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100-925: The OVO Athletic Centre , formerly the BioSteel Centre and the Toronto Raptors Training Centre , is a basketball practice facility in Toronto , Ontario, Canada. Opened on February 10, 2016, the facility is home to the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA), and owned by the team's owner, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE). It is located on leased public land in Exhibition Place , near Dufferin Street and

200-494: A provincial fair , the Exhibition Place just west of downtown Toronto hosts the annual Canadian National Exhibition , while the nearby Ontario Place is being redeveloped. The Golden Horseshoe is home to many amateur and professional sports clubs, and university and college varsity programs. Many professional sports clubs in the city form a part of a larger sports league . Most university varsity programs are regulated by U Sports , while college varsity programs are regulated by

300-866: A blue-collar city; however, waterfront redevelopments and large-scale gentrification have been rapidly changing the perception of the city, although it retains a dominant industrial base. Hamilton has over 100 waterfalls and cascades throughout the region. Seasonal amusement parks and large attractions in the Golden Horseshoe include Canada's Wonderland , run by Six Flags in Vaughan; Wet'n'Wild Toronto (formerly Wild Water Kingdom) in Brampton ; African Lion Safari in Hamilton and Cambridge ; and Marineland in Niagara Falls. Though technically

400-755: A capital. In 1787, the British Lord Dorchester arranged for the Toronto Purchase with the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation, thereby securing more than a quarter of a million acres (1000 km ) of land in the Toronto area. Dorchester intended the location to be named Toronto. The first 25 years after the Toronto purchase were quiet, although "there were occasional independent fur traders" present in

500-657: A channel to the harbour. The peninsula was formed by longshore drift taking the sediments deposited along the Scarborough Bluffs shore and transporting them to the Islands area. The other source of sediment for the Port Lands wetland and the peninsula was the deposition of the Don River, which carved a wide valley through the sedimentary land of Toronto and deposited it in the shallow harbour. The harbour and

600-718: A new parking lot. The proposal was approved by the Board of Governors of Exhibition Place on August 14, 2014, the Executive Committee of Toronto City Council on August 20, and the full Toronto City Council on August 25. Construction began in November 2014, with the facility completed in time for the team's hosting of the NBA All-Star Game in February 2016. Under the terms of the lease agreement, MLSE paid

700-677: A new practice facility for the Raptors. The team had trained on a practice court located within the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena ) since its opening in 1999, and a new facility would allow this space to be repurposed into a restaurant or nightclub. MLSE proposed to build the facility on parking lot lands in the west end of City-owned Exhibition Place. The proposal meant the loss of 200 parking spaces, which would be replaced by replacing an adjacent ball diamond with

800-621: A plurality of the population (49.0%); the next largest groups were those of South Asian descent (1,273,525 people or 16.6%) and those of East Asian heritage (813,015 people or 10.6%) The economy of this region is very diverse. As of 2007 , the Toronto Stock Exchange is the third-largest in North America by market capitalization (after the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq ), and seventh-largest in

900-594: A ravine or valley and continue on the other side. Toronto has many bridges spanning the ravines. Large bridges such as the Prince Edward Viaduct were built to span broad river valleys. Despite its deep ravines, Toronto is not remarkably hilly, but its elevation does increase steadily away from the lake. Elevation differences range from 76.5 metres (251 ft) above sea level at the Lake Ontario shore to 209 m (686 ft) above sea level near

1000-604: A speech to the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce on January 12, 1954: Hamilton in 50 years will be the forward cleat in a "golden horseshoe" of industrial development from Oshawa to the Niagara River  ... 150 miles [240 km] long and 50 miles [80 km] wide ... It will run from Niagara Falls on the south to about Oshawa on the north and take in numerous cities and towns already there, including Hamilton and Toronto. The speech writer who actually penned

1100-454: Is a prominent centre for music, theatre, motion picture production, and television production, and is home to the headquarters of Canada's major national broadcast networks and media outlets . Its varied cultural institutions , which include numerous museums and galleries , festivals and public events , entertainment districts, national historic sites , and sports activities , attract over 43 million tourists each year. Toronto

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1200-713: Is an environmentally degraded area along the Niagara Escarpment. Similar protection of some wooded areas exists on the Oak Ridges Moraine running east–west in the north end of the Greater Toronto Area, although development pressures continue to threaten the natural habitat. The Niagara Region has become one of the major wine -production areas in Canada. The Golden Horseshoe contains many small towns with historic main streets, most notably

1300-572: Is another subway line under construction in Toronto. The Hurontario LRT is currently under construction in Peel Region, as well as various bus rapid transit projects in Peel and York Regions. The primary airport of the region is Toronto Pearson International Airport (officially Lester B. Pearson International Airport), located in Mississauga. Handling 50.5 million passengers in 2019, it is

1400-726: Is expected to play its home games at the Coca-Cola Coliseum starting in 2026. The Golden Horseshoe is served by a network of expressways ; central among these are the Queen Elizabeth Way and Highway 401 , the latter of which is one of the widest and busiest expressways in the world. Public transit in the region is coordinated by Metrolinx . Regional transit is provided by GO Transit trains and buses, and by intercity bus operators such as Ontario Northland and Coach Canada . GO Transit's train network encompasses seven commuter rail lines linking municipalities in

1500-864: Is home to several universities , including the University of Toronto and McMaster University in Hamilton, which are ranked 1st and 4th in Canada, respectively, by the Academic Ranking of World Universities . Other universities in the region include Brock University in St. Catharines, Trent University in Peterborough, York University in northern Toronto near Vaughan, OCAD University in downtown Toronto, Ontario Tech University in Oshawa, Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University),

1600-517: Is its escarpments. During the last ice age , the lower part of Toronto was beneath Glacial Lake Iroquois . Today, a series of escarpments mark the lake's former boundary, known as the "Iroquois Shoreline". The escarpments are most prominent from Victoria Park Avenue to the mouth of Highland Creek , where they form the Scarborough Bluffs . Other observable sections include the area near St. Clair Avenue West between Bathurst Street and

1700-601: Is known for its many skyscrapers and high-rise buildings , in particular the CN Tower , the tallest freestanding structure on land outside of Asia. The city is home to the Toronto Stock Exchange , the headquarters of Canada's five largest banks , and the headquarters of many large Canadian and multinational corporations. Its economy is highly diversified with strengths in technology, design, financial services, life sciences, education, arts, fashion, aerospace, environmental innovation, food services, and tourism. Toronto

1800-588: Is now a museum. The pre-amalgamation City of Toronto covers the downtown core and older neighbourhoods to the east, west, and north. It is the most densely populated part of the city. The Financial District contains the First Canadian Place , Toronto-Dominion Centre , Scotia Plaza , Royal Bank Plaza , Commerce Court and Brookfield Place . This area includes, among others, the neighbourhoods of St. James Town , Garden District , St. Lawrence , Corktown , and Church and Wellesley . From that point,

1900-514: Is the third-largest tech hub in North America after Silicon Valley and New York City , and the fastest-growing hub. The word Toronto has been recorded with various spellings in French and English, including Tarento , Tarontha , Taronto , Toranto , Torento , Toronto , and Toronton . The most frequent early spelling, Taronto , referred to 'The Narrows', a channel of water through which Lake Simcoe discharges into Lake Couchiching where

2000-522: The 2017 North American Indigenous Games , and the 2018 NACAC Championships . Although much of the 1976 Summer Olympics was held in Montreal , several matches for the event's soccer tournament were played in Toronto. Toronto is among various cities in North America to host select matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup . Note that the Toronto Blue Jays temporarily played their home games in

2100-400: The 2026 FIFA World Cup . Toronto covers an area of 630 square kilometres (243 sq mi), with a maximum north–south distance of 21 kilometres (13 mi). It has a maximum east–west distance of 43 km (27 mi), and it has a 46-kilometre (29 mi) long waterfront shoreline, on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario . The Toronto Islands and Port Lands extend out into

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2200-512: The CA$ 30 million construction cost of the facility and parking lot. MLSE leases the property from the City for $ 205,000 annually, plus city taxes, subject to reassessments for inflation, for a 20-year term, with two options to extend it by a further ten years, following which the City will take ownership of the building. MLSE requested that the City exempt the portion of the facility that is available to

2300-576: The Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association . In addition to the number of sports clubs and programs based in the region, the Golden Horseshoe has also hosted several international multi-sport events , including the 1930 British Empire Games (predecessor to the Commonwealth Games ), the 1976 Summer Paralympics , the 2015 Pan American Games and Parapan American Games , the 2017 Invictus Games ,

2400-616: The Gardiner Expressway , west of downtown. It is named for October's Very Own , the Canadian lifestyle brand founded by Aubrey " Drake " Graham, Oliver El-Khatib, and Noah " 40 " Shebib. The 68,000-square-foot (6,300 m) two-storey facility has two full-size basketball courts, locker rooms, training and medical facilities, player amenities, and a "technologically advanced cognitive operations centre" powered by IBM Watson , which consolidates and analyzes data for display on

2500-589: The Great Irish Famine ; most of them were Catholic . By 1851, the Irish-born population had become the largest single ethnic group in the city. The Scottish and English population welcomed smaller numbers of Protestant Irish immigrants, some from what is now Northern Ireland, which gave the Orange Order significant and long-lasting influence over Toronto society. Almost every mayor of Toronto

2600-516: The Greater Toronto Area proper had a 2021 population of 6,712,341. Toronto is an international centre of business, finance, arts, sports, and culture and is one of the most multicultural and cosmopolitan cities in the world. Indigenous peoples have travelled through and inhabited the Toronto area, located on a broad sloping plateau interspersed with rivers, deep ravines, and urban forest , for more than 10,000 years. After

2700-645: The Mississaugas had displaced the Iroquois, who abandoned the Toronto area at the end of the Beaver Wars , with most returning to their homeland in present-day New York state. French traders founded Fort Rouillé in 1750 (the current Exhibition grounds were later developed there), but abandoned it in 1759 during the Seven Years' War . The British defeated the French and their indigenous allies in

2800-473: The Niagara Peninsula produce wines, in particular, the ice wine for which the region is known. As of 2014 , sectors such as information technology , health care, Agtech, tourism, research and finance provide the bulk of growth in the Golden Horseshoe. The cities of Brampton , Markham , Waterloo Region and Mississauga are emerging as hubs for technology and innovation. The region is one of

2900-965: The Royal Ontario Museum , the Art Gallery of Ontario , and the Hockey Hall of Fame . The region is home to several shopping malls such as Yorkdale Shopping Centre , Toronto Eaton Centre , Fairview Mall , Scarborough Town Centre , and Sherway Gardens . Located in the suburbs of Toronto are Vaughan Mills in Vaughan , Bramalea City Centre in Brampton, Square One Shopping Centre in Mississauga , and Pacific Mall and Markville Shopping Centre in Markham . Annual cultural festivals that draw tourists and locals alike include

3000-482: The Toronto Carrying-Place Trail , led to widespread use of the name. The pronunciation of the city is broadly / t ə ˈ r ɒ n t oʊ / tə- RONT -oh , which locals pronounce [təˈɹɒnoʊ] or [ˈtɹɒnoʊ] , leaving the second 't' silent. The site of Toronto lay at the entrance to one of the oldest routes to the northwest, a route known and used by

3100-518: The University of Guelph , the University of Waterloo , Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, and the Université de l'Ontario français in downtown Toronto. The Golden Horseshoe is also home to many colleges. Public primary and secondary schooling is typically provided by school boards , largely organized at the municipal or county/regional level. The only school board that operates throughout

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3200-602: The York University grounds in the city's north end at the intersection of Keele Street and Steeles Avenue. There are occasional hilly areas; in particular, midtown Toronto , as well as the Silverthorn and Fairbank neighbourhoods, have several sharply sloping hills. Lake Ontario remains occasionally visible from the peaks of these ridges as far north as Eglinton Avenue, 7 to 8 kilometres (4.3 to 5.0 mi) inland. The other major geographical feature of Toronto

3300-556: The 19th century, the city built an extensive sewage system to improve sanitation, and streets were illuminated with gas lighting as a regular service. Long-distance railway lines were constructed, including a route completed in 1854 linking Toronto with the Upper Great Lakes. The Grand Trunk Railway and the Northern Railway of Canada joined in the building of the first Union Station in downtown. The advent of

3400-462: The 2000s, many neighbourhoods became ethnically diverse and underwent gentrification due to increasing population and a housing boom during the late 1990s and the early 21st century. The first neighbourhoods affected were Leaside and North Toronto , gradually progressing into the western neighbourhoods in York. Golden Horseshoe The core of the Golden Horseshoe starts from Niagara Falls at

3500-471: The City of Toronto in 1834. Toronto hosted the 4th G20 summit during June 26–27, 2010. This included the largest security operation in Canadian history. Following large-scale protests and rioting, law enforcement arrested more than 1,000 people, the largest mass arrest in Canadian history. On July 8, 2013, severe flash flooding hit Toronto after an afternoon of slow-moving, intense thunderstorms. Toronto Hydro estimated 450,000 people were without power after

3600-487: The Don River, and north of Davenport Road from Caledonia to Spadina Road ; the Casa Loma grounds sit above this escarpment. The geography of the lakeshore has dramatically changed since the first settlement of Toronto. Much of the land on the harbour's north shore is landfill, filled in during the late 19th century. Until then, the lakefront docks (then known as wharves) were set back farther inland than today. Much of

3700-514: The Golden Horseshoe is Conseil scolaire Viamonde , a public French-language school board, and Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir , a public French-language separate school board. Both of these public French-language school boards operate across the Ontario Peninsula . The CN Tower in downtown Toronto is among the most internationally notable attractions in the Golden Horseshoe. Other major attractions in downtown Toronto include

3800-402: The Golden Horseshoe to Toronto's Union Station , which is the busiest railway station in Canada and the second-busiest railway station in North America, with 72 million passengers per year. Expansion is underway to facilitate all-day 15-minute or better commuter train service, electrification and increased ridership on five of the busiest lines. Local transit is provided by municipal agencies,

3900-479: The Great Lakes. Large rail and truck distribution facilities are located in Toronto, Vaughan and Brampton. Food processing is also a key ingredient in the economy. Niagara Falls has one of the world's largest per-capita tourist economies, benefiting from millions of tourists coming to see its waterfalls, shop in its numerous stores, and visit its many attractions. The winemaking and fruit-growing industries of

4000-508: The Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH). The provincial transit authority Metrolinx makes use of the term Greater Golden Horseshoe. The Metrolinx definition is consistent with the original 2004 Places to Grow definition. However, the city and county of Peterborough is not included. The Golden Horseshoe is among the most multicultural regions in Canada. In 2021, there were 3,762,090 people of European heritage, forming

4100-729: The Huron had planted tree saplings to corral fish. This narrows was called tkaronto by the Mohawk , meaning 'where there are trees standing in the water', and was recorded as early as 1615 by Samuel de Champlain . The word Toronto , meaning 'plenty', also appears in a 1632 French lexicon of the Huron language , which is also an Iroquoian language. It also appears on French maps referring to various locations, including Georgian Bay, Lake Simcoe, and several rivers. A portage route from Lake Ontario to Lake Huron running through this point, known as

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4200-593: The Huron, Iroquois, and Ojibwe . Archaeological sites show evidence of human occupation dating back thousands of years. The site was of strategic importance from the beginning of Ontario's recorded history. In the 1660s, the Iroquois established two villages within what is today Toronto, Ganatsekwyagon (Bead Hill) on the banks of the Rouge River and Teiaiagon on the banks of the Humber River . By 1701,

4300-695: The Progressive Conservatives' majority. North York mayor Mel Lastman became the first "megacity" mayor, and the 62nd mayor of Toronto, with his electoral victory . Lastman gained national attention after multiple snowstorms, including the January Blizzard of 1999 , dumped 118 centimetres (46 in) of snow and effectively immobilized the city. He called in the Canadian Army to aid snow removal by use of their equipment to augment police and emergency services. The move

4400-430: The Toronto Caribbean Carnival (formerly known as Caribana ) and Taste of the Danforth in Toronto. The Niagara Escarpment , a world biosphere reserve as designated by the United Nations, runs from the north at Bruce Peninsula and then east through the region cutting the Niagara Gorge at Niagara Falls. The Bruce Trail runs along the escarpment through mostly protected woodlands. The Cheltenham Badlands in Caledon

4500-552: The Toronto Harbour), and the Rouge River at the city's eastern limits. Most of the ravines and valley lands in Toronto today are parklands and recreational trails are laid out along the ravines and valleys. The original town was laid out in a grid plan on the flat plain north of the harbour, and this plan was extended outwards as the city grew. The width and depth of several of the ravines and valleys are such that several grid streets, such as Finch Avenue , Leslie Street , Lawrence Avenue , and St. Clair Avenue , terminate on one side of

4600-622: The Toronto skyline extends northward along Yonge Street. Old Toronto is also home to many historically wealthy residential enclaves, such as Yorkville , Rosedale, The Annex, Forest Hill, Lawrence Park , Lytton Park , Deer Park , Moore Park , and Casa Loma, most stretching away from downtown to the north. East and west of downtown, neighbourhoods such as Kensington Market , Chinatown , Leslieville , Cabbagetown and Riverdale are home to bustling commercial and cultural areas as well as communities of artists with studio lofts, with many middle- and upper-class professionals. Other neighbourhoods in

4700-443: The United States (more specifically Dunedin, Florida and Buffalo, New York ) due to the COVID-19 pandemic in North America in 2020 and 2021 , while the Toronto Raptors played their home games in the United States (more specifically Tampa, Florida ) during the pandemic to minimize cross-border travel. In May 2024, the WNBA announced that its 14th franchise had been awarded to Toronto-based Kilmer Sports Ventures . The team

4800-474: The West. Like the Irish before them, many of these migrants lived in overcrowded shanty-type slums, such as " the Ward ", which was centred on Bay Street , now the heart of the country's Financial District . As new migrants began to prosper, they moved to better housing in other areas, in what is now understood to be succession waves of settlement. Despite its fast-paced growth, by the 1920s, Toronto's population and economic importance in Canada remained second to

4900-405: The adjacent Port Lands on the harbour's east side was a wetland filled in early in the 20th century. The shoreline from the harbour west to the Humber River has been extended into the lake. Further west, landfill has been used to create extensions of land such as Humber Bay Park. The Toronto Islands were a natural peninsula until a storm in 1858 severed their connection to the mainland, creating

5000-405: The architecture of its homes, and for being one of Toronto's earliest planned communities, was designated as an Ontario Heritage Conservation district in 1985. The Casa Loma neighbourhood is named after "Casa Loma", a castle built in 1911 by Sir Henry Pellat , complete with gardens, turrets, stables, an elevator, secret passages, and a bowling alley. Spadina House is a 19th-century manor that

5100-423: The area, with the usual complaints of debauchery and drunkenness. In 1793, Governor John Graves Simcoe established the town of York on the Toronto Purchase lands, naming it after Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany . Simcoe decided to move the Upper Canada capital from Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake) to York, believing the new site would be less vulnerable to attack by the United States. The York garrison

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5200-413: The broadly disputed Toronto Purchase , when the Mississauga surrendered the area to the British Crown , the British established the town of York in 1793 and later designated it as the capital of Upper Canada . During the War of 1812 , the town was the site of the Battle of York and suffered heavy damage by American troops . York was renamed and incorporated in 1834 as the city of Toronto . It

5300-443: The busiest in Canada and the 31st busiest in the world . Other regional airports of significance include John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport located in southern Hamilton, which is a major regional freight and courier location as well as the Region of Waterloo International Airport in Kitchener; Buttonville Airport (closed since November 2023) and Billy Bishop Airport in the Greater Toronto Area . Within driving distance

5400-481: The capital until 1865 (two years before Canadian Confederation). Since then, the capital of Canada has remained Ottawa , Ontario. Toronto became the capital of the province of Ontario after its official creation in 1867. The seat of government of the Ontario briefly returned to the same building that hosted the Third Parliament Building of Upper Canada, before moving to the Ontario Legislative Building at Queen's Park in 1893. Because of its provincial capital status,

5500-617: The central city retain an ethnic identity, including two smaller Chinatowns, the Greektown area, Little Italy , Portugal Village , and Little India , among others. The inner suburbs are contained within the former municipalities of York and East York. These are mature and traditionally working-class areas, consisting primarily of post–World War I small, single-family homes and small apartment blocks. Neighbourhoods such as Crescent Town , Thorncliffe Park , Flemingdon Park , Weston, and Oakwood Village consist mainly of high-rise apartments, which are home to many new immigrant families. During

5600-429: The centre's displays and on mobile devices. Along with the Raptors, Canada Basketball and Raptors 905 , the Raptors NBA G League affiliate team based in Mississauga , also use the facility. A section of the facility is reserved for MLSE, another is for community use and the basketball courts are shared between MLSE and community use. In November 2013, it was reported that MLSE had contracted an architect to design

5700-407: The channel of the Don River have been dredged numerous times for shipping. The lower section of the Don River was straightened and channelled in the 19th century. The former mouth drained into a wetland; today, the Don River drains into the harbour through a concrete waterway, the Keating Channel . To mitigate flooding in the area, as well as to create parkland, a second more natural mouth was built to

5800-527: The city granted the operation of the transit franchise to the Toronto Railway Company . The public transit system passed into public ownership in 1921 as the Toronto Transportation Commission , later renamed the Toronto Transit Commission . The system now has the third-highest ridership of any city public transportation system in North America . The Great Toronto Fire of 1904 destroyed a large section of downtown Toronto . The fire destroyed more than 100 buildings. The fire claimed one victim, John Croft, who

5900-471: The city was also the location of Government House , the residence of the viceregal representative of the Crown in right of Ontario . Long before the Royal Military College of Canada was established in 1876, supporters of the concept proposed military colleges in Canada. Staffed by British Regulars, adult male students underwent a three-month-long military course at the School of Military Instruction in Toronto. Established by Militia General Order in 1864,

6000-414: The city was hit by a massive blackout which affected millions of Torontonians (it also affected most of Southern Ontario and parts of the United States), stranding some hundreds of people in tall buildings, knocking out traffic lights and suspending subway and streetcar service across the city during those aforementioned days. On March 6, 2009, the city celebrated the 175th anniversary of its inception as

6100-449: The city, there exist hundreds of small neighbourhoods and some larger neighbourhoods covering a few square kilometres. The many residential communities of Toronto express a character distinct from the skyscrapers in the commercial core. Victorian and Edwardian-era residential buildings can be found in enclaves such as Rosedale , Cabbagetown , The Annex , and Yorkville . The Wychwood Park neighbourhood, historically significant for

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6200-408: The community of Niagara-on-the-Lake , located near the Niagara River . Niagara Falls has one of the world's largest waterfalls and attracts millions to Clifton Hill , a neighbourhood with souvenir stores, small attractions, restaurants and skyline-defining hotels. There are also two casinos: Casino Niagara and Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort . Hamilton has the historical reputation of being

6300-450: The eastern end of the Niagara Peninsula and extends west, wrapping around the western end of Lake Ontario at Hamilton and then turning northeast to Toronto (on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario), before finally terminating at Clarington in Durham Region . The term Greater Golden Horseshoe is used to describe a broader region that stretches inland from the core to the area of the Trent–Severn Waterway , such as Peterborough , in

6400-523: The elimination of racially based immigration policies by the late 1960s, Toronto became a destination for immigrants from all over the world. By the 1980s, Toronto had surpassed Montreal as Canada's most populous city and chief economic hub. During this time, in part owing to the political uncertainty raised by the resurgence of the Quebec sovereignty movement , many national and multinational corporations moved their head offices from Montreal to Toronto and Western Canadian cities. On January 1, 1998, Toronto

6500-429: The facility as the OVO Athletic Centre. Toronto Toronto is the most populous city in Canada and the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario . With a population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the fourth-most populous city in North America . The city is the anchor of the Golden Horseshoe , an urban agglomeration of 9,765,188 people (as of 2021) surrounding the western end of Lake Ontario , while

6600-474: The first mayor of Toronto . Mackenzie would later lead the unsuccessful Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837 against the British colonial government. Toronto's population of 9,000 included some African-American slaves, some of whom had been brought by the Loyalists, and Black Loyalists , whom the Crown had freed (most of the latter were resettled in Nova Scotia). By 1834, refugee slaves from America's South were also immigrating to Toronto to gain freedom. Slavery

6700-680: The hurricane caused more than CA$ 25 million in damage. In 1967, the seven smallest municipalities of Metropolitan Toronto were merged with larger neighbours, resulting in a six-municipality configuration that included the former city of Toronto and the surrounding municipalities of East York , Etobicoke , North York , Scarborough , and York . In the decades after World War II, refugees from war-torn Europe and Chinese job-seekers arrived, as well as construction labourers, particularly from Italy and Portugal. Toronto's population grew to more than one million in 1951 when large-scale suburbanization began and doubled to two million by 1971. Following

6800-400: The lake, allowing for a somewhat sheltered Toronto Harbour south of the downtown core. An Outer Harbour was constructed southeast of downtown during the 1950s and 1960s, and it is now used for recreation. The city's limits are formed by Lake Ontario to the south, the western boundary of Marie Curtis Park , Etobicoke Creek , Eglinton Avenue and Highway 427 to the west, Steeles Avenue to

6900-494: The largest of which is the Toronto Transit Commission , which operates three subway lines and one former light metro line and an extensive bus and streetcar network . Rapid transit systems that operate primarily outside Toronto include the VIVA bus rapid transit in York Region, the ION light rail system in Kitchener-Waterloo , and the Mississauga transitway . Line 5 and Line 6 are under construction LRT lines in Toronto that are part of its subway system. The Ontario Line

7000-404: The largest tech cluster in North America outside of Silicon Valley . The area is home to more than 15,000 tech companies, including over 5,000 startups, and nearly 300,000 employees in high-tech industries. About two-thirds of those employees are classified as “tech workers,” which includes programmers, developers, etc. with 8 percent of the total workforce employed in tech. The Golden Horseshoe

7100-409: The majority of Torontonians speak English as their primary language, over 160 languages are spoken in the city. The mayor of Toronto is elected by direct popular vote to serve as the chief executive of the city. The Toronto City Council is a unicameral legislative body, comprising 25 councillors since the 2018 municipal election , representing geographical wards throughout the city. Toronto

7200-515: The much longer established Montreal , Quebec. However, by 1934, the Toronto Stock Exchange had become the largest in the country. In 1954, the City of Toronto and 12 surrounding municipalities were federated into a regional government known as Metropolitan Toronto . The postwar boom had resulted in rapid suburban development. It was believed a coordinated land-use strategy and shared services would provide greater efficiency for

7300-494: The neck of the Ontario Peninsula . The horseshoe part of the region's name is derived from the characteristic horseshoe shape of the west end of Lake Ontario. The golden part is historically attributed to the region's wealth and prosperity, according to the Canadian Oxford Dictionary . The phrase Golden Horseshoe was first used by Westinghouse Electric Corporation president Herbert H. Rogge in

7400-628: The north and the Rouge River and the Scarborough–Pickering Townline to the east. The city is mostly flat or gentle hills, and the land gently slopes upward away from the lake. The flat land is interrupted by the Toronto ravine system , which is cut by numerous creeks and rivers of the Toronto waterway system , most notably the Humber River in the west end, the Don River east of downtown (these two rivers flanking and defining

7500-489: The northeast, to Barrie and Lake Simcoe in the north, and to the Grand River area, which includes cities such as Brantford and Guelph , to the west. The extended region's area covers approximately 33,500 km (13,000 sq mi), out of this, 7,300 km (2,800 sq mi) or approximately 22 percent of the area is covered by the environmentally protected Greenbelt . The Greater Golden Horseshoe forms

7600-490: The phrase was Charles Hunter MacBain, executive assistant to five Westinghouse presidents including Rogge. The Golden Horseshoe was officialized on July 13, 2004, in a report from the provincial Ministry of Public Infrastructure Renewal titled Places to Grow , in which the region's borders extended west to Waterloo Region , north to Barrie / Simcoe County , and northeast to the county and city of Peterborough . A subsequent edition released on February 16, 2005, broadened

7700-411: The public (32%) from city taxes. MLSE pledged to make the facility available for community use during the majority of daytime and evening hours. MLSE would contribute to the cost of a parking study of Exhibition Place, leading to a new parking facility and the reconstruction of green space to replace the ball diamond. The annual CNE Lions Club youth baseball tournament, which had been played at the diamond,

7800-465: The railway dramatically increased the numbers of immigrants arriving, commerce and industry, as had the Lake Ontario steamers and schooners entering port before. These enabled Toronto to become a major gateway linking the world to the interior of the North American continent. Expanding port and rail facilities brought in northern timber for export and imported Pennsylvania coal. Industry dominated

7900-514: The referendum results and did so in April when it tabled the City of Toronto Act . Both opposition parties held a filibuster in the provincial legislature, proposing more than 12,000 amendments that allowed residents on streets of the proposed megacity to take part in public hearings on the merger and adding historical designations to the streets. This only delayed the bill's inevitable passage, given

8000-561: The region, the manufacturing sector has experienced a significant decline since 2000 as a result of unfavourable currency exchange rates, increasing energy costs, and reduced demand from the United States, which is by far the largest market for Ontario's goods. The Port of Hamilton and the Port of Toronto are the two largest inland ports on Lake Ontario . The Welland Canal system handles tanker ships and recreational traffic through

8100-468: The region. The metropolitan government began to manage services that crossed municipal boundaries, including highways, police services, water and public transit . In that year, a half-century after the Great Fire of 1904, disaster struck the city again when Hurricane Hazel brought intense winds and flash flooding. In the Toronto area, 81 people were killed, nearly 1,900 families were left homeless, and

8200-490: The school enabled officers of militia or candidates for commission or promotion in the Militia to learn military duties, drill and discipline, to command a company at Battalion Drill, to drill a company at Company Drill, the internal economy of a company, and the duties of a company's officer. The school was retained at Confederation, in 1867. In 1868, Schools of cavalry and artillery instruction were formed in Toronto. In

8300-553: The south during the first half of the 2020s, thereby creating a new island, Ookwemin Minising . Toronto encompasses an area formerly administered by several separate municipalities that were amalgamated over the years. Each developed a distinct history and identity over the years, and their names remain in common use among Torontonians. Former municipalities include East York, Etobicoke, Forest Hill , Mimico , North York, Parkdale , Scarborough, Swansea , Weston and York. Throughout

8400-409: The storm and Toronto Pearson International Airport reported 126 mm (5 in) of rain had fallen over five hours, more than during Hurricane Hazel. Within six months, from December 20 to 22, 2013, Toronto was brought to a near halt by the worst ice storm in the city's history, rivalling the severity of the 1998 Ice Storm (which mainly affected southeastern Ontario, and Quebec). At the height of

8500-575: The storm, over 300,000 Toronto Hydro customers had no electricity or heating. Toronto hosted WorldPride in June 2014, and the Pan and Parapan American Games in 2015 . The city continues to grow and attract immigrants. A 2019 study by Toronto Metropolitan University (then known as Ryerson University) showed that Toronto was the fastest-growing city in North America. The city added 77,435 people between July 2017 and July 2018. The Toronto metropolitan area

8600-900: The term further, adding Brant , Haldimand and Northumberland Counties to the region. The Greater Golden Horseshoe region is officially designated in Ontario Regulation 416/05 under the Places to Grow Act . The designation Greater Golden Horseshoe has legal significance with respect to taxation: in April 2017, the Government of Ontario announced plans to impose a 15 per cent Non-Resident Speculation Tax (NRST) on non-Canadian citizens, non-permanent residents and non-Canadian corporations (with exceptions or rebates for refugees , qualifying students and certain people working in Ontario ) buying residential properties containing one to six units in

8700-467: The town's surrender. American soldiers destroyed much of the garrison and set fire to the parliament buildings during their five-day occupation. Because of the sacking of York, British troops retaliated later in the war with the burning of Washington, D.C. York was incorporated as the City of Toronto on March 6, 1834, adopting the Indigenous name. Reformist politician William Lyon Mackenzie became

8800-671: The war, and the area became part of the British colony of Quebec in 1763. During the American Revolutionary War , an influx of British settlers arrived there as United Empire Loyalists fled for the British-controlled lands north of Lake Ontario. The Crown granted them land to compensate for their losses in the Thirteen Colonies. The new province of Upper Canada was being created and needed

8900-645: The waterfront for the next 100 years. During the late 19th century, Toronto became the largest alcohol distillation (in particular, spirits ) centre in North America. By the 1860s, the Gooderham and Worts Distillery operations became the world's largest whisky factory. A preserved section of this once dominant local industry remains in the Distillery District . The harbour allowed access to grain and sugar imports used in processing. Horse-drawn streetcars gave way to electric streetcars in 1891 when

9000-412: The world. Cities including Hamilton, Oshawa, Oakville, Whitby and Kitchener all contain major large-scale industrial production facilities, Hamilton being dominated by the steel industry and Oakville and Oshawa primarily in the automotive industry . Other significant automotive-production facilities also exist in Brampton , and St. Catharines . While manufacturing remains important to the economy of

9100-524: Was a member of the Orange Order between 1850 and 1950, and the city was sometimes referred to as the " Belfast of Canada" because of Orange influence in municipal politics and administration. For brief periods, Toronto was twice the capital of the united Province of Canada : first from 1849 to 1851, following unrest in Montreal, and later from 1855 to 1859. After this date, Quebec was designated as

9200-469: Was an explosive expert clearing the ruins from the fire. It caused CA$ 10,387,000 in damage (roughly CA$ 277,600,000 in 2020 terms). The city received new European immigrant groups from the late 19th century into the early 20th century, particularly Germans, French, Italians, and Jews. They were soon followed by Russians, Poles, and other Eastern European nations, in addition to the Chinese entering from

9300-600: Was banned outright in Upper Canada (and throughout the British Empire) in 1834. Torontonians integrated people of colour into their society. In the 1840s, an eating house at Frederick and King Streets, a place of mercantile prosperity in the early city, was operated by a black man named Bloxom. As a major destination for immigrants to Canada, the city grew rapidly through the remainder of the 19th century. The first significant wave of immigrants were Irish, fleeing

9400-535: Was built at the entrance of the town's natural harbour, sheltered by a long sand-bar peninsula. The town's settlement formed at the harbour's eastern end behind the peninsula, near the present-day intersection of Parliament Street and Front Street (in the " Old Town " area). In 1813, as part of the War of 1812 , the Battle of York ended in the town's capture and plunder by United States forces. John Strachan negotiated

9500-535: Was designated as the capital of the province of Ontario in 1867 during Canadian Confederation . The city proper has since expanded past its original limits through both annexation and amalgamation to its current area of 630.2 km (243.3 sq mi). The diverse population of Toronto reflects its current and historical role as an important destination for immigrants to Canada . About half of its residents were born outside of Canada and over 200 ethnic origins are represented among its inhabitants. While

9600-573: Was greatly enlarged, not through traditional annexations , but as an amalgamation of the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto and its six lower-tier constituent municipalities: East York, Etobicoke, North York, Scarborough, York, and the original city itself. They were dissolved by an act of the Government of Ontario and formed into a single-tier City of Toronto (colloquially dubbed the " megacity "), replacing all six governments. The merger

9700-583: Was moved to Coronation Park, east of Exhibition Place, as an interim measure. In November 2015, it was announced that the facility would be named the BioSteel Centre, after corporate sponsor BioSteel Sports Nutrition . This ended in 2018 and the facility was renamed the Toronto Raptors Training Centre. On March 14, 2019, the Raptors announced that they had reached an agreement with OVO on a naming rights deal to rebrand

9800-551: Was proposed as a cost-saving measure by the Progressive Conservative provincial government under premier Mike Harris . The announcement touched off vociferous public objections. In March 1997, a referendum in all six municipalities produced a vote of more than 3:1 against amalgamation. However, municipal governments in Canada are creatures of the provincial governments, and referendums have little to no legal effect. The Harris government could thus legally ignore

9900-408: Was ridiculed by some in other parts of the country, fuelled in part by what was perceived as a frivolous use of resources. The city attracted international attention in 2003 when it became the centre of a major SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak. Public health attempts to prevent the disease from spreading elsewhere temporarily dampened the local economy. From August 14 to 17, 2003,

10000-613: Was the second-fastest-growing metropolitan area in North America, adding 125,298 persons, compared with 131,767 in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metroplex in Texas. The large growth in the Toronto metropolitan area is attributed to international migration to Toronto. The COVID-19 pandemic in Canada first occurred in Toronto and was among the hotspots in the country . Toronto was named as one of 16 cities in North America (and one of two Canadian cities) to host matches for

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