Wallace Walk: Stacked Towns Beside the West Toronto Railpath

Wallace Walk is what I suggest to buyers who want a front door instead of an elevator, but still want a condo price. It is a 2017 community of stacked townhomes in the Junction Triangle, built on former industrial land right beside the West Toronto Railpath. The trade-offs are real, mostly stairs and smaller common areas, and they are worth understanding before you fall for the location. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Former industrial land, rezoned for homes

Before Wallace Walk, this land between Wallace Avenue, Ruskin Avenue and the rail corridor was zoned industrial and designated as an employment area. The original application asked the city to convert that designation, rezone the land for housing and approve a plan of subdivision. Urbantoronto’s project file put the proposal at 169 stacked townhouses; condos.ca now lists 167 homes.

The subdivision added public streets rather than private driveways. A new road runs alongside the rail corridor from Ruskin to Wallace, which lines up with today’s Sousa Mendes Street, and MacAulay Avenue was extended to meet it. That matters for daily life: the community feels like part of the street grid, not a gated compound, and city services run on city roads.

Before construction, the site was also used informally by the neighbourhood, including for Railpath festival events. That history is part of why the connection to the path was a priority in the plans.

Stacked townhomes: what the format really means

These are stacked townhomes designed by Kregg Fordyce of KFA Architects. Each home has its own entrance from outside, and most are arranged as one home above another, with internal stairs. Urbantoronto’s listing describes four-storey blocks, while condos.ca records two storeys, which most likely reflects the levels within each home rather than the blocks. Ask for the floor plan of the specific unit.

The format is a good fit for people who dislike elevators, hallways and shared walls on every side. You get a front door, usually a private terrace or patio, and the feel of a small house. The cost is stairs: upper homes can involve a flight up from the street plus internal stairs, and lower homes may have bedrooms partly below grade. Visit at the time of day you would actually come home with groceries.

Renderings shifted during approvals from light brick to darker brick, with a lighter brick facing the path in later images. The result is a modern, fairly restrained look that sits well against the old industrial buildings nearby.

Living on the Railpath

The West Toronto Railpath runs along the edge of the site, and that is the main reason people buy here. It is a paved walking and cycling route along the rail corridor that runs south from the Junction Triangle toward Dundas Street West, and in practice it becomes your front yard. Cyclists who commute downtown will see the appeal immediately.

The rail corridor itself is the other side of that coin. Trains run on it, so ask about noise and vibration for the specific home, and look at which way the bedrooms face. Homes on the inner streets will be quieter than those closest to the tracks.

Around you is a neighbourhood in transition. Wallace Avenue has a mix of converted industrial buildings, including Arch Lofts in a former church, and new housing on former employment land. High Park and the Bloor and Dundas West shops are within reach; the panel on this page gives exact walking times.

Owning in a townhome corporation

Wallace Walk is one condominium corporation spread across several blocks and streets, with Maple Ridge Community Management listed as manager. Living here means living under its declaration and rules, which typically cover what you can put on a terrace, changes to doors and windows, barbecues, pets and parking. Read them before you buy, especially if you plan renovations.

At close to ten years old, the community is past its first warranty period and into the stage where the reserve fund study starts to predict real spending. The items I would focus on in a stacked townhome complex are roof terraces and membranes, the underground garage, exterior brick and sealants, and windows. None of that is unusual, but the reserve fund should already be planning for it.

Ask the manager when the last reserve fund study was done, whether the fee has risen in steps since registration, and whether any major projects are being discussed in the board minutes.

Pricing: townhome living at a condo price per square foot

Condos.ca puts the community average at about $800 per square foot. That is in line with newer condo apartments in the Junction and Junction Triangle, and it means you are getting a ground-oriented home with its own entrance at roughly an apartment price per square foot.

Only one home was for sale when I prepared this review, and I don’t publish a single listing’s price or fee. With so few listings at any one time, the community average and the sold history are better guides than whatever happens to be on the market. Compare the size, level and exposure of each home, because an upper home with a large terrace and a lower home near the tracks are very different products.

Condos.ca does not list what the fee includes. In stacked townhomes, owners usually pay their own utilities, so ask for the fee breakdown and recent utility bills. For the recent sold figures here, request a building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Wallace Walk

There is no gym, pool or party room, and that is by design: stacked townhomes keep common areas small to keep fees down. What you get is an underground garage, visitor parking, a security system and permission to barbecue, which is the amenity most buyers here actually use.

Jatin’s honest take on Wallace Walk

Wallace Walk — frequently asked questions

Looking at the Junction, Corso Italia, Hillcrest Village and west-central Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.