In the issue:

Editor's Letter by Nicholas Hune-Brown

Welcome to Finch West

The LRT doesn’t open until next year at the earliest, but it’s already transforming Toronto’s northwest.

Perspective by Daysha Loppie

Growing Up on the 36 Finch West

It takes me two hours on transit to visit my mom in Rexdale. Can a transit line begin to connect a neighbourhood that sometimes feels a world apart?

Short Feature by Kunal Chaudhary

The Apartments the Union Built

In the 1980s, aircraft workers in Malton were struggling to find housing—so they built their own. What can this obscure Rexdale housing co-op teach us today?

Feature by Inori Roy

The Slow Fight for Rapid Transit on Finch West

After more than fifty years of talk, northwest Toronto is finally getting an LRT. But as the new line brings higher rents, changing businesses, and on-going construction, residents are demanding a say in how their community will change.

Municipal Affairs:

Local Journalism Matters.

We're able to produce impactful, award-winning journalism thanks to the generous support of readers. By supporting The Local, you're contributing to a new kind of journalism—in-depth, non-profit, from corners of Toronto too often overlooked.

Support
Recent issues

The Finch West Issue

From a wide-angle look at the region’s sorry transit history to an intimate ride-along on the 36 bus, from an examination of the pandemic's legacy in northwest Toronto to a profile of a forgotten workers’ housing co-op in Rexdale—for the next two weeks we'll be publishing stories from Finch West on the verge of a massive transformation.

First 100 Days

The first 100 days are crucial for a new mayor. In our new column, we’re following Olivia Chow’s first months in office—tracking her progress (or lack thereof) on election promises, who’s supporting and who’s impeding her, and everything else you need to know from City Hall.

Mayor's Race

Ongoing coverage of the 2023 Toronto mayoral by-election. With in-depth profiles of candidates, community reporting, policy analysis, and our Candidate Tracker tool—the only place to find reported, fact-checked biographies and platform summaries of all 102 candidates.