Onward Willow

While Onward Willow Guelph is the name given to the entire neighbourhood for MLS purposes, this area is actually divided into two very separate neighbourhoods. South of Paisley Road you will find the neighbourhood nicknamed “The Junction” thanks to the intersection of major railroads.

North of Paisley is where “Onward Willow” comes from and parts of it can be quite different from The Junction while other other parts are fairly similar.

The Junction is more colloquially considered a part of Downtown Guelph by locals, but if you’re looking for listings, it gets grouped into Onward Willow’s boundaries.

Let’s take a look at both of these areas separately and discuss the real estate options you can find.

Onward Willow

The residential borders are Speedvale to the north, The Hanlon (Hwy 6) to the west, Edinburgh to the east and Paisley to the south. Onward Willow actually stretches further north all the way to Woodlawn, but this area is all commercial, industrial and retail.

Within Onward Willow there are also very distinct areas with different housing styles and ages.

Norm Jay & Sleeman Park

First up let’s look at the area around Norm Jay Park and Sleeman Park.

Located on opposite sides of Willow Street, many of the homes have large setbacks on mature, tree-lined streets. With a combination of bungalows, splits and 2-storeys built around the mid to late 1960s, these are probably the nicest spots in Onward Willow. Luckily, the area is still quite affordable compared to other neighbourhoods.

Willow & Paisley

The rest of the homes in Onward Willow sit between Willow and Paisley Road. As you head further south towards the Junction, the post-war bungalows and their smaller lots are more common to find.

Heading east towards Downtown Guelph/Exhibition Park, the homes begin to blend in with those areas. That means more 1.5 storey homes, smaller bungalows (some with garages) and an urban mix of duplexes and century+ old homes.

Something to note – As you go south towards The Junction, the topography of the land is downhill, so you’ll find a lot of homes on streets with a steep incline or decline.

Finally, if you’re looking for condo townhomes or apartments, you can find them along any of Silvercreek Parkway, Willow Road, Edinburgh or Dawson Road.

The rest of Onward Willow is made up of retail especially along Silvercreek which is lined with retail all the way from Willow to Woodlawn. More can also be found between Dawson and Edinburgh from Willow to Woodlawn.

The Junction

The Junction borders are Paisley to the north, Edinburgh to the east, the Eramosa River to the south and The Hanlon (Hwy 6) to the west. The homes here are similar to what you would find in Downtown Guelph and Exhibition Park.

There are two main areas to look at here – north of the tracks and south of the tracks. North of the tracks has homes located around Goldie Park and Memorial Crescent Park. These are tucked away nicely off of Paisley Road including dead end streets.

Homes in this area are mostly smaller bungalows on smaller lots, so this area is quite affordable. If you’re looking for a nice, small pocket of century old homes instead, the other side of Paisley Road Public School is a great pocket to target (Omar and Raglan Rd).

South of the tracks you’ll find more century-old, brick 2-storeys, pre-war bungalows and classic Guelph stone homes of various shapes, sizes and ages.

These homes are all within walking distance to the pocket of commercial properties including the Junction-famous Fixed Gear Brewing Canteen.