As the mother of a 16-month-old boy, Michelle Usprech is looking to leave the Financial District where it’s just “suits and suits and suits,” for a more family friendly vibe, and she’s got her eye on Leslieville.But one of Toronto’s most family-friendly neighbourhoods may be a victim of its own success as signs from the Toronto District School Board have cropped up, warning parents in Leslieville their children may not be able to attend their local school because of possible overcrowding, school board spokesperson Ryan Bird confirmed.Those signs warn that “due to residential growth, sufficient accommodation may not be available for all students,” despite the school board making “every effort to accommodate students at local schools.”Considered one of Toronto’s most family-friendly communities Leslieville continues to increase in density with new condo developments.“It has a young family vibe to it,” Usprech said, a big difference from her current neighbourhood. Having grown up in the suburbs, she wants to give her son the same environment to grow up in, she added.It’s a concern for some parents, including Kerry Sharpe, who lives in Leslieville and has a four-month-old daughter named Eisla.“It’s still early days for me,” she said, but, “it is a concern. Even daycare, that’s hard to get into, so I don’t see it getting any better.”But the signs are nothing new in Toronto, said Bird. The school board’s been putting them up for more than 15 years, anywhere where the “local school is close to or over capacity and may not be able to accept any additional students.”In 2015, for example, the school board responded to the City on 110 development applications where the signs should be put up, he said.For Ariel Litteljohn, a mother of two, the oldest of whom is attending junior kindergarten at Morse Street Junior Pu ...
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