Weekend need-to-know: Salsa on St. Clair, AFROFEST and more

If you can brave the high temperatures, the first weekend of July is full of lots of different events to attend for whatever peaks your interest, including the Fringe Festival, AFROFEST 2025 and Salsa on St. Clair.

Keep in mind there is a subway and GO transit closure this weekend.

AFROFEST 2025

The largest free African music festival in North America is back this weekend in Toronto. AFROFEST will be celebrating its 37th year and for the fourth year in a row, will be taking over Woodbine Park, featuring over 55 performances that will showcase African and Black culture.

Over 100 food and merchandise vendors will also be onsite throughout the festival, running from July 4 to July 6.

A full lineup, which focuses on local artists but will also include international artists, can be found on their website.

Taste of Lawrence 2025

Three days of food, music and cultural celebrations will be happening this weekend at Taste of Lawrence, Scarborough’s largest street festival.

The annual festival, put on by the Wexford Heights BIA, will feature over 150 street vendors, live entertainment on two stages, a midway and kids’ workshops.

It kicks off on July 4 at 6 p.m. and runs until Sunday at 8 p.m.

Salsa on St. Clair

Get ready to move your hips for Salsa on St. Clair this weekend. The street festival celebrating Latino culture through music, dance, art and cuisine will feature Latin dance and art exhibitions, concerts and dance parties.

The free festival will close St. Clair Avenue West from Winona Drive to Christie Street.

More details on the festival can be found here.

Toronto Fringe Festival

Ontario’s largest performing arts festival is on right now, giving you the opportunity to catch over 100 shows and 20 stages across the city. The Toronto Fringe Festival runs until July 13 and tickets are on sale now.

You can find the full schedule here.

Taste of the Middle East

In its eight year, the Taste of the Middle East is back at Nathan Phillips Square this weekend to showcase and celebrate Arabic music, art and heritage in Toronto.

The three-day festival will feature concerts and art exhibitions featuring emerging artists and headliners.

The festival will kick off on Friday at 6 p.m. with the opening ceremonies and will last all weekend. A full schedule is available on its website.

Summerlicious begins

It’s the foodie event of the summer for many Torontonians … Summerlicious is back and runs from Friday to July 20.

The annual event offers three-course prix fixe lunch and dinner menus at more than 220 local restaurants at a discounted price.

Price points for lunch menus range from $20 to $55. Price points for dinner menus range from $25 to $75.

Sounds of Leslieville and Riverdale

Sounds of Leslieville and Riverdale will kick off the Beaches Jazzfest this weekend with concerts in Jimmie Simpson Park.

The shows kick off at 4 p.m. on Friday and run through until Sunday afternoon. Food trucks and vendors will also be in the park for the whole weekend.

A full lineup can be found here.

Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrored Room at the AGO

Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – LET’S SURVIVE FOREVER exhibition is back at the Art Gallery of Ontario. It began on June 8 and will run until September 30.

Tickets and more details can be found here.

TTC/GO Transit closures

Line 2 closure

Subway service on Line 2 between Kipling and Jane stations will be replaced by shuttle buses on Saturday, July 5 and Sunday, July 6 for planned signal work. Regular subway service will resume on Monday, July 7.

Events diversions

• From 8 a.m. on Sat., July 5, until 11 p.m. on Sun., July 6, the 512/312 routes will divert during Salsa on St Clair. Westbound 512 St Clair streetcars will operate between Gunns Loop and Oakwood Ave., and eastbound streetcars will operate between St Clair and St Clair West stations. 512 St Clair replacement buses will operate between Dufferin St. and St Clair West Station, diverting both ways onto Davenport Rd. between Oakwood Ave. and Christie St.
• Beginning at 10 a.m. on Fri., July 4 until 2 a.m. Sun., July 6, the 54/354/954 Lawrence East will divert onto Bertrand Ave. between Birchmount Rd. and Warden Ave. to accommodate Taste of Lawrence.

Stouffville line closure

On July 5-6, GO buses replace train service on the Stouffville line as they perform construction upgrades. There will be no GO Transit service at Milliken, Agincourt and Kennedy GO, consider TTC options.

Some late-night service on Friday, July 4 will also be adjusted.

Road closures

Weekend closures

Lake Shore Boulevard East and Don Roadway 

Beginning tomorrow until Friday, July 11, the following road restrictions will be in effect for Enbridge Gas to relocate natural gas infrastructure in the Port Lands as part of the Waterfront Relocation Pipeline project: 

• From 8 p.m. tomorrow until 5 a.m. on Monday, July 7, Don Roadway will be closed between Don Valley Parkway and Lake Shore Boulevard East. The Don Valley Parkway on-ramp at Don Roadway and off-ramp to Lake Shore Boulevard East will be closed.  
• Between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m. nightly from Monday, July 7 to Friday, July 11, Lake Shore Boulevard East will be reduced to one lane between Cherry Street and Don Roadway.  

Taste of Lawrence 

From 10 a.m. tomorrow until 2 a.m. on Monday, July 7, Lawrence Avenue East will be closed between Birchmount Road and Warden Avenue for the Taste of Lawrence festival.  

Gerrard Street East 

From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 5, Gerrard Street East will be closed between Church and Yonge Streets for the safe hoisting of HVAC equipment. 

Salsa on St. Clair 

From 8 a.m. on Saturday, July 5 to 11 p.m. on Sunday, July 6, St. Clair West will be closed between Christie Street and Winona Drive for Salsa on St. Clair.  

Ashura Day Parade 

From 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 5, the following lane closures will be in effect around Milliken Park in Scarborough for the Ashura Day parade: 

• Eastbound Steeles Avenue East will be reduced to one lane between McCowan Road and Middlefield Avenue. 
• Southbound Middlefield Avenue will be reduced to one lane between Steeles Avenue East and Passmore Avenue. 

Gardiner Expressway closure

As part of the long-term construction plan on the Gardiner Expressway, one westbound lane and one eastbound lane are closed between Dufferin Street and Strachan Avenue. The eastbound on-ramp from Lake Shore Boulevard at Jameson Avenue is also closed.

A stretch of the westbound Gardiner will also be reduced from four lanes to three for approximately one year. The westbound lane closure will stretch from Park Lawn Road to Grand Avenue in southern Etobicoke. The eastbound lanes along the same stretch will be narrowed, but with no lane reductions, from April 2025 to December 2026.

Temporary closures

• Yonge Street is reduced to a single lane both ways between Wellington and King for underground work at the TTC’s King Station to add new elevators and make it an accessible station. Construction is expected to continue into 2026.
• Queen Street is fully closed to traffic between Bay and Victoria Streets to accommodate work on a new station for the Ontario Line subway. The closure is scheduled to last until 2027.
• Eglinton Avenue West is reduced to a single lane east of Islington and west of Scarlett Road due to tunnelling work related to the multi-year Eglinton Crosstown West Extension project.
• Lane restrictions on Bayview Avenue between Roehampton Avenue and Armistice Drive while the city completes road resurfacing, curb and sidewalk replacement, and traffic signal and pedestrian upgrades. One northbound lane is currently closed on Bayview Avenue between Kilgour Road and Roehampton Avenue.
• Cherry Street remains closed south of Polson Pier due to maintenance on the Ship Channel Lift Bridge (Strauss Trunnion Bascule Bridge). Road users are able to access the Port of Toronto and Cherry Beach via Unwin Avenue. 
• Queens Park Crescent is reduced to a single lane south of Bloor as part of the TTC’s Easier Access Program at Museum Station. The project is expected to be complete by the end of 2025.
• Until Wednesday, Dec. 31, William R. Allen Road will be reduced to two lanes in each direction at Wilson Avenue for construction as part of the rehabilitation of the Wilson TTC Station bus underpass structure and the Mezzanine Bridge.  
• Until Monday, June 30, access to the Highway 401 westbound on-ramp from southbound William R. Allen Road will be closed. Detour signs will be in place to divert traffic to access Highway 401 using an alternate interchange nearby.  
• Bremner Boulevard is reduced to one westbound lane at the intersection with Navy Wharf Court until June. Eastbound lanes remain open. 
• Until August, Blue Jays Way is closed between Front Street and Navy Wharf Court until August. Local access is maintained.  
• Navy Wharf Court is closed between Bremner Boulevard and Blue Jays Way until August. Local access for residents of Navy Wharf Court is maintained. At a later stage of construction, the east sidewalk on Navy Wharf Court and Bremner Boulevard will be closed to pedestrians and a detour route will be in place. 
• Islington Avenue will also be reduced from three lanes in each direction to two lanes where they pass over the Gardiner Expressway for approximately eight months, from April 7, 2025, to November 2025.
• From Monday, June 2, the intersection of King Street East and Church Street will be fully closed for the next stage of a project to replace a 142-year-old watermain and renew aging TTC streetcar tracks.
• From Sunday, May 11 until Saturday, January 10, 2026, Market Street will be closed to vehicle traffic between Front Street West and The Esplanade. The street will be pedestrianized for live entertainment, pop-up market vendors and other events. 

For full traffic updates, click here for the latest information from 680 NewsRadio Toronto.