In 1875, the House of Refuge (later renamed Riverdale Hospital) opened at the corner of Broadview Avenue and Gerrard Street East.

The residential landscape within Riverdale is made up primarily of Victorian and Edwardian style homes, constructed in the 1800s as boarding rooms for the working-class.

The smaller, core area of Riverdale refers to the stretch of Toronto east of the Don Valley Parkway and west of Jones, between Danforth Avenue (north) and Gerrard Street (south).

There are a number of remarkable century-old homes built on Simpson and Langley Avenues, the latter street named after Toronto's well-known early 20th century architect, and the former featuring the oldest Victorian houses in Riverdale.

Of note, Simpson Avenue is home to the original six houses of Riverdale; located at the west end of the street and locally known as the 'Six Sisters.'

Riverside is a mixed income and multicultural neighbourhood currently experiencing a trend of "gentrification" along Queen St. East and Broadview Ave.

The biggest landmark in the neighbourhood is the Broadview Hotel, a red sandstone commercial block in Romanesque style constructed in 1891–3, that was the tallest structure in South Riverdale for many decades.

Other major landmarks include the Ralph Thornton Community Centre,(Queen Saulter branch Toronto Public Library) Broadview Lofts, and The Opera House.

North of the library is the monument to Sun Yat-sen. Construction on the Toronto Chinese Archway began in the western end of East Chinatown on November 24, 2008, and it opened to the public on September 12, 2009.

Industrial warehouses along Lakeshore Avenue house production studios, and many people working in film and television live in the old Victorians found along the area's side streets.

With a 33.3% unemployment rate in youth aged 15–19,[4] the Blake-Jones corridor of Riverdale has seen an increase in crime in recent years.

There are two local elementary schools zoned to the area; Blake Street (which also houses East end Alternative) and Pape Avenue.

Over time there have been some differences on the exact definition of the area, but currently the Pocket is understood to be "accessible only from the west along Jones Avenue".

[5][6] This would indicate that the area would be bordered by Chatham Street at the north (which itself is not accessible from Jones, except by bicycles on the recently created bike lane), and on the southern end by Boultbee Ave.

The neighbourhood is listed as one of the ten hottest areas in Toronto Life and is described as "coveted" by the Globe and Mail indicating that buyers will pay a premium to live in the community.

Phin Park has had a number of mature trees planted along its central lighted walkway, an outdoor ice rink created every winter, the placement of large boulders removed during street work, and the building of a gazebo next to the playground for parents to cool off while their children play.

Throughout the year there are events at the park organized and paid for by the community including monthly movie nights and an excellent fireworks show on Victoria Day.

[6] Another beautification project included building a small orchard and community garden area north of the Greenwood TTC yard.

This pocket includes the legendary Maple Leaf Tavern, as well as a Sikh temple, Turkish cultural centre and Jewish cemetery, in addition to the Gerrard Square shopping mall.

Danforth Avenue (commonly referred to as "The Danforth" in Greek Town) has a high concentration of Greek restaurants while Gerrard Street East and parts of Broadview Avenue are home to a variety of Asian shops and restaurants (referred to as East Chinatown).

Riverdale is home to the Gerrard Square Mall; which features a variety of retail, restaurant, and small shops.

Under the campaign management of Gerald Caplan, Stephen Lewis, and Marjorie Pinney the NDP canvassed every household three times, identified all their supporters, and then they got out the vote.

At the west edge between Broadview Avenue and the Don Valley Parkway just north of Bridgepoint Health is Riverdale Park.

This park features a running track, three baseball diamonds, a skating rink, a public swimming pool and tennis courts.