in this neighbourhood include Rawlinson and J.R. Wilcox Community Schools at Earnscliffe Road between Oakwood Ave. and Glenholme Avenue, and Ava Road between Winona Drive and Atlas Avenue, respectively. One can attend the nearby Arlington Middle School at Arlington Road, inside the Cedarvale Park. These public schools are run by the Toronto District School Board.

Built in 1936, Mount Zion Apostolic Church of Canada is one of the hundreds of apostolic churches in Toronto.

Built in 1997, Oakwood Village public library is located on Oakwood Avenue and Holland Park Avenue. However, the Maria A. Shchuka public library, which was rebuilt in 2003, is also located on the neighbourhood's periphery at Eglinton Avenue and Northcliffe Boulevard. Both of these libraries are run by the Toronto Public Library.

Oakwood-Vaughan is home for many artists and their families. It is also an area which houses two community-based facilities: Art Starts and The Oakwood Village Library and Arts Centre. Statistics Canada data indicates that 8% of the area’s residents are employed in art or recreation compared with the 5% average for the City of Toronto.

Little Jamaica is located in the northern section of the neighbourhood, situated along Eglinton Avenue West.

The main streets of this neighbourhood are Oakwood Avenue, Vaughan Road, Rogers Road, Dufferin Street, and Eglinton Avenue West.

; Public transportation

The neighbourhood is west of the Eglinton West station, and has three 24-hour bus routes: Dufferin (29), Eglinton Avenue West (32), and Ossington (63). The 512 streetcar route runs east-west along St. Clair, the 90 bus route along Vaughan Road, and the 161 bus route along the southern stretch of Oakwood Avenue and along Rogers Road. The bus routes and the 512 streetcar route are operated by the TTC.

; DemographicsAccording to the 2001 Census of Canada, among languages spoken at home, Italian is the highest after English, followed closely by Portuguese. Among ethnic origins, Jamaican is highest after Canadian and English, followed by Filipino. It has a higher percentage of immigrants, higher percentage of aboriginal origin, higher percentage of non-English or French home language and a significantly higher proportion have no knowledge of English or French. [cite web |url=http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/pdf2/cpa107.pdf |title=Social Profile #2 - Immigration, Ethnicity and Language |accessdate=2008-05-08]

; IssuesThe intersection of Oakwood Avenue and Vaughan Road is considered a notorious area, given that it has among the highest concentration of after-hour bars in Toronto, as said by one resident, "This community is so underserved in terms of amenities we don't even have a community centre, but we're really over-served in terms of bars and alcohol." [cite web|url=http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/436603|title=West-end residents fight bars, booze-cans|last=Kyonka|first=Nick|date=2008-06-04|publisher=Toronto Star|accessdate=2008-06-04]

Notable residents

*Roy Garrick, drummer of Messenjah
*Kardinal Offishall, hip-hop artist
*Watts, hip-hop producer

References

External links

* [http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/cns_profiles/cns107.htm Oakwood-Vaughan neighbourhood profile] at toronto.ca

Toronto Neighbourhood Geography
North = Briar Hill-Belgravia
East = Humewood-Cedarvale
South = Wychwood
West = Caledonia-Fairbanks
Center = Oakwood-Vaughan