Mississauga woman’s experience of moving to Edmonton suburb and back blows up online

A Mississauga woman who shared her experience and the subsequent dilemma of being swayed to move to an Edmonton suburb and back to Ontario after only three months is making the rounds on social media, and not necessarily in a positive way.

Jackie Thomas, 33, of Mississauga, published her story in Toronto Life on Tuesday, expanding on her decision to move to Alberta in the summer.

CityNews previously covered a campaign by former Premier Jason Kenney that saw Toronto spaces covered with ads encouraging Toronto residents to move to Alberta with the promise of lower taxes, housing affordability, shorter commutes and proximity to the Rocky Mountains.

The ads caught Thomas’s attention, as she revealed in the article that she “needed a change” despite living in Mississauga her entire life. In August, Thomas said she secured a “1,600-square-foot home with two master bedrooms and a large backyard, 30 minutes south of the city, for just $400,000.”

“I left my job as a training manager for Little Caesars Canada, gave up my one-bedroom condo rental near Square One — which cost $1,750 per month — and moved to the suburbs of Edmonton,” Thomas explained. “My friends couldn’t believe that I was leaving Toronto.”

RELATED: Alberta continues to attract Canadians from other provinces: StatCan

She said it would be her adventure. She quickly realized moving out west may not have been the best idea, at least for her own needs.

A self-described “extrovert,” Thomas said she relishes the nightlife and enjoys going out every weekend. When she first arrived and asked locals where she could find the closest lounge, they didn’t understand what she meant. She called that “the first red flag,” noting that she missed Toronto’s “buzzy city energy.”

Thomas said she started going out only once a week, which saved her money, but after six weeks, she began feeling depressed.

“I was used to finishing work and heading straight to the Cactus Club — I wasn’t meant to spend most of my evenings alone. I started wondering if the move had been a bad decision,” Thomas wrote.

Social media catches wind of Thomas’ Alberta experience

The Mississauga woman said everything started to unravel. A roommate left in October, and she couldn’t replace them because nobody wanted to live so far from Edmonton (Thomas’ house was in Leduc — a half-an-hour drive from the downtown core).

She tried for a better-paying job, falling back on those much-talked-about ads in Toronto that promised opportunities in the province.

“I realized that most of Alberta’s ads are for manual labourers and skilled tradespeople. If you work any kind of corporate job — like I do — the money and opportunity are back east,” Thomas wrote.

“Case in point: In early November, I was offered a director of training role that I really wanted. The job was remote, with a caveat: the successful applicant needed to live in Ontario. I wasn’t even mad. It was my ticket out of there. I screamed, ‘I’m coming home!'”

Thomas leased her Leduc home and began scanning the real estate market in Ontario. As we all know, prices surged. Her old Mississauga apartment had gone up $950 in rent. Finally, Thomas said, she got lucky. Her cousin was leasing a place near Square One for $2,300. She accepted.

Shortly after the story was published, Cactus Club, Mississauga and Edmonton became trending topics on Twitter. Many were wondering why Thomas would decide to move in the first place to a suburb so far away from the city of Edmonton.

“A person from Mississauga who says they’re from Toronto moved to Leduc and said they moved to Edmonton. After what appears to be zero basic research, disappointment ensues. How can I go to Cactus Club dressed as Carrie Bradshaw five days a week in Leduc? What a wild ride,” one social media user tweeted.

“Guys, we don’t have to all hate read the Toronto Life piece. If a confused Torontonian doesn’t want to live in a canola field because there isn’t a Cactus Club there, that’s their business,” another woman tweeted.

“The most confusing part of this story is that someone who goes to Cactus Club five nights a week would hate Alberta,” said another.

Cactus Club Cafe’s Twitter account, presumably overwhelmed with mentions of the restaurant as a result of the story, changed its profile from public to private, meaning only those that follow the account can interact with them and see its tweets.

Thomas concluded that she realized the Toronto life was meant for her.

“I tell people who are considering leaving Toronto not to uproot if they have any intention of living in the city again.”