Leslie Street

Leslie Street is a north-south route in Toronto and York Region, Ontario, Canada. It is distinctive because of its four unconnected segments. In the early 20th century, however, it existed as a continuous street from the lake to Eglinton Avenue.

History
The road has a long history and dates back to 1850s Toronto Nursery that was run by George Leslie. Leslie was one of the first settlers in the area, at the time called Leslieville and located two miles away from the city limits of Toronto. The were two Leslies mentioned in the city directory of 1869, G. Leslie and Sons of the nursery fame and George Leslie Jr. who ran the post office and, by 1899, the telegraph station.

The concession road that passed nearby eventually got named after Leslies. As the street runs from the former Leslie's place to the North through East York, it becomes Donlands Avenue, and, after crossing the Don Valley Parkway, regains it name.

Route Description
In Toronto, it begins at Lake Ontario at the foot of the Leslie Street Spit, so named because this is the most southerly point of Leslie Street. Just north at Lake Shore Blvd. East was the former eastern terminus of the Gardiner Expressway. Leslie Street continues north to the railway tracks north of Gerrard Street East, where the first segment ends. Donlands Avenue, which runs from the north side of the railway tracks to north of O'Connor Drive, was originally another segment of Leslie Street.

The second segment is represented by a one-block stretch of road between Wicksteed Avenue and Vanderhoof Avenue in the Leaside Industrial land area. It is separated from the third segment by the Ernest Thompson Seton parklands.

The third segment begins as a principal arterial road at Eglinton Avenue at the E.T. Seton/Wilket Creek Park area and continues north through residential neighbourhoods in Don Mills and the Don Valley. A proposed extension from Eglinton Avenue south to Bayview Avenue (north of Pottery Road) never came to fruition. The street numbers change erratically near Highway 401, going from the 4400 block at Sheppard Avenue to the 2000 block under the Canadian National Railway tracks in a short distance. It exits Toronto and enters York Region at Steeles Avenue, west of Don Mills Road. Leslie is reduced to a local road at Steeles Avenue and ends shortly thereafter in Wycliffe Park.

The fourth segment continues as an arterial road north of John Street when Don Mills Road turns into Leslie Street. This segment follows the same direction and alignment as the Toronto section. There is a small jog in the road at Stouffville Road in Richmond Hill, and two sets of lights were installed in the summer of 2006 to ease the morning traffic congestion. Leslie extends many kilometres northward to the town of Keswick where it is renamed The Queensway South.

The stretch of Leslie Street in York Region is also designated as York Regional Road 12.

Attractions

 * Leslie Spit and Tommy Thompson Park
 * Sunnybrook Park
 * Inn on the Park
 * Edwards Gardens
 * Leslie Station (Sheppard Subway) and Oriole GO Station
 * North York General Hospital (North of Highway 401)
 * Historic Zion Schoolhouse
 * Old Cummer GO Station