Located on one of Toronto’s oldest settlements, Liberty Village is bordered to the north by King Street West, to the west by Dufferin Street, to the south by the Gardiner Expressway and to the east by Strachan Avenue. But I’m guessing you didn’t drop by here for a history or geography lesson, did you? Instead, before I cut to the chase, allow me to quickly preface Liberty Village as the kind of community that doesn’t just fuse residential, commercial and retail uses, but consistently attracts young professionals across red-hot economic sectors like media, design and tech — all of whom desire to both live and work in the urban core.
The Real Estate Scoop
There’s two sides to real estate in Liberty Village today. There is the relatively urban and gritty one, which can be credited to the community’s red brick Victorian industrial architecture. Some of the tall chimney smoke stacks cast from these historical buildings not only serve as neighbourhood landmarks, but symbolically govern the streetscape. In fact, red brick — with modern steel and glass — makes up the facade of countless buildings here. Not just the vintage ones, either. And I’d obviously be remiss without acknowledging Liberty Village’s offering of authentic hard loft conversions, all transformed from abandoned warehouses and factories. The other side of Liberty Village is characterized by your everyday low-maintenance condominiums, which obviously function in putting a roof over the heads of the estimated 21,699 residents who call this place home. Yes, a sparse selection townhouses are also available, like the three-level stacked ones found on Sudbury Street.
The Neighbourhood
The Liberty Village name itself was originally introduced as a positive ‘brand’ by its developers and property owners. As such, to complement the area’s range of live-work spaces — the aforementioned loft presence owing to much of them — it’s a community highlighted by an expansive number of gyms, art galleries, yoga studios and cafes on street level.
As for Liberty Village’s restaurants and bars, a few can be found along Liberty Street East, although the majority are located at the intersection of King and Atlantic. There’s also a single park. It may not be much, but community’s close proximity of a waterfront trail more than makes up for it with the amount of running, cycling and general outdoor activity options it presents.
Moreover, its general location is only a 15 minute walk to the Lakeshore, as well as a 20 minute one to King West’s entertainment and fashion districts. And if you’re working down in the financial core, expect just a 20 minute streetcar ride to get there. Lastly, while there may not be any schools within Liberty Village at present time, there are five or six nearby.
The Neighbourhood in Photos
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