Niagara Peninsula
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The Niagara Peninsula is an area of land lying between the southwestern shore of
Government
The greater part of the peninsula is incorporated as the
History
The area was originally inhabited by a
The Niagara Peninsula then became one of the first areas settled in
Following the agricultural period of
21st century
Heavy industry has been diminishing for the past decade or more primarily due to the slow-down of the North American automotive manufacturers. Thousands of jobs have been lost at long-time area employers such as General Motors, Thompson Products, Deere & Company, Dana Canada Corp, Port Weller Drydocks, Domtar Papers, and Gallagher Thorold Paper. Because of this, local municipalities have been forced to look at new and diversified opportunities to prevent an exodus of well trained staff.
Visiting
Hospitality and tourism has attracted numerous visitors to the area for more than 150 years primarily thanks to Niagara Falls. New development beginning during the mid-1990s has spun off an upscale hospitality boom throughout the whole Niagara Peninsula.
Today, more than 10 million guests[
Niagara Peninsula wineries
Another area of major tourism growth in the past thirty years has been the expansion of the grape and wine industry. The Niagara Peninsula is one of four recognized viticultural areas by the
There is an official [1] Wine Routes Guide for those that wish to self-drive while transportation companies offering wine tours operate out of major hotel and bed and breakfast establishments in Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Toronto. (Driving from downtown Toronto to the Niagara wine region is about two hours.)
Niagara-on-the-Lake
Another major attraction for the well travelled looking for cultural activities is the famous Shaw Festival Theater (named for playwright George Bernard Shaw) located in the town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. A resident repertory company of actors uses three theatres during a six-month season. Niagara-on-the-Lake is also the location of Fort George, a British-built and -occupied fort during the War of 1812. It was rebuilt for the public during the 1960s and is open during the summer months. Other key historical locations nearby include: Brock's Monument, the Laura Secord Monument and the battlefield sites of Battle of Queenston Heights, Battle of Lundy's Lane and Battle of Chippawa.
Living
The region's moderate year-round climate, in addition to its close proximity to the United States for easy road and air access to the southern U.S., makes it a popular[citation needed] retirement destination. In fact, the Niagara Peninsula has both the highest density and growth rate of seniors for any region within Ontario.[citation needed] The highest percentage of seniors to the total population is located within the city of Port Colborne.[citation needed]
During the early 1990s a major telecommunications highway between metropolitan Toronto and the U.S. was upgraded to become one of North America's fastest fiber backbones.[citation needed] It passes through the heart of the Niagara Peninsula and enters the U.S. at Buffalo, New York. This gave Niagara the advantage of having direct access to the backbone and attracting many new professional call centers.
Compared with the cities of Toronto, Hamilton and most Ontario municipalities with populations similar in size to the whole of the Niagara Peninsula, the average cost of living is very reasonable.[citation needed] The cost of housing, both owned and rented, is lower.[citation needed] The three major cities, St. Catharines, Niagara Falls and Welland are mostly urban with most needed services available locally. The remainder of the peninsula, especially to the far west and south, is either partially urban or almost entirely rural.
Centres of higher education are Brock University and Niagara College, both offering undergraduate and post-graduate studies in many disciplines.
Transportation
The major roadway bisecting the peninsula is the
All cities and some towns in the peninsula have taxi services while St. Catharines, Niagara Falls and Welland all have a local transit commission. There is also one major airbus company that services Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo airports exclusively. Most cities and some towns also have very limited inter-city bus services operated mostly by Greyhound and Coach Canada. A specialized inter-city regional bus service, owned and operated by the Regional government, began operation in late 2006 but is restricted to those requiring transport to medical appointments throughout the region and have no other means of transportation. (Other restrictions apply.) The region hopes to have a fully integrated region-level transit system by the end of the decade.
Niagara Falls, St. Catharines and Grimsby are all connected to the CN railway line. Via Rail offers limited daily commuter and weekend service between these three peninsula municipalities and Toronto and many points between. Via Rail and Amtrak also offer daily southbound service from Toronto to New York City with stops at the same stations.
Maritime infrastructure
The Niagara Region also possesses significant maritime shipping infrastructure. The region is home to Port Weller, Port Colborne, the Welland Canal, and the largest Canadian Great Lakes port, in Hamilton.
See also
References
- ^ "Imagine Niagara" (PDF). Consolidated Official Plan. Niagara Region. August 2014. p. 1.4. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
The "Niagara Peninsula" area is not a true peninsula but is a narrow neck of land stretching between Lakes Erie and Ontario.
- ^ "History". Niagara Peninsula. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
External links
| Authority control databases: National |
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