Liberty Village Movers

Moving Co. moves lofts, condo suites and offices across Liberty Village, the former industrial district between King Street West, Dufferin Street, Strachan Avenue and the Gardiner Expressway. Local moves are billed at $50/hr per mover, we handle the Certificate of Insurance your building asks for, and the line at 905-752-7787 is answered around the clock.

Liberty Village sits close to downtown, is full of new towers and old brick, and is hemmed in by a rail corridor and an expressway. Every one of those facts shapes how a move here works. This page covers what our crews deal with in the neighbourhood and how to plan a move so it runs on time.

Liberty Village in numbers

The neighbourhood is small, about 0.6 square kilometres, and it filled up fast. At the 2016 census it had 7,836 residents at a density of roughly 13,000 people per square kilometre, and its density roughly tripled between the 2011 and 2016 censuses as condominium towers went up on former factory land. Building did not stop there. In 2018 another nine condominium buildings were under construction, adding around 4,000 units.

It is also a place of work. The Liberty Village Business Improvement Area, founded in 2001, represents more than 600 businesses employing over 10,000 people, many of them in converted factory buildings. On a weekday the streets carry office traffic and deliveries as well as residents, and that matters when a truck needs somewhere to stand.

• 0.59 square kilometres of land
• 7,836 residents at the 2016 census, with density roughly tripling from 2011 to 2016
• Around 4,000 condominium units under construction in nine buildings as of 2018
• More than 600 businesses and over 10,000 jobs in the Business Improvement Area
• 1873, the year Toronto Central Prison opened here, which is where the name comes from

From prison grounds to factories to lofts

The neighbourhood’s name comes from its earliest institutions. Toronto Central Prison opened here in 1873 and the Andrew Mercer Reformatory for Women in 1878, on the land where Lamport Stadium now stands. Liberty Street, which gave the area its name, was the first street prisoners walked on once they were freed.

The railway made it industrial. In the 1850s the Toronto, Grey and Bruce Railway and the Great Western Railway laid tracks across the area and cut it off from the rest of the city. John Inglis and Company opened a factory here in 1884 for heavy machinery and boilers, and later appliances. Massey-Harris followed in 1891, building farm equipment. Toronto Carpet Manufacturing, St. David’s Wine and Ontario Wind Engine and Pump arrived in the same era, and later Irwin Toy, Simmons Bedding and Brunswick-Balke-Collender.

Industry faded through the 1970s and 1980s as shipping moved from rail to road. The carpet plant on Liberty Street closed in 1990 and the Inglis plant in 1991. Most of the Inglis and Massey-Harris factories were demolished, with the exception of the building at 947 King Street West. Artists moved into the empty factory floors for cheap studio space, the Business Improvement Area formed in 2001, and from 2004 the area filled with new condominiums, converted lofts and offices.

Two kinds of building, two kinds of move

Almost every move in Liberty Village is one of two types, and they behave very differently.

New condominium towers make up most of the housing. They have service elevators, loading docks and property management, which means bookings, rules and a Certificate of Insurance. They are predictable once they are planned.

Converted industrial buildings are the other half of the neighbourhood’s character. The old Irwin Toy factory became residential lofts. The Toronto Carpet Factory complex on Mowat Avenue holds design, technology and media offices, and the former storage and factory buildings at Liberty Street and Hanna Avenue became the Liberty Market commercial spaces. Buildings made for moving goods sometimes help a move and sometimes do not. Freight elevators can be big but slow, corridors can be long, and floors laid out for machinery rarely had a sofa in mind.

We ask which type of building you are in on the first call, because it changes the crew, the equipment and the timing.

The rail corridor and how a truck gets in

Liberty Village is bounded by King Street West to the north, Dufferin Street to the west, the Gardiner Expressway to the south and Strachan Avenue to the east, with railway tracks along its northeast edge. The tracks and the expressway are why the neighbourhood feels self-contained, and why road access comes from King Street West, Dufferin Street and Strachan Avenue.

The King-Liberty pedestrian and cycling bridge, which opened over the rail corridor in April 2021, made life easier on foot. It does nothing for a truck. On a busy day the few ways in and out of the neighbourhood fill up, and an inside street with a stopped truck can back up quickly. We plan the approach and the loading spot before the day for that reason.

Condo towers: elevators, docks and paperwork

For a tower move in Liberty Village, the building’s rules set the day. The details vary, so read your own building’s move policy, but expect:

• A booked service elevator window, often reserved weeks ahead for a weekend.
• A booked spot at the loading dock, sometimes shared with commercial tenants on the ground floor.
• A Certificate of Insurance naming the condominium corporation and the property manager, filed before the move.
• Elevator pads, floor runners and corner protection in the common areas.
• Crew sign in at the concierge or security desk.

Book the elevator first, then the movers, and give us the exact window. We size the crew to finish inside it. Our condo movers page has more on how a tower move runs, and moving a condo in Toronto covers the building side in detail.

Lofts: freight elevators, high ceilings and big furniture

Loft moves bring a different set of questions. Is there a freight elevator, and who controls it? How far is it from the elevator to the unit? Are there stairs between the loading area and the floor? Lofts also tend to hold bigger furniture: long sectionals, large dining tables, platform beds and shelving built to fill a high wall.

Big pieces in a loft often need to come apart to leave the building and go back together at the other end. Our furniture assembly crews handle that as part of the move, and we protect old wood and concrete floors along the route.

What to ask your building or landlord first

In Liberty Village the right questions depend on the kind of building. Ask them before you book a date, and pass the answers on to us.

In a condominium tower:

• How long is the service elevator booking, and which days and hours are allowed?
• Is the loading dock shared with the retail units below, and when is it busiest?
• Who must be named on the Certificate of Insurance, and at what limit?
• What is the damage deposit, and how are the elevator and corridors inspected?

In a converted loft or older building:

• Is there a freight elevator, who runs it, and does it need a key or an operator?
• What are the inside dimensions of the freight elevator and its doors?
• Is there a loading area, or does the truck stand on the street?
• Are there stairs between the loading area and the unit?

Those answers decide the crew size, whether large pieces need to come apart, and whether a street occupancy permit is needed.

Getting a loft ready for moving day

Lofts reward a bit of preparation more than most homes, because the furniture is bigger and the routes out are less forgiving.

• Measure the big pieces and the way out. Sectionals, dining tables, platform beds and tall shelving are the usual problems. Compare them with the freight elevator and the narrowest door on the route.
• Empty and take down shelving. Wall units and bookcases move far more safely empty and in sections.
• Box everything that is not furniture. Open floor plans tend to collect loose items, and loose items are slow to carry.
• Keep the essentials separate. Documents, medication, keys, chargers and a change of clothes travel with you, not on the truck.
• Clear the route. Rugs, plants and bikes in the corridor or near the elevator cost time on the day.

If you would rather not do the packing yourself, our crews can pack and wrap the whole loft before the move.

King Street West and the streetcar

The north edge of Liberty Village is King Street West, served by the 504 King streetcar, with the 29 Dufferin bus on the west side. King is a busy transit street and stopping rules on it are enforced, so a moving truck cannot simply pull over and start loading.

For addresses on or near King, we plan where the truck stands well before moving day. Most tower moves avoid the question by using the building’s loading dock. For older buildings fronting King, the plan may involve a side street or a permit.

Event days at Exhibition Place and BMO Field

Exhibition Place and BMO Field sit just south of the Gardiner, and Exhibition GO station on the Lakeshore West line is at the southern end of Liberty Village. On a match day, a concert or during the Canadian National Exhibition in late summer, traffic around the neighbourhood gets much heavier and parking disappears.

If your move date is flexible, check the event calendar before you pick it. If it is not, tell us and we will plan the timing and the route around the crowd. Exhibition station is also planned to become the southern end of the Ontario Line subway, which is worth knowing if you are settling here for the long term.

Picking a date

In a neighbourhood this dense, the date you choose changes how easy the day is. The last few days of each month and the first few of the next are when the most leases turn over across Toronto, so service elevators and loading docks are at their busiest. Summer Saturdays come close behind, and Liberty Village adds event days at BMO Field and Exhibition Place on top. A weekday in the middle of the month is usually the easiest elevator booking to get.

Do you need a permit to move in Liberty Village?

Usually not for a condominium, because the truck uses the building’s loading dock. Liberty Village is in the City of Toronto, so if the truck needs to stand on the roadway or in a signed parking space, a temporary street occupancy permit is the proper route, and it can be bought online up to two weeks ahead. That situation comes up most often at older buildings without a dock of their own.

What hours can movers work in Liberty Village?

Toronto’s noise bylaw prohibits loading and unloading noise between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. Monday to Friday, and between 11 p.m. and 9 a.m. on weekends and statutory holidays, with a $500 fine. Your building’s move policy will usually be tighter than that, so check it before you choose a date.

What does a Liberty Village move cost?

Local Liberty Village moves are billed at $50/hr per mover, so the total depends on the crew size and how long the job runs. We do not quote flat prices by bedroom count, because a one bedroom in a tower with a booked dock and a one bedroom loft with a long freight elevator run are different jobs.

What adds time here:

• Waiting on a shared service or freight elevator.
• Long carries from the dock to the unit, common in large towers and old factory buildings.
• Large loft furniture that has to come apart to leave.
• Event day traffic on the way in or out.
• Rooms that are not packed when the crew arrives.

A quick video walkthrough gets you a real estimate. See our pricing page for how rates work, or request a quote.

How many movers a Liberty Village move needs

Crew size follows the job. A studio or one bedroom condo usually needs two movers. A two bedroom suite, or a loft with large furniture, usually needs three. A big loft with heavy pieces, or a move with a tight elevator window, may need four. An extra person who keeps the elevator full is usually cheaper than a small crew that runs past the booking.

Office moves in Liberty Village

With more than 600 businesses in the neighbourhood, a good share of our Liberty Village work is commercial: studios, agencies and tech offices moving within the area, out to larger space, or in from somewhere else. Most of it happens after hours or on weekends so the team works on Friday and works again on Monday.

Our office movers handle workstations, IT equipment, the Certificate of Insurance for both buildings and disposal of anything not making the trip.

Offices in converted factory buildings bring their own details. After hours access may need a security escort or a key for the freight elevator, loading areas can be shared with other tenants, and older floors deserve protection under heavy equipment. We sort those out with your property manager before the move rather than on the night.

Short moves around the west end

Many Liberty Village moves are short ones: into or out of Parkdale to the west, King West to the east, or the towers of Fort York and CityPlace a little further along. The distance is small but the logistics are not, because there is often a building with rules at both ends.

On a short move, the elevator bookings decide the day far more than the drive does. Book both windows before anything else, get them on the same day if you can, and leave enough time between them for the truck to load, cross over and unload. If one end is a CityPlace tower, our CityPlace movers page covers that side.

Storage and clearing out

Liberty Village moves often involve a change in space. A loft has room for things a condo suite does not, and a first apartment fills up quickly. If the new place will not hold everything, storage buys time to decide, and junk removal takes care of what is finished. Sorting before moving day is cheaper than moving it and deciding later.

Our moving services in Liberty Village

Everything we do across Toronto is available in Liberty Village: condo and apartment moves, small moves, single item moves, packing, furniture assembly, piano moves, office moves, storage and junk removal. Our crews are employed by us, not subcontracted. If you are heading out of the city, our long distance moving service covers moves across Ontario and the rest of Canada.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do movers cost in Liberty Village?

Local moves are billed at $50/hr per mover, so the total depends on the crew size and how long the job takes. We do not quote flat prices by bedroom count. A quick video walkthrough gets you a real estimate.

Do Liberty Village condos require a Certificate of Insurance?

Almost always. Buildings usually want the condominium corporation and the property manager named on the certificate before the crew is allowed in. We produce it and send it ahead of the move.

How does a moving truck get into Liberty Village?

Road access comes from King Street West, Dufferin Street and Strachan Avenue, because the rail corridor and the Gardiner Expressway close off the other sides. The King-Liberty bridge is for pedestrians and cyclists only. We plan the route and the loading spot before moving day.

Can you move a loft with a freight elevator?

Yes. Tell us whether the building has a freight elevator, who books it, and how far it is from the unit. Large loft furniture often needs to come apart to leave the building, and we reassemble it at the other end.

Will event days at BMO Field or the CNE affect my move?

They can. Traffic and parking around Liberty Village get much heavier on match days, concerts and during the Canadian National Exhibition in late summer. If your date is flexible, check the event calendar first. If it is not, we plan the timing around it.

Do I need a parking permit to move in Liberty Village?

Usually not for a condominium with a loading dock. If the truck has to stand on the street, a City of Toronto street occupancy permit is the proper route, and it can be bought online up to two weeks ahead.

What hours can movers work in Liberty Village?

Toronto’s noise bylaw prohibits loading and unloading noise between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. on weekdays and between 11 p.m. and 9 a.m. on weekends and statutory holidays, with a $500 fine. Building rules are often stricter.

Do you move offices in Liberty Village?

Yes. Most commercial moves in the neighbourhood happen after hours or on weekends so the business keeps working. We handle workstations, IT equipment and the Certificate of Insurance for both buildings.

Can you move me at short notice?

Sometimes, depending on the day and on whether your building can give you an elevator booking in time. In Liberty Village the elevator is usually the harder thing to get at short notice. Call 905-752-7787 and we will tell you honestly what is available.

Is my move insured?

Yes, your move is covered with full replacement-value coverage. If anything is unusually valuable, tell us when you book so the right coverage is in place before moving day.

Plan Your Liberty Village Move

Tell us the building, the floor, whether it is a tower or a converted loft, and your booked elevator window. We will tell you the crew size and how we will run the day. If your building needs a Certificate of Insurance, say so on the call and we will send it ahead.

Call 905-752-7787, answered around the clock, or request a quote online.