As you would assume, the Toronto neighbourhood known as “Yonge & Eglinton” is centered around the intersection of Yonge Street and Eglinton Avenue. It is also known as “Uptown Toronto” or by the nickname of “Yonge & Eg.” According to the official City of Toronto profile, the neighbourhood’s boundaries are Yonge Street in the east, Avenue Road and Elmsthorpe Avenue in the west, Briar Hill Avenue in the north and Frobisher Avenue in the south. About 65% of the area’s population is working age (between 25-64 years of age.) Many young professionals and young families live in the neighbourhood. There are many high-rise condominiums in the area as well as commercial properties and some single family homes as well. Unfortunately, like all neighbourhoods in major cities, there is crime in Yonge & Eglinton. In the area bordered by Yonge Street, Avenue Road, Briar Hill Avenue and Eglinton Avenue, there is an average of 5.42 crimes against people per 1,000 and 18.98 crimes against property. South of that area to Frobisher Avenue, there is an average of 3.54 crimes against people and 9.77 crimes against property. The property crime rates for Yonge & Eglinton are relatively average for Toronto while the rate of crime against people is quite low. In December of 2010, passenger in a vehicle was stabbed by the driver at Yonge & Eglinton. From the Toronto Star:
Suddenly, witnesses on the street and inside the coffee shop saw a woman in the passenger seat of a minivan being stabbed in the back and face by the driver. Acting quickly, a man and his girlfriend rushed to the passenger side, pulling the bleeding woman out to safety, while several others joined to carry her to the sidewalk and lay her down, leaving behind a pool of blood on the road.
In April of 2011, a woman was grabbed and sexually assaulted in the same area. From CityNews:
Police are searching for a suspect after a woman was attacked in the Yonge and Eglinton area last week. A man approached a woman from behind around 3 a.m. Wednesday and tried to engage her in conversation, police said. The suspect followed the woman and then sexually assaulted her in an outside corridor.
Another woman was sexually assaulted in the area in April of 2009. The Toronto Star reports:
Toronto police say the 26-year-old victim had been walking near Yonge St. and Glebe Rd. – a few blocks south of Eglinton Ave. – at around 1 a.m. on Saturday when two men grabbed her from behind and forced her into a vehicle. After being driven to another location, she was sexually assaulted, said police.
These shocking crimes taking place in a relatively busy, highly-populated and generally safe area show that security and safety can never be overlooked or taken for granted. It is important for people to think about security at all times and to be aware of their surroundings. For information on how you can protect yourself, your property and your family better, please contact one of SafeTech’s loss prevention experts. We’ve been protecting people and property for over 20 years and will be glad to help.