Living in Christie Pits
Christie Pits is one of Toronto’s most vibrant multicultural neighbourhoods. It has historically been a transitional home for immigrants upon their arrival to Toronto. However, as Christie Pits continues to mature and prosper, more people are choosing to stay here rather than move to the suburbs. This stability bodes well for the future of the Christie Pits neighbourhood. Christie Pits Park offers this and neighbouring communities a wonderful recreational facility. With baseball diamonds, picnic areas, a poll, change rooms, great hills for winter tobogganing and more. This centrally located park offers easy access to street parking and subway.
Editors Note: Did you know the annual Santa Clause parade starts at Christie Pitts providing Christie Pitts residents with an up close look at the floats and pageantry. The parade route winds through downtown Toronto and ends at the St.Lawrence Market.
History of Christie Pits
The Christie Pits neighbourhood is named after the former Christie Sand Pits, that were a local landmark in this area until the early 1900’s. Christie Street is named after William Mellis Christie, who co-founded the Christie & Brown Cookie Company, in downtown Toronto in 1861. The Christie Sand Pits were rich in sand, gravel, and clay deposits – remnants of the last ice age. These deposits were excavated in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, and used in the construction of many of Toronto’s early roadways and public buildings. By 1909, the Christie Sand Pits were depleted and the city turned the former quarry into Willowvale Park. However, the Christie Pits name has endured and is used in reference to the park and the surrounding neighbourhood to this day.
Homes in Christie Pits
Christie Pits has traditionally been a working class neighbourhood. Its houses are modest in size, and the lots are typically narrow. There is a good mix of detached and semi-detached houses, built between 1906 and the 1930’s. The streetscapes in the neighbourhood are pretty and uncluttered, thanks to rear laneways that provide off-street parking for Christie Pits homeowners.
Lifestyle in Christie Pits
The Christie Pits neighbourhood is served by the Bloorcourt Village Shopping District. There is a huge variety of shops and services to choose from along this route. Every June, the Bloorcourt merchants host festival days with strolling musicians, bands, clowns, and magicians, performing for the many shoppers in the area. Christie Pits residents enjoy the convenience of being located near two shopping malls Ü the Dufferin Mall, at Bloor and Dufferin Streets, and the Galleria Mall, located at Dupont and Dufferin Streets.
Recreation in Christie Pits
Willowvale Park also known as Christie Pits is a multi use recreational facility that includes one of Toronto’s prettiest baseball diamonds. This park serves as the home field for the Toronto Maple Leafs Inter-County Baseball team. Additional facilities at Willowvale Park include the Alex Duke Memorial Pool and water slide, basketball courts, and a large children’s playground. Winter activities in the park include skating, hockey and tobogganing.
Transportation in Christie Pits
The Christie Street bus connects passengers to the St. Clair West station, on the Yonge-University-Spadina subway line and Christie station, on the Bloor-Danforth line. There is also bus service on Ossington Avenue, with a connection at Ossington station. Bloor Street provides an excellent starting point for motorists commuting within the city.