Picking out neighbourhoods on the rise in Toronto is a tough task given the rapid development that's taking place all over the city, but there are little pockets — some of the them unexpected — worth focusing attention on for incoming businesses, infrastructure, and park space.

Here are 5 neighbourhoods to keep an eye on this year and beyond.

Chinatown East

This area has witnessed a slew of new businesses open along Gerrard just east of Broadview, including Farside, Wong's Ice Cream, and Good Cheese. Leslieville brunch favourite Lady Marmalade will also call the neighbourhood home come the spring. The condos are soon to follow.   

The Stockyards

The massive new Nations grocery store has injected much-needed life into the former target space at the eponymous shopping mall, but there's more going on in the vicinity, from development on Ethel Ave. to the revitalized Symes Incinerator to a host of breweries in the area.

Fort York

This neighbourhood just welcomed the Bentway Skate Trail and will surely benefit as the new public space expands in the summer. But more infrastructure is on the way in the form of Garrison Crossing, which will surely help move the masses expected to inhabit all the new condos.

York University Heights

The subway's arrival will do wonders for York, but also the surrounding area. Keele and Finch has long been home to strip malls, but the new University Heights development will add commercial density by this summer and the Keele Finch Plus Study promises more change to come.

East Bayfront

Toronto's eastern waterfront is expanding as condos like Aqualina, Aquavista and Monde are rising along Queens Quay. Soon we'll witness the extension of the lakefront promenade and new life injected into Sherbourne Common. Meanwhile, Google's presence will soon be felt.