Obviously you haven't been there (much?). Have you seen Little India? One of the most vibrant parts of the city. Saturday nights in the summer are crazy.
Obviously, you're right. Sorry. I was thinking further west by the mall around Carlaw -- and even there, as you say, is on the edge of several nice neighbourhoods.
I'm sure you like it there, but really, 'on the edge' is the crucial phrase. You're a 15-20 minute walk from a diverse commercial strip (and Leslieville isn't mature yet, and Danforth east of Pape has nothing much.)
All of which is no problem if you drive everywhere. For the rich or nearly rich (some of whom I know in the general area) it's a semi-suburban lifestyle, just like Cabbagetown.
Faster transit would help. And I don't mean to start a streetcar debate, but I think unreliable transit explains why gentrification in Toronto tends to be miles long and a couple of blocks wide -- an odd pattern. Which is helping the condo boom.
25 minutes on the streetcar from Coxwell to the downtown core, Joey? That would be nice. I have a friend in the neighbourhood who says more like 45. After the streetcar shows up, which as everywhere in the city is an unpredictable and often long wait.
Hey, it regularly takes me 15-20 minutes on the King car just to get from Spadina to Parliament.