Chinatown, Toronto 多倫多華埠[a] | |
|---|---|
Neighbourhood | |
 Street level "downtown" Chinatown at the intersection ofDundas Street andSpadina Avenue | |
  Location within Toronto | |
| Coordinates:43°39′10″N79°23′53″W / 43.6529°N 79.3980°W /43.6529; -79.3980 | |
| Country |  Canada |
| Province |  Ontario |
| City | Toronto |
Chinatown, Toronto (also known asDowntown Chinatown orWest Chinatown) is a Chineseethnic enclave located in the city'sdowntown core ofToronto,Ontario, Canada. It is centred at the intersection ofSpadina Avenue andDundas Street West.
The present neighbourhood was the result of the government expropriatingToronto's first Chinatown in the late 1950s to make way for anew city hall andpublic square. As a result of the expropriations, a number of businesses and residents based in the city's first Chinatown moved west towards Spadina Avenue during the 1950s and 1960s, later joined by other Chinese immigrants during the 1960s. The neighbourhood is one of severalChinatowns in Toronto that developed during the latter half of the 20th century. This Chinatown is sometimes referred to as West Chinatown to differentiate from both the first Chinatown located more centrally andEast Chinatown developed at the intersection of Broadview Avenue and Gerrard Street East.
Toronto's present-day downtown Chinatown was formerly a Jewish district, although a small Chinese community was already present in this location prior to the 1950s.[1]
The creation of this Chinatown was driven by the demolition ofFirst Chinatown at Bay Street and Dundas Street West, from the 1950s to 1960s to make way for Toronto City Hall. While a handful of Chinese businesses still thrive there, much of the Chinese community have largely migrated west from there to the present Chinatown neighbourhood, thus its name, "West Chinatown".[2] Chinatown continued to expand with the influx of Chinese immigrants during the 1960s, many of the wives and descendants of the Chinese men already in Canada due to the lifting of Canada's racialexclusion act.[3] With much of Toronto's downtown Jewish population moving north alongBathurst Street, the businesses in this area became largely Chinese.[3]
In the following decades, students and skilled workers arrived fromHong Kong,Guangdong province and Chinese communities inSoutheast Asia and theCaribbean further increased the Chinese population, which led to the creation of additional Chinese communities east of Toronto. The neighbourhood has been noted as being a "near complete community" with housing, employment, and commerce, along with schools and social services all located within walking distance in the neighbourhood.[4]
Today, the economic and social centre of Toronto's downtown Chinatown primarily runs north–south along Spadina Avenue to College Street to Sullivan Street and east–west along Dundas Street West from Augusta Avenue to Beverley Street. A mansion that is converted to the Italian Consulate is at the northwest corner of Dundas and Beverley.
Since the 2000s, the West Chinatown has been changing from the influx of new residents, businesses from immigrants and second generation Canadians. The neighbourhood has continued to serve as a vital market hub and services, to people from inside the neighbourhood and outside.[5][6] The central location of the neighbourhood has also been a draw for property developers, changing the face of the neighbourhood.[6]
Meanwhile, since the 2010s, the neighbourhood of the first Chinatown is sometimes referred to as Little Tokyo, due to the number of Japanese businesses that have popped up in the area.[7]
Toronto's downtown Chinatown is one of the largest in North America. It is centred on the intersection ofDundas Street West andSpadina Avenue and extends outward from this point along both streets. With the population changes of recent decades, it has come to reflect a diverse set of East Asian cultures through its shops and restaurants, includingChinese andVietnamese. The major Chinese malls in the area are Dragon City and Chinatown Centre.
Since the 1990s, downtown Chinatown has been redefining itself in the face of changing demographics and gentrification of the neighbourhood. As the aging population shrank, revenues of businesses in the neighbourhood also decreased. While the majority of the grocery stores and shops remain, most of the once-famed restaurants on Dundas Street West, especially the barbecue shops located below grade, have closed since 2000.[8][5] Competition from commercial developments in suburban Chinese communities also drew wealth and professional immigrants away from downtown. Unlike those newer developments in the suburbs, Chinatown's economy relies heavily on tourism and Chinese seniors. As many younger, higher-income immigrants settled elsewhere in the city, those left in the district are typically from older generations who depend on downtown's dense concentration of services and accessibility to public transportation.[9] With developers changing or resulting in the closure of well-regarded businesses, the Chinatown neighbourhood is facing the pressures of gentrification along with many other Toronto ethnic neighbourhoods and communities such asGreektown,Koreatown,Little Portugal, andLittle Italy.[10]
In the early 21st century, downtown neighbourhoods became more attractive to urban professionals and young people who work in theFinancial District, as well as its proximity to theUniversity of Toronto and toOCAD University, leading to thegentrification of surrounding areas and potentially changing the face of West Chinatown.[5][2]
A key representative of the neighbourhood and its interests is the Toronto Chinatown Business Improvement Area (多倫多華埠商業改進區), also known as the Chinatown BIA. Anon-for-profit organization funded by the commercial property owners of the downtown Chinatown area, it was founded in 2007 and works closely with representatives of the federal, provincial, and city government, the police, as well as community stakeholders to promote and enhance the community as a commercial destination while maintaining its cultural character.[11][12][13][14]
Historically, Toronto's Downtown Chinatown has been represented by immigrants and families from southern China andHong Kong. Since the transfer of Hong Kong's sovereignty to thePeople's Republic of China in 1997, immigrants frommainland China have greatly exceeded those from Hong Kong. However, at present Cantonese remains the primary language used by businesses and restaurants in Chinatown.
To the east of Spadina Avenue, numerous university students attending theUniversity of Toronto,OCAD University (formerly the Ontario College of Art and Design), andToronto Metropolitan University live in many of the small houses built as workers' housing.
Both the505 Dundas and510 Spadinastreetcar routes run through Chinatown, with the latter line being dedicated the right-of-way.
TheEl Mocambo live music venue is in the northern end of Chinatown, although this 1940s establishment was there before the neighbourhood became Chinatown.[15]
A number of streets in Downtown Chinatown are bilingual, a feature first introduced in the 1970s. The majority of these name are phonetic transliterations throughCantonese or Taishanese pronunciations into Chinese characters, while streets such asCollege andQueen streets are literally translated:
Although the present downtown Chinatown is one of the more well known Chineseethnic enclaves in Toronto, the city has a number of other neighbourhoods that have a high concentration of Chinese businesses, and people. Other Chinese ethnic enclaves in Toronto, and theGreater Toronto Area include:
The 1999Chow Yun-fat filmThe Corruptor was set in theNew York City Chinatown, with scenes filmed in the Chinatowns of New York and Toronto.
The television seriesKung Fu: The Legend Continues was filmed in Chinatown at Spadina Avenue and Dundas Street West for many episodes of its 1993–97 run. Filmed in Toronto, it portrays the Chinatown of an unidentified major U.S. city.
On an episode of the 1990s seriesDue South entitled "Chinatown" (Season 1, episode 6), Toronto's Dundas and Spadina Chinatown stood in for Chicago's Chinatown.
Toronto's Chinatown is featured prominently in the 2008 collection of short storiesThe Chinese Knot and Other Stories by Lien Chao.
Toronto bandDo Make Say Think have a song titled "Chinatown" on their 2002 album& Yet & Yet.
The filmSuite Suite Chinatown, directed by Aram Siu Wai Collier, was screened at the 14thToronto Reel Asian International Film Festival.[19]
ThePixar animated short,Bao, was set in Toronto, and included scenes from Toronto's Chinatown.[20] ThePixar animated film,Turning Red, was set in Toronto, and also included scenes from Toronto's Chinatown.
Places adjacent to Chinatown, Toronto | |
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