Toronto Reference Library Blog

Most of us have our own idea of what Our Toronto is, whether we grew up here or chose Toronto over other cities. We’ve been hearing the phrase “Three Cities Within Toronto”, and more recently, “Vertical Poverty”.  What does this mean?

Prof. J. David Hulchanski and others have long been interested in housing and income issues. A few years ago, the “3 cities within our city” concept was launched. Although “inner city”
brings to mind rundown neighbourhoods in the core of the former city of
Toronto, recent research turns this concept on its head.

Both Vertical Poverty, issued by the United Way and Three Cities Within Toronto
from the Cities Centre, U. of. T., quickly dispel this notion. And our
idyllic visions of suburbs arching around the core with single-family
homes housing well-educated Torontonians with 2.2 kids, earning good
incomes, and sporting at least one car in the driveway no longer holds
true.

What has come to light is that areas where incomes have fallen
substantially over the past 35 years are in the northeastern and
northwestern parts of Toronto – what we used to call the ‘burbs — now
called the “inner suburbs” because it’s the inner part of a larger
suburban area that spreads way out to the Greater Toronto area.

And what makes up a lot of these neighbourhoods? Huge tracts of
high-rise apartments, the Towers in the Park, that are showing grave
signs of “Vertical Poverty”. Now these are new and challenging ways to
look at our city. 

Highlights of Three Cities Within Toronto : Income Polarization Among Toronto's Neighbourhoods, 1970-2005 and Vertical Poverty : Poverty by Postal Code 2 are on display at the North York Central Library Gallery through the month of September.

You can find these reports at the Toronto Reference Library's Humanities and Social Sciences Department, 2nd floor or at the North York Central Library, Society and Recreation Department, 3rd floor.

Most of us have our own idea of what Our Toronto is, whether we grew up here or chose Toronto over other cities. We’ve been hearing the phrase “Three Cities Within Toronto”, and more recently, “Vertical Poverty”.  What does this mean?

Prof. J. David Hulchanski and others have long been interested in housing and income issues. A few years ago, the “3 cities within our city” concept was launched. Although “inner city”
brings to mind rundown neighbourhoods in the core of the former city of
Toronto, recent research turns this concept on its head.

Both Vertical Poverty, issued by the United Way and Three Cities Within Toronto
from the Cities Centre, U. of. T., quickly dispel this notion. And our
idyllic visions of suburbs arching around the core with single-family
homes housing well-educated Torontonians with 2.2 kids, earning good
incomes, and sporting at least one car in the driveway no longer holds
true.

What has come to light is that areas where incomes have fallen
substantially over the past 35 years are in the northeastern and
northwestern parts of Toronto – what we used to call the ‘burbs — now
called the “inner suburbs” because it’s the inner part of a larger
suburban area that spreads way out to the Greater Toronto area.

And what makes up a lot of these neighbourhoods? Huge tracts of
high-rise apartments, the Towers in the Park, that are showing grave
signs of “Vertical Poverty”. Now these are new and challenging ways to
look at our city. 

Highlights of Three Cities Within Toronto : Income Polarization Among Toronto's Neighbourhoods, 1970-2005 and Vertical Poverty : Poverty by Postal Code 2 are on display at the North York Central Library Gallery through the month of September.

You can find these reports at the Toronto Reference Library's Humanities and Social Sciences Department, 2nd floor or at the North York Central Library, Society and Recreation Department, 3rd floor.