Scarborough City Centre
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Scarborough City Centre is a commercial district in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. It was the central business district for the former city of Scarborough, which
amalgamated Amalgamation is the process of combining or uniting multiple entities into one form. Amalgamation, amalgam, and other derivatives may refer to: Mathematics and science * Amalgam (chemistry), the combination of mercury with another metal **Pan ama ...
with Toronto in 1998. Scarborough City Centre remains one of the central business districts outside
Downtown Toronto Downtown Toronto is the main central business district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located entirely within the district of Old Toronto, it is approximately 16.6 square kilometres in area, bounded by Bloor Street to the northeast and Dupont Stre ...
.


Character

It is roughly bounded by Kennedy Road and
Dorset Park Dorset Park is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the western part of the district of Scarborough. The neighbourhood is bordered by Highway 401 to the north, Midland Avenue to the east, Lawrence Avenue to the south, an ...
to the west,
Markham Road Markham may refer to: It may also refer to brand of of clothing which originates from South Africa which saw it's establishment in 1873. Biology * Markham's storm-petrel (''Oceanodroma markhami''), a seabird species found in Chile and Colombia * ...
and Woburn to the east,
Ellesmere Road Ellesmere ( ) may refer to: Places Australia * Ellesmere, Queensland, a locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland * the former name of Scottsdale, Tasmania, Australia Canada * Ellesmere Island, an Arctic island of Canada and named for ...
and
Bendale Bendale, also called Cedarbrae and Midland Park, is a residential neighbourhood in the eastern part of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the former suburb of Scarborough. It is centred on the intersection of Lawrence Avenue East and Brim ...
to the south, and
Ontario Highway 401 King's Highway 401, commonly referred to as Highway 401 and also known by its official name as the Macdonald–Cartier Freeway or colloquially referred to as the four-oh-one, is a Controlled-access highway, controlled-access 400-series high ...
/ Agincourt to the north. At its centre core is the
Scarborough Civic Centre The Scarborough Civic Centre is a civic centre located in the Scarborough district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was designed by architect Raymond Moriyama during the development of Scarborough City Centre and initially opened as the city hall o ...
,
Albert Campbell Square Albert Campbell Square is a public square in Scarborough City Centre in Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is named after Albert Campbell, the first mayor of the Borough of Scarborough and former Chairman of the Municipality of Metropolita ...
,
Scarborough Town Centre Scarborough Town Centre (STC) is a shopping mall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Central to the Scarborough City Centre in the former city of Scarborough, it is adjacent to Scarborough Centre station, the Scarborough Centre Bus Terminal and the CTV ...
shopping mall, and the
Canada Centre Building The Canada Centre Building in Scarborough, Toronto, houses the offices of Service Canada, Human Resources and Social Development Canada, Passport Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency. Sandwiched between the Scarborough Civic Centre and Scarbo ...
. Condominium high-rises surround these central buildings and public spaces, forming the skyline of the neighbourhood. The major office towers in the area include those situated at
Consilium Place Consulium Place is an office complex in Scarborough City Centre in Toronto. * 17 storey 100 Consilium was built in 1984 - main tenant is Telus (former tenant was State Farm Insurance; they left in 2006) * 17 storey 200 Consilium was built in 1985 ...
, which was completed in 1991. In a band around the southern side of the city centre are densely forested parklands, between Borough Drive and Ellesmere Road. The areas outside the immediate city centre is primarily made up of industrial parks, and low-density housing.


History

Prior to the 1940s, the area was primarily agricultural, with the closest communities being Agincourt and
Malvern Malvern or Malverne may refer to: Places Australia * Malvern, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide * Malvern, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne * City of Malvern, a former local government area near Melbourne * Electoral district of Malvern, an e ...
. Early farms in the area included the farm of George and Lena Bick, who founded the
Bick's Pickle Bick's is a Canadian pickle producer originally based out of Scarborough, Ontario. The brand is now sold in Canada by U.S.-based The J.M. Smucker Co. Bick's emerged in 1951 in the Toronto area when local farmers George and Lena Bick and their ...
brand from pickles grown and processed on their farm. Although the farm was eventually converted to residential and industrial land, the production facility continued to operate on Progress Avenue until 2001. Development in the area had first come in the 1950s when Ontario Highway 401 was built through the area. One early development was the TV studios of
CFTO-TV CFTO-DT (channel 9) is a television station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, serving as the flagship station of the CTV Television Network. It is owned and operated by network parent Bell Media alongside Barrie-based CTV 2 outlet CKVR-DT, channel 3 ...
at the intersection of the 401 and McCowan Road. Scarborough became part of
Metropolitan Toronto The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was an upper-tier level of municipal government in Ontario, Canada, from 1953 to 1998. It was made up of the old city of Toronto and numerous townships, towns and villages that surrounded Toronto, whic ...
in 1954 when "Metro" was carved out of York County. As part of the metropolitan government’s planning policy, plans were put forth to develop the city centres of municipalities surrounding the
City of Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
, which originated as rural
townships A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...
rather than distinct urban settlements.
Scarborough Civic Centre The Scarborough Civic Centre is a civic centre located in the Scarborough district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was designed by architect Raymond Moriyama during the development of Scarborough City Centre and initially opened as the city hall o ...
, which was built to house offices of Scarborough's municipal government, and Metropolitan Toronto, and the
Scarborough Town Centre Scarborough Town Centre (STC) is a shopping mall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Central to the Scarborough City Centre in the former city of Scarborough, it is adjacent to Scarborough Centre station, the Scarborough Centre Bus Terminal and the CTV ...
were built in the 1970s. The
Toronto Transit Commission The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the public transport agency that operates bus, subway, streetcar, and paratransit services in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, some of which run into the Peel Region and York Region. It is the oldest and largest ...
's
Scarborough RT Line 3 Scarborough (originally known as the Scarborough RT or SRT) is a light rapid transit line that is part of the Toronto subway system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The line runs entirely within the suburban district of Scarborough, encompass ...
line was completed in 1985. The beginning of the 21st century saw the development of several condominium high-rises and office complexes in the area. The area was formerly represented as Ward 38 Scarborough Centre, in the 44 Ward city council model. However in 2018, a 25 Ward model was adopted, resulting in Wards 38 and 37 merging to create Ward 21 Scarborough Centre. In December 2018, plans by
Oxford Properties Oxford Properties is a Canadian multinational corporation, with operations in real estate investment, development and property management. Its portfolio includes office, retail, industrial, multi-residential, life sciences and hotel assets. Esta ...
and
AECOM AECOM (, ; formerly AECOM Technology Corporation) is an American multinational infrastructure consulting firm. AECOM has approximately 51,000 employees, and is number 157 on the 2019 Fortune 500 list. The company's official name from 1990 t ...
were unveiled, proposing massive changes to the City Centre area. Specifically between
McCowan Road McCowan can refer to the following: * McCowan Baronets, British baronetcy *Millar McCowan, Scottish confectionery company *McCowan (surname) *McCowan Road, a major thoroughfare in Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ** A local name for York Regi ...
,
Brimley Road Brimley Road is a north-south street in Toronto and the Regional Municipality of York, Ontario, Canada. In Toronto, it is located entirely within Scarborough and carried 32000 vehicles daily in May 2007 Hence, it is classified as a major arteria ...
and the 401. The proposal includes the realignment of Progress Avenue around the Scarborough Town Centre, the introduction of 36 new residential buildings to the area, and brand new park spaces.


Transportation

The neighbourhood is connected to public transit services at operated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC).
Scarborough Centre station Scarborough Centre is a rapid transit station and bus terminal in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, serving Line 3 Scarborough of the Toronto subway system and multiple bus routes of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). It is located north of Ellesmere ...
is the primary station of the city centre, used by the TTC bus system, and
Line 3 Scarborough Line 3 Scarborough (originally known as the Scarborough RT or SRT) is a light rapid transit line that is part of the Toronto subway system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The line runs entirely within the suburban district of Scarborough, encompas ...
trains. In addition to Scarborough Centre station, two other stations from Line 3 Scarborough are situated in Scarborough Centre, Midland station is a station west of Scarborough Centre, situated along the centre's western boundary, while
McCowan station McCowan is a terminal station on Line 3 Scarborough of the Toronto subway. It is located at 1275 McCowan Road, just north of Ellesmere Road at Bushby Drive/Town Centre Court. Both of the surface routes that pass the McCowan station also stop ...
is situated east of Scarborough Centre station, and acts as the line's terminus. Line 3 will be demolished and in its place,
Line 2 Bloor-Danforth Line most often refers to: * Line (geometry), object with zero thickness and curvature that stretches to infinity * Telephone line, a single-user circuit on a telephone communication system Line, lines, The Line, or LINE may also refer to: Arts ...
will be extended, relocating Scarborough Centre station by 2029–30. Once extended, Line 2 will provide a one-seat ride to Downtown Toronto from Scarborough City Centre. In addition to municipal transit, the
Scarborough Centre Bus Terminal Scarborough Centre Bus Terminal is a regional and intercity bus terminal in Scarborough City Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located near its namesake rapid transit station on Line 3 Scarborough of the Toronto subway. It is served by GO Tr ...
is a commuter bus service operated by
GO Transit bus services GO Transit bus services are provided throughout the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) and the Greater Golden Horseshoe. In , the system had a ridership of . While GO Transit started as a single train line in 1967, 15 buses were introdu ...
. In addition to GO Transit, the terminal is also used by several inter-city coach services. The Scarborough Centre station and the Scarborough Centre Bus Terminal are situated adjacent to one another, next to the Scarborough Town Centre and Scarborough Civic Centre. The neighbourhood is bounded by Ontario Highway 401, a major east-west
controlled access highway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...
that bisects the City of Toronto.


See also

*
List of neighbourhoods in Toronto The strength and vitality of the many neighbourhoods that make up Toronto, Ontario, Canada has earned the city its unofficial nickname of "the city of neighbourhoods." There are over 140 neighbourhoods officially recognized by the City of Toronto ...


References

{{authority control Neighbourhoods in Toronto Scarborough, Toronto Central business districts in Canada