About this district
The character of Leslieville
Leslieville takes its name from George Leslie, who operated a market garden and nursery in the area in the 1850s. By the early 20th century it had become an industrial neighbourhood of printing plants, woodworking factories, and binderies. That industrial legacy is what produced the buildings that loft buyers find here today.
The Printing Factory Lofts at 201 Carlaw is the most significant recent conversion, completed in 2012 from the former Rolph-Clark-Stone printing plant. It's a larger building than most east-end conversions, with 168 units, polished concrete floors, exposed steel, and 13-foot ceilings. The Carlaw Lofts at 245 Carlaw are older and more intimate, converted in 2006 from a print shop and bindery, with original ink-stained concrete floors preserved on many units. The Broadview Lofts at 55 Broadview date from 2003 and have one of the strongest resale track records in the east end.
The neighbourhood character in Leslieville is distinctly residential and family-oriented compared to West Queen West. Queen Street East between Broadview and Greenwood has excellent restaurants and cafes, but it's a different feel from the arts and nightlife culture of Queen West. That's not a criticism. Many loft buyers prefer it. You get the industrial character of the building without the noise and density that comes with the west end's popularity.
Price is a real differentiator. A comparable unit in terms of ceiling height, character, and condition will typically cost 10 to 20 percent less in Leslieville than in West Queen West. The Carlaw Lofts, Broadview Lofts, and Geary Avenue buildings have all traded at meaningful discounts to their Queen West equivalents. That spread narrows every year as the east end continues to appreciate, but it still exists.
Transit in Leslieville relies primarily on the 501 Queen streetcar. The Broadview streetcar (504) connects north to Castle Frank station on the Bloor-Danforth line. This is a reasonable transit neighbourhood but not as saturated with options as the west end. If you work downtown, the Queen streetcar to Union takes roughly 25 minutes from the heart of Leslieville. That's competitive with many west-end routes once you account for streetcar congestion on King and Queen.