At Bedford and Bloor, One Bedford is located in the lively and affluent neighborhood of the Annex. Bordering the University of Toronto St. George Campus to the South, the Annex is not only home to cultural heavyweights such as the Royal Ontario Museum, Royal Conservatory of Music, Tranzac Theatre, Bloor Street Cinema and Jewish Community Store, but intellectual greats as well. The Annex also boasts a retail stretch along Bloor Street, from Avenue Road to Bathurst Street, offering everything from upscale dining to the landmark discount retailer Honest Ed’s. To give your new place a great ambience, stop by Kops Records for a great selection. For a night out on the town, try PROOF Vodka Bar. If you’re feeling sporty, cheer on the University of Toronto by attending one of their Varsity games.
A vibrant community today, the Annex neighbourhood has a long history. European settlement of the area began in the 1790s, when surveyors began laying out the Township of York. The area east of Brunswick Avenue became part of the Township of Yorkville, while the area west of Brunswick became part of Seaton Village. In 1883, Yorkville agreed to the annexation of the area by the City of Toronto. In 1886, the developer Simeon James created the subdivision of the Annex. The homes and mansions of the Annex were constructed in the Victorian and Edwardian styles mostly during the 1880s and the early 1900s. The Annex is also home to a distinctly Torontonian style of architecture known as the “Annex Style House” and first attributed to E.J. Lennox, a prominent 19th century architect. The homes were built for some of Toronto’s most affluent families at the time. Today, prominent residents of the neighborhood include Margaret Atwood and former Governor General of Canada Adrienne Clarkson.
The neighbourhood is served by the Yonge-University-Spadina and Bloor-Danforth Subway lines in addition to the Spadina, Avenue and Bathurst buses.