Katerina Lekoska

Kingston-Galloway - Orton Park (KGO) Neighbourhood Profile

History:

The Kingston-Galloway – Orton Park (KGO) area was once farm land known as West Hill. The area originally got its name, West Hill, since it was located on the west side of the Highland Creek Valley. In the early 1840's there was an influx of Irish immigrants to the country and many of them settled in Scarborough, specifically the areas of Wexford and Highland Creek. In 1879, the area was established as a post office, separate from Highland Creek. Throughout the 19th century, there were a variety of community structures as well as hotels. In fact, in 1910 the West Hill Hotel was built to accommodate the increasing traffic along the Kingston Road highway. By the time World War II broke out, motels were appearing everywhere, becoming a source of business and income (Abbas 2011, pg. 7).

In the early 20th century West Hill was located quite some distance away from mainline railways, so in order to accommodate peoples transit needs, the village was linked to Toronto by the Scarborough Division of the Toronto and York Radial Railway network. What this ultimately did was encourage growth. The greatest advancements would come with highway development and the introduction of the first gasoline run buses. In 1927, the Scarborough radial was replaced by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC), in addition to added Grey Coach buses along Markham Road a few years later. Interestingly enough, the 86 bus route continues to serve Scarborough. Despite the wealth enjoyed by local motel owners, their small businesses were soon challenged by other motels being placed along where the Queen Elizabeth Way met Lake Shore Boulevard. In the early 20th century Kingston Road was essentially the most important way in and out of Toronto. However, this all changed with the construction of the 401. Since then, Kingston Road is not usually considered to be the gateway to Toronto (Abbas 2011, pg 8).

In recent history, the KGO community was selected as one of thirteen priority neighbourhoods within the city of Toronto. This decision was made on the basis that the community is under-served in libraries, community centres, and other social services. As a response, the city has committed itself to improving this area by investing in a variety of social services (Abbas 2011, pg. 9).

Population:

  • According to data collected in 2006, the population of the KGO is recorded as 23,042 (Recommendations 2011, pg. 24).
  • 22% of the population in 2006 were people who recently immigrated into Canada between 2001 and 2006 (Recommendations 2011, pg.24).
  • New immigrants within the KGO usually come from South Asia (India, Pakistan), Southeast Asia (Philippines), and the Middle East (Abbas 2011, pg. 28).
  • In addition to this, between 2001 and 2006 the overall population in the KGO decreased by 7.1% (Abbas 2011, pg. 25).
  • 61.3% of the population belongs to the visible minority, while 38.7% are not visible minorities (Abbas 2011, pg. 25).
  • The population within the KGO is quite diverse and as such the majority of its residents are Arab (20%), followed by Blacks (15%), South Asian (13%), African (9%), Mixed (7%), Eastern European (7%), White (5%), Middle East (5%), Western European(4%), Canadian-born (4%), East Asian (2%), Caribbean (2%), West Asian (2%), and 2% Other (Abbas 2011, pg. 35).

Age (According to data collected in 2006):

  • The population of people 65 and older was 11.8%.
  • The population of people between the ages of 55-64 was 10.1%.
  • The population of people between the ages of 25-54 was 42.6%.
  • The population of people between the ages of 15-24 was 13.6%.
  • The population of people between the ages of 5-14 was 15.1%.
  • The population of people between the ages of 0-4 was 6.9% (Abbas 2011, pg. 32).

Demographics:

Education:

  • 27% less than High School.
  • 18% College degree.
  • 16% Post Graduate degree.
  • 16% Some College.
  • 9% Some University.
  • 5% University Undergraduate degree.
  • 4% High School diploma or GED.
  • 2% Trade, Apprenticeship or Technical certificate.
  • 2% Other (Abbas 2011, pg. 40).

Income:

  • In 2005, the average household income in the KGO was $47,770, falling under the average of household income of Toronto's which was $63,870 (Abbas 2011, pg. 38).
  • A recent survey looked at the annual household income for participants living in the KGO area. They are as listed as such: 18% less than $5,000, 25% less than $10,000, 18% $11,000 to $20,000, 4% $21,000 to $25,000, 16% $26,000 to $35,000, 9% $36,000 to $45,000, 4% $46,000 to $55,000, 0% $56,000 to $65,000, 2% more than $66,000 and 4% preferred not to give answer. (Abbas 2011, pg. 38).
  • Thus, most of the population is receiving income between $5,000 and $10,000.
  • In 2006 Statistics Canada revealed that 46% of residents were considered to have low income, before taxes, compared to 18% in the rest of Toronto (Abbas 2011, pg. 38).

Employment:

  • In terms of full-time employment: 32% work in institutions, 22% in services, 20% in offices, 17% work in retail, 8% are doing other jobs, and 1% work in manufacturing/warehouse (Abbas 2011, pg. 31).
  • In terms of part-time employment: 27% work in services, 22% in retail , 19% have institutional jobs, 16% in offices, 15% fell under other, and 1% worked in manufacturing/warehouse jobs (Abbas 2011, pg. 31).

Languages:

  • The top 3 languages spoken in the KGO are Tamil, Bengali, and Tagalog (Abbas 2011, pg. 5)
  • 57% of residents speak fluent English.
  • 25% of residents speak advanced English.
  • 13% of residents speak intermediate English.
  • 4% of residents do not speak well English.
  • 2% of residents speak Basic English (Abbas 2011, pg. 38).

Housing:

  • Interestingly enough, the KGO has the highest concentration of subsidized housing in Ontario (Abbas 2011, pg. 5).
  • Residents who live in buildings of 5 stories and more make up 44.7% of the population (Abbas 2011, pg. 5).
  • 85% rent, 15% own their homes (Abbas 2011, pg. 38).
  • 38% of the population have two people living in the household, 23.64% have only one person living in the household, 20% have four people living in the household, 16% have three people living in the household, 2% have five people living in the household (Abbas 2011, pg. 34).

Sex:

  • 51% Female.
  • 49% Male (Abbas 2011, p. 33).

Family:

  • 6% of the KGO population are single, 38% are married, 7% are divorced, 5% are widowed, 2% live in a common law relationship, and 2% are separated from their partner (Abbas 2011, pg.33).
  • 42% of families with children are single parents (Abbas 2011, pg. 36).
  • 58% of the people residing in the KGO are living with no children, 16% have only one child, 16% have two children, 5% have three children, 4% have four children (Abbas 2011, pg. 34).
  • 8% of the people in the area of Kingston-Galloway/Orton Park are living with no children, 16% has one child, 16% has two children, 5% has three children, 4% has four children, and 0% with five or more children (Abbas 2011, pg. 34).

Health

Health Insurance

  • In a survey done, 59% of respondents had health insurance or had a family member who had health insurance, while 39% had no health insurance (Abbas 2011, pg. 39).

Disability

  • 66% of the population in the KGO don't have a disability
  • 34% of the population have some sort of disability (Abbas 2011, pg. 39).

Immigration Statistics:

  • 39% of residents within the KGO are immigrants from South Asia (ex. Pakistan, India).
  • 14.6% of residents within the KGO are immigrants from East Asia (ex. Malaysia, Philippines).
  • 10.3% of residents within the KGO are immigrants from the Middle East.
  • 8.2% of residents within the KGO are immigrants from Africa.
  • 4.6% of residents within the KGO are immigrants from South America.
  • 23% fell under the Other category (Yu, 2010).
  • A recent survey done showed that 87% of the residents in the KGO were Canadian Citizens, 4% were Permanent Residents, 4% Immigrated here 6-9 years ago, 2% were Visitors, and 2% were Recent Immigrant only here for one year or less (Abbas 2011, pg. 37).

Services Available to immigrants:

Within the KGO:

  • Native Child and Family Services of Toronto: With one location in the KGO, this program offers caring and healing for Native families within the area. It does so by offering services that are culture based, teach Native values, teach of the value of the extended family, and the right to self determination (A Brief History, 2011).
  • East Scarborough Boys and Girls Club: This is a safe centre where children and youth up until the age of 24 can come to participate in recreational as well as educational programs designed to help them grow. Programs include before and after school programs, childcare, camps, recreational activities, and leadership development. The club was first introduced to the community in 1956 (About Us, 2011a).
  • East Scarborough Storefront: The storefront is often referred to as a one stop shop simply because it provides a range of services including employment, education, housing, legal, settlement, health, mental health, youth, and recreational. It also gives community residents access to computers, telephones, fax machines, and photocopiers (Community 2012, pg. 12).
  • Scarborough Centre for Healthy Communities: Originally founded as the West Hill Community in 1977 it is one of the most well established community health organizations in Ontario. It offers services such as meals on wheels, transportation, family support programs, and home support (About Us).
  • Just for Today, Drug and Alcohol Awareness Centre: This company offers drug counseling, rehabilitation counseling, and most importantly affordable counseling to those in need.

Near the KGO:

  • Scarborough General Hospital
  • Rouge Valley Centenery Hospital
  • The Doctor’s Office/MCI – walk in clinic
  • Moniji Health Care Society
  • Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services
  • Extendicare Guildwood
  • Extendicare Scarborough
  • TAIBU Community Health Centre

Analysis of Sources

All of the sources I used to gather information as well as study the KGO were easily found on the internet. There were even a variety of studies done on the community. In addition to this, the sources were all very detailed and included many statistics on a range of categories. Since the KGO has already been chosen as one of Toronto's thirteen priority neighbourhoods, it was not surprising that there was a considerable amount of information on the area, including its history. Considering most of the residents within the community are recent immigrants into the country, there have been a variety of projects and services aimed at helping them since the community lacked the infrastructure of services needed. I found the sources helpful in that they educated me on all aspects of the KGO in a simplified manner. The data was easy to read and the information was easy to interpret.

Analysis of Findings

Currently the area of Kingston-Galloway – Orton Park (KGO) is inhabited by recent and new immigrants into the country. As mentioned earlier, the top three languages spoken at home are Bengali, Tamil, and Tagalog. In addition to this, the majority of residents come from South Asia, Southeast Asia, or the Middle East. The reason I mention this is because in the early 20th century the only immigrants settled in the area were primarily from Ireland, England, and Scotland, what are known as as WASP (white Anglo Saxon Protestant) countries. However, recent migration has shifted.

Thinking back on the field trip we took to the Scarborough Museum, I can recall our guide telling us that housing development in Scarborough early on was not well planned by the government. Instead, the government saw the opportunity to buy cheap land and build cheap apartment buildings so as to satisfy the growing population. Despite this area serving as homes to many immigrants, the community lacked essential services. After living in the community for a few years and finally establishing themselves, immigrants moved out of the neighbourhood. Thus, the area saw constant changes in the demographics of the community.

Recently, the KGO was chosen as one of thirteen priority neighbourhoods in the city of Toronto. Drawing on the statistics about the area, it appears that many of its residents are living in low income families as well many being single parents families. In addition to this, the unemployment rates are higher in the community than they are in Toronto. Thus, drawing on such statistics it appears that the community is indeed a priority one especially since residents have little access to nearby services.

Bibliography

Abbas, R (2011). Kingston -Galloway / Orton Park Community Resource and Needs Assessment. Retrieved from OrtonPark_2011-12_CRNA.pdf>

About Us. (2014). Boys and Girls Club of East Scaborough. Retrieved from

About Us: Our Story. (n.d.). Scarborough Centre for Healthy Communities. Retrieved from

A Brief History of Native Child and Family Services of Toronto. (2011). Native Child and Family Services of Toronto. Retrieved from

Community Resources. (2012). Helping Right in Your Neighbourhood: A Resources Guide for the Kingston-Galloway/Orton Park Community. Retrieved from com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/NAP-Resource-Guide-2012-final.pdf

Recommendations for a Local Settlement Strategy. (2011). Local Immigration Partnership South Scarborough. Retrieved from development_finance__administration/files/pdf/scarborough_strategy.pdf

Yu, H. (2010). Final Report on Kingston Galloway/Orton Park Immigration Settlement Services. Retrieved from Report-on-KGO-Immigration-Settlement-Services-.pdf