Black-owned businesses and Jamaican culture will be on display for the “A Love Letter to Little Jamaica” festival, from Friday, Aug. 25, to Sunday, Aug. 27.

As part of The City of Toronto’s 2023 Cultural Hotspot program, the event features visual arts, music, and cultural activities developed by local youth as part of the Reset Residency training and well-being program.

“There is a big gap between the old and the young, and the old want to share their stories and share what it once was, but the young want to do their own thing. Young people don’t know how legendary this area used to be,” Andron McKoy, an event organizer, told Black Dollar Magazine. “They’re the ones that are going to take over, and if anything needs to happen to uplift the area and save businesses, it’s generally the young people that will do it. They need to see all the things that Little Jamaica was and revive it or feel some sort of connection to it.”

McKoy added that various archive photos will also be displayed, and postcards will be available to encourage people to send a letter to a loved one back home — or someone they don’t even know.

Cultural Hotspot connects and invests in Toronto’s diverse neighbourhoods outside the downtown core by focusing on artistic skills development, mentoring and employment while creating opportunities for local artistic expression. This is the first year that Cultural Hotspot has focused its programming and events exclusively on Little Jamaica and is helping to support and deliver 43 mentorship and 35 employment opportunities for youth in the neighbourhood, according to a city news release.

Longstanding construction of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT (Light Rail Transit) has disrupted the neighbourhood, causing road closures, limited accessibility to businesses, and reduced foot traffic.

Moreover, rising property values and rents, which have attracted new developments and higher-income residents, have displaced longstanding local businesses and residents who couldn’t afford the increasing costs.

The result has diminished its status as a hub for Caribbean culture, businesses, and events, McKoy said.

“Whenever they gentrify certain areas, they raise prices and kick out old businesses. It would be great if, as they cleaned up these things, they kept those businesses in the area as a tribute to the community. Give them the tools to keep going. Eglinton has also been known as the worst road because of all the construction on the LRT. It’s affected businesses so negatively, and you’re not doing anything to subsidize those businesses,” he said.

McKoy added he hopes this event will bridge the gap between generations and rally youth to help save the neighbourhood. The full list of Cultural Hotspot projects in Little Jamaica is available on the City of Toronto's website.