Five City-designated off-leash areas in Etobicoke: Colonel Samuel Smith Park in New Toronto, Marie Curtis Park in Long Branch, Humber Bay Park West in Humber Bay Shores, Zorra Park off The Queensway, and Don Russell Memorial Park in Long Branch. All appear on the City of Toronto’s official off-leash list.
Dog owners are the most systematic buyers I deal with. They know exactly how far they will walk before coffee, and they will rule out an entire neighbourhood over it. So this list uses one filter only: the City of Toronto’s official register of designated dogs off-leash areas. Every entry below is a real, designated site — not a park where people happen to let dogs run.
That matters legally as well as practically. Outside a designated off-leash area, Toronto requires dogs to be leashed in parks, and it is enforced.
Colonel Samuel Smith Park
3145 Lake Shore Boulevard West, New Toronto. The largest waterfront park in South Etobicoke and a designated off-leash area on the City’s Ward 3 list. It sits on a former lakefill peninsula beside the Humber Polytechnic Lakeshore campus, with long shoreline trails, meadow, and a great deal of open space by Toronto standards.
Two things to know. Dogs are not allowed in swimming beach areas between April 1 and October 31, so keep to the designated area and the trails in summer. And this is the park with the winter skating trail, which means it gets genuinely busy on cold weekends.
Marie Curtis Park
2 Forty Second Street, Long Branch. At the mouth of Etobicoke Creek on the western edge of the city, and a designated off-leash area in Ward 3. It is one of the larger waterfront parks in the borough, with creek-side trails, beach frontage and a lot of parking — which is why it draws people from across the west end rather than only the immediate neighbourhood.
The same beach rule applies here: dogs are excluded from swimming beach areas between April 1 and October 31.
Humber Bay Park West
Access from Park Lawn Road south of Lake Shore Boulevard West, Humber Bay Shores. A designated off-leash area on the western half of Humber Bay Park, inside the peninsula system that gives Humber Bay Shores its waterfront. Paved and unpaved trails, lake frontage, and the butterfly habitat meadow nearby.
This is the one most Humber Bay Shores condo residents use, and it shows — it is the busiest off-leash area in the borough at peak times. Parking lots serve the park from Park Lawn Road and there is Green P nearby on Marine Parade Drive.
Zorra Park
30 Zorra Street, Islington-City Centre West, just south of The Queensway. A newer City park built on a former industrial site and now a designated off-leash area on the Ward 3 list. It is the youngest park on this list and the most urban — a purpose-built neighbourhood park surrounded by newer mid-rise and tower development rather than a waterfront setting.
For anyone living in the Queensway condo corridor, this is the closest designated off-leash area by a wide margin, and it is walkable from a large share of that housing.
Don Russell Memorial Park
Lake Shore Boulevard West, Long Branch. A smaller neighbourhood park with off-leash permission, listed among Ward 3’s designated off-leash areas. It is documented as unfenced grass rather than an enclosed compound, which suits a dog with reliable recall and does not suit one without.
Its value is proximity rather than scale: for the Long Branch streets around it, this is the everyday walk, with Marie Curtis and Colonel Sam Smith reserved for the weekend.
The five at a glance
| Name | Neighbourhood | Known for |
|---|---|---|
| Colonel Samuel Smith Park | New Toronto | Large waterfront park; shoreline trails; winter skating trail |
| Marie Curtis Park | Long Branch | Creek mouth and beach; substantial parking; regional draw |
| Humber Bay Park West | Humber Bay Shores | Waterfront peninsula trails; busiest off-leash area in the borough |
| Zorra Park | Islington-City Centre West | Newer urban park; closest off-leash area to the Queensway corridor |
| Don Russell Memorial Park | Long Branch | Small neighbourhood off-leash green space; unfenced |
Why this matters if you’re moving here
Etobicoke’s designated off-leash areas are heavily concentrated in Ward 3 — the Lakeshore communities and the Queensway corridor. If you are shopping in Central or North Etobicoke, the nearest designated site is likely to be a drive rather than a walk, and that is worth knowing before you fall for a house.
The flip side is that the southern waterfront strip is genuinely exceptional for this. A household in New Toronto, Long Branch or Humber Bay Shores can reasonably expect a designated off-leash area within walking distance, plus continuous waterfront trail between them. That is a real amenity, and it is one of the reasons the Lake Shore corridor holds its appeal for condo and townhouse buyers who do not want a yard.
If a fenced enclosure specifically is what you need, walk the site once before you commit to the address. Not every designated area in Etobicoke is fenced.
The takeaway
Etobicoke’s designated off-leash areas cluster along the southern waterfront and the Queensway corridor. If daily off-leash walking matters, shop Ward 3 — and verify the specific site on the City’s current off-leash areas page, because designations and fencing vary and construction happens.
Shopping with a dog in mind?
Tell me what your daily walk needs to look like and I will send back the Etobicoke streets that deliver it — walking distance to a designated off-leash area, yard or no yard — with what is on the market. No pitch, no obligation.
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Frequently asked questions
How many dogs off-leash areas are there in Etobicoke?
The City of Toronto’s ward-by-ward list of off-leash areas shows seven in Ward 3, Etobicoke-Lakeshore: Colonel Samuel Smith Park, Don Russell Memorial Park, Grand Avenue Park, Humber Bay Park West, King’s Mill Park, Marie Curtis Park and Zorra Park. Ward 2, Etobicoke Centre, has one at Raymore Park. Off-leash areas are added and changed over time, so check the City’s current off-leash areas page before relying on the list.
Can my dog be off-leash anywhere in an Etobicoke park?
No. Under City of Toronto rules dogs may only be off-leash inside a designated dogs off-leash area, and everywhere else in a park they must be leashed. Dogs are also not permitted in swimming beach areas except between November 1 and March 31, which matters at Marie Curtis Park and Colonel Samuel Smith Park. Bylaw officers do enforce this.
Which Etobicoke off-leash areas are fenced?
It varies, and the City does not fence every site — several Etobicoke off-leash areas are unfenced green space with off-leash permission rather than enclosed compounds. Don Russell Memorial Park, for example, is documented as unfenced. If a fence matters for your dog, check the specific site on the City’s off-leash areas map, or walk it once on leash before you let them go.
Sources
- City of Toronto — Dogs Off-Leash Areas. Official page: the City’s off-leash area map and the rules, including small-dog areas and the beach restriction. Accessed 23 August 2026.
- City of Toronto — List of Off-Leash Areas by Ward. Council report attachment listing every designated off-leash area by ward, including Wards 2 and 3 in Etobicoke. Accessed 23 August 2026.
- City of Toronto — Dogs Off-Leash bylaw enforcement. Official page on leash requirements outside designated off-leash areas. Accessed 23 August 2026.
- City of Toronto — Grand Avenue Park Expansion. Project page confirming phased construction, with Phase 3 scheduled to begin in fall 2026. Accessed 23 August 2026.
- City of Toronto — New Park at 30 Zorra Street. Project page for the park at 30 Zorra Street. Accessed 23 August 2026.
- Don Russell Memorial Park listing. Site details including the unfenced surface and Lake Shore Boulevard West location. Accessed 23 August 2026.
Related reading
- Top 5 parks in Etobicoke
- Top 5 condos to buy in Etobicoke
- Living in Etobicoke in 2026
- Etobicoke community guide
- Top 5 restaurants in Etobicoke
- Top 5 brunch spots in Etobicoke
- Top 5 bakeries in Etobicoke
- Top 5 patios in Etobicoke
- Top 5 gyms in Etobicoke
- Top 5 grocery stores in Etobicoke
- Top 5 hidden gems in Etobicoke
About the author — Jatin Dua, Etobicoke real estate agent
Jatin Dua is a licensed Realtor with RE/MAX Quantum Realty, working out of 799 The Queensway in Etobicoke. He advises buyers and sellers across Mimico, New Toronto, Long Branch, Alderwood, Humber Bay Shores, The Queensway, Islington Village, The Kingsway and Stonegate-Queensway, and writes this local guide series because the questions that decide where people actually want to live are rarely the ones on a listing sheet.