City of Burlington, Ontario, Canada

Motto: Stand By

Location

City Information

Burlington (2006 population 164,415)[1] is located in the Golden Horseshoe, across Lake Ontario and Burlington Bay harbour from Hamilton, in Halton Region, Ontario, Canada.

Like most cities of its size in Ontario, manufacturing of various goods sustains Burlington's livelihood, but its proximity to both Hamilton and Toronto means many residents commute to those cities. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area, although it is still part of the Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area. Transportation is served by the Queen Elizabeth Way, Highway 403, Highway 407, as well as Dundas Street, and by both GO Transit and VIA Rail. Burlington Transit is the public transport provider in the city. Rail Service is provided by both CN and Canadian Pacific Railways.

In recent years Burlington has been one of the fastest growing areas of Canada with many new homes being built. The region by the lake has a number of expensive homes while the rest of the community is mostly middle class suburbs.

Burlington is represented in the Canadian House of Commons by Mike Wallace (Conservative) and in the Ontario legislature by Jane McKenna (Progressive Conservative).

Burlington has a sister-city relationship with Itabashi City, Japan, a ward of Tokyo . In 1989 the City of Burlington, Ontario signed a twin city declaration with Itabashi. Since then various exchanges and programs have been carried out between Itabashi and Burlington and relations between the cities have flourished on all levels.

History
The land which is now Burlington, was deeded to Chief Joseph Brant in 1798. Settlement on the "Brant Block" started soon afterward. In 1874 the communities of Wellington Square and Port Nelson were incorporated into the Village of Burlington, and later a town in 1915. In 1962, most of the township of Nelson was annexed including Aldershot. It became a city in 1974, upon the creation of the Regional Municipality of Halton. Some land in north and northeast Burlington became part of Milton.

Demographics
According to the 2006 census, the population estimates there were 164,415 people residing in the local authority of Burlington, located in the province of Ontario, of whom 48.4 % were male and 51.6 % were female. Children under five accounted for approximately 5.8 % of the resident population of Burlington. This compares with 5.8 % in Ontario, and almost 5.6 % for Canada overall.

In mid-2001, 14.0 % of the resident population in Burlington were of retirement age (65 and over for males and females) compared with 13.2 % in Canada, therefore, the average age is 38.5 years of age comparing to 37.6 years of age for all of Canada.

In the five years between 1996 and 2001, the population of Burlington grew by 10.1 %, compared with an increase of 6.1 % for Ontario as a whole. Population density of Burlington averaged 812.2 people per square kilometre, compared with an average of 12.6, for Ontario altogether.

At the time of the census in May 2001, the resident population of the Burlington city authority had 150 836 people, compared with a resident population in the province of Ontario of 11,410,050 people.

Racial Groups

• 91.9% Caucasian, mostly English, Irish, Scottish, and German
• 2.1% Asian, mostly Indian, and Pakistani
• 1.5% Black, almost exclusively Jamaican
• 1.0% Chinese, mostly from Hong Kong
• 0.5% mixed race, mostly Black and Caucasian mixes
  

Religion
In the city of Burlington, almost 80.0% of the population declare themselves as Christian. Approx. 41% are Protestant and Anglican, while 32%are Roman Catholic. The balance of Christians are made up of Orthodox Christian and smaller denominations. The Non-Christian population numbers less than 1.0%, predominanty Islam, Sikh and Hindu

Media and journalism:

Television stations
Burlington has a local community channel provided by the cable provider, Cogeco.
The Hamilton television station CHCH, part of the Global TV system, serves Hamilton, Halton and Niagara, thus including Burlington.

Crossroads Television System (CITS-TV) is based in Burlington with studios near the junction of the QEW, Hwy. 403 and Hwy. 407.

Radio
One radio station, FM 107.9 CJXY, is licensed to Burlington and another, FM 94.9 CIWV, to "Hamilton/Burlington." Both presently broadcast from studios in Hamilton; CJXY, indeed, brands itself "Hamilton's ONLY Rock Station." Burlington listeners are also served by stations licensed to Hamilton, Toronto, and other nearby radio markets.

Print media

• Burlington Post
• InBurlington
• SNAP Burlington

Education:

High schools
Burlington's public elementary and secondary schools are part of the Halton District School Board. Burlington's Catholic elementary and secondary schools are part of the Halton Catholic District School Board

Public

• Aldershot High School
• Burlington Central High School
• Gary Allen High School Burlington Campus
• Lester B. Pearson High School
• M.M. Robinson
• Nelson High School (1957)
• Robert Bateman High School (2004)

Catholic

• Assumption Secondary School
• Corpus Christi
• Notre Dame Secondary School (1989)
  

Colleges and Universities

McMaster's DeGroote School of Business opened in September 2010 and is located in Burlington on the South Service Road.  It offers MBA and Executive Education Programs.

Sites of interest

Burlington is home to the Royal Botanical Gardens, Canada's largest botanical garden, which incorporates both untamed and cultivated landscapes. There are 75 parks and 800 acres of parkland within the city, the largest being Spencer Smith Park, located on the shore of Lake Ontario, which is going through large scale renovations to improve the park. Located in North Burlington is Mount Nemo Conservation Area, the only park in Burlington operated by the Halton Region Conservation Authority.

The Burlington Art Centre shows various exhibits throughout the year from local to national talent, including the renowned Canadian artist Robert Bateman. The Joseph Brant Museum and Ireland House are also popular attractions.

Not widely known to many residents is one of the two naturally occurring magnetic hills in Canada are found in Burlington, on King Road just north of Bayview Park.

Many annual lakefront activities take place in Spencer Smith Park including the Sound of Music Festival and Canada's Largest Ribfest.

Organizations

The Burlington Teen Tour Band has operated in the city since 1947, including members between the ages of 13 and 21. The marching band goes by the nickname The Redcoats due to the colour of its uniforms, and are regular participants in major international parades.

Since 1961, 715 "Mohawk" Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets has been a fixture in the city. The Royal Canadian Air Cadets is only one of the three branches of the Canadian Cadet Movement. The CCM is a partnership between the Department of National Defence, and each of the three cadet leagues: The Air Cadet League of Canada, The Army Cadet League of Canada, and the Navy League. The CCM is the largest federally funded youth program in Canada, and is open to youth ages 12-18 who are interested in leadership, citizenship, physical fitness, the Canadian Forces, and personal discipline.

Sports

• Burlington Barracudas
• Burlington Bulldogs
• Burlington Chiefs
• Burlington Cougars
• Burlington Eagles
• Burlington Stampeders

Notable natives

• Jeff Danna - Film Music Composer
• Jim Carrey - Comedian and actor, attended Aldershot High School
• Jillian Barberie - Actress and television Hostess
• Sarah Harmer - Singer and songwriter
• Finger Eleven - Alternative Rock Band
• Robert Bateman - Acclaimed Naturalist Painter
• Spoons - 1980's New Wave Band
• Torri Higginson - Actress
• Tebey - Country Music Artist
• Mark Appleyard - Pro Skateboarder
• Ryan Gosling - Actor, attended Lester B. Pearson High School
• Melville Marks Robinson - Founder of the Commonwealth Games
• Paula Todd - Television Journalist
• Sandi Coleman - Television Journalist
• Idle Sons - Alternative Rock Band

The riding runs north from the lift bridge west along the lakeshore to the Hamilton border, north to the Dundas Highway (Hwy 5), east to the proposed highway 403, southwest to Upper Middle Rd, east on Upper Middle to Walkers Line, south to the QEW, east along the QEW to Burloak Drive and south to the Lakeshore. It follows the Lakeshore back to the lift bridge.

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