Kennedy Road BIA Case Study

Words: 600
Pages: 3

The BIA I chose to focus on for this assignment is the Kennedy Road BIA. I live within proximity of my BIA, so I visit my BIA quite frequently. The last recent visit to my BIA was March 13th, 2018 at around 6pm. In regards to the structure, North of Ellesmere and West of Kennedy road (before the 401) situates several housing residencies – a handful of private owned homes and multiple Toronto public housing apartments. To the East of Kennedy, North of Ellesmere (before the 401) is Kennedy Commons - a commercial area filled with stores and upcoming shops under construction. South of Ellesmere are multiple individual shops and services on both sides of Kennedy road, until Lawrence Avenue East. Some of these stores serve the multicultural families of the BIA. There is no notable construction, other than the redevelopment of Kennedy Commons.
DISCUSSION
…show more content…
Gentrification is most easily identified in the area of Kennedy Commons in particular. This commercial area is easily accessible to the residencies situated across Kennedy Road. Several of these homes are privately owned, while majority of the apartments are owned by Toronto Public Housing. Gentrification is distinguishable in the evolution of Kennedy Commons and the new stores that have recently opened in the area. Such facilities include LA fitness, restaurants (Kinton Ramen, Starbucks, Nandos, Mr. Greek, Sunset Grill), Metro, Moores tailored suits, and Michaels. As shown, these are stores that do not accommodate to the current low income population, which makes up the majority in this area. These stores are not necessarily a necessity for these residents, but are more so a luxury for the wealthier