Toronto’s newest cultural district, Little Iran, was officially inaugurated on October 11, giving formal recognition to the city’s Iranian community—the largest concentration of Iranians in Canada.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, City Councillor Lily Cheng, and Member of Parliament for Willowdale Ali Ehsassi joined Persian-Canadians at Centre Park to unveil the Little Iran sign during the ceremony.
The celebration at Centre Park featured live music, dancing, Persian food and desserts, and art exhibitions. Plans are also underway for the park to include its own Persian garden in the near future.
Little Iran becomes the sixth ethnic district designated by Toronto since the program began in 2020. The other recognized districts are Chinatown, Greektown, Koreatown, Little Italy, and Little Portugal.
Afkham Mardukhi, president of the Intercultural Iranian Canadian Resource Centre, described the recognition as highly meaningful. She said the community feels it has “two homes,” adding that the designation provides another layer of belonging and recognition within Canada.
Mahsa Mortazavi, who attended the celebration at the park located at Yonge Street and Centre Avenue, said she had long imagined such a designation whenever she saw other cultural districts like Little Italy and Chinatown.
Little Iran is situated along Yonge Street, Toronto’s main thoroughfare, which begins at Lake Ontario and stretches north for miles into the suburbs.