CityPlace, Toronto facts for kids

Quick facts for kids CityPlace
Neighbourhood
View of CityPlace with CN Tower in the centre background
Vicinity
CityPlace Location in Toronto
Country	Canada
Province	Ontario
City	Toronto

CityPlace is a modern neighbourhood in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It's built on what used to be old train yards. When it's all finished, CityPlace will be the biggest housing project ever built in Toronto!

This area is surrounded by Bathurst Street to the west and Lake Shore Boulevard to the south. To the north is Front Street, and to the east are Blue Jays Way and the Rogers Centre. CityPlace is also super close to King Street West and Liberty Village. You can even walk to Toronto's main financial area in about 10 to 20 minutes. The neighbourhood is also home to Canoe Landing Park, which was designed by the famous Canadian writer and artist Douglas Coupland.

Discovering CityPlace's Past

How CityPlace Began

CityPlace was built on land that used to be a big train yard for the Canadian National Railway. This area was part of the larger "Railway Lands" near the waterfront.

Back in 1965, the Canadian National Railway started moving its train operations. They wanted to use this downtown land for new projects. One idea was to build a huge tower to show off Canadian industry. This idea became the CN Tower in the 1970s.

Railway Lands west of the CN Tower in 1999, before CityPlace was built.

Later, in the 1980s, more development happened. The Metro Toronto Convention Centre opened in 1984. This brought new attention to the area.

Building a New Community

With more visitors coming, the City of Toronto made a new plan for this area. The last train operations moved out, making the land ready for building. Construction began with the SkyDome, which was finished in 1989.

At the same time, new roads, parks, and other important structures started to appear. The project was going well until a tough time for the economy in the early 1990s. Many building plans were put on hold. The land stayed empty until 1997, when work began on the Air Canada Centre arena.

The Final Phase of Building

Construction in CityPlace in 2008. CityPlace finished its building phases in the early 21st century.

This led to the third and final part of the project, called CityPlace. The plan was to build a mix of homes, shops, and businesses. Concord Adex Developments bought the land in 1997. This company also helped build a big area in Vancouver that used to be part of Expo 86.

One of the last parts of CityPlace to be built is called Block 31. This area will have two schools and a new community centre. The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) will both use these new spaces. The schools will share a gym and a theatre. This helps save space and create more green areas.

The schools are named Jean Lumb Public School and Bishop MacDonell Catholic School. Jean Lumb was the first Chinese Canadian woman to receive the Order of Canada for her community work. Alexander Macdonell was the first bishop of Kingston in Upper Canada.

CityPlace by the Numbers

CityPlace is a huge project!

• It covers about 18 hectares (that's like 44 football fields!).
• It includes an 8-hectare community park.
• When finished, it will have 7,500 homes.
• The homes are in 10 main areas, called street blocks. Each block has several tall buildings and its own shared facilities.
• Block 9 is home to the 3.24-hectare Canoe Landing Park.
• So far, over 5,000 homes have been built!

Tall Buildings in CityPlace

CityPlace has many tall buildings. Here are some of the notable ones:

Name	Height ft	Floors	Completed	Address	Image
Apex C	273 ft (83.2 m)	28	2003	381 Front Street West
Apex D	371	36	2003	397 Front Street West
Concord Canada House A		59	2021	23 Spadina Avenue
Concord Canada House B		69	2021
Exchange		8	2018	90 Queens Wharf Road
Forward		30	2018	70 Queens Wharf Road
Gallery	108.3 ft (33.0 m)	8	2007 July	15 Brunel Court
Harbourview Estates A	402 ft (122.5 m)	40	2005	10 Navy Wharf Court
Harbourview Estates B	503 ft (153.3 m)	49	2005	35 Mariner Terrace
Harbourview Estates C	278 ft (84.7 m)	26	2005	3 Navy Wharf Court
Harbourview Estates D	378 ft (115.2 m)	36	2005	5 Mariner Terrace
Harbourview Estates Loft	85.3 ft (26.0 m)	8	2005	9 Spadina Avenue
Luna	229.7 ft (70.0 m)	22	2010 April	8 Telegram Mews
Luna Vista	413 ft (125.9 m)	38	2010 April	25 Capreol Court
Matrix A	320 ft (97.5 m)	32	2002	361 Front Street West
Matrix B	274 ft (83.5 m)	28	2002	373 Front Street West
Montage	476 ft (145.1 m)	47	2009 February	25 Telegram Mews
N	425 ft (129.5 m)	41	2007 August	15 Fort York Boulevard
Neo	210 ft (64.0 m)	16	2008 October	4K Spadina Avenue
Newton		21	2018	80 Queens Wharf Road
Optima	357.6 ft (109.0 m)	34	2003	81 Navy Wharf Court
Panorama	315 ft (96.0 m)	28	2010 April	38 Dan Leckie Way
Parade 1	366 ft (111.6 m)	39	2013	15 Iceboat Terrace / 10 Caperol Court
Parade 2	418 ft (127.4 m)	44	2012 November	21 Iceboat Terrace / 151 Dan Leckie Way
Quartz		41	2015	75 Queens Wharf Road
Spectra		39	2015	85 Queens Wharf Road
The LakeFront		41	2020	17 Bathurst Street, Toronto
The LakeShore		41	2020	19 Bathurst Street, Toronto
West One	486 ft (148.1 m)	49	2007 October	11 Brunel Court
Jean Lumb Public School (TDSB) Bishop Macdonell Catholic Elementary School (TCDSB)		3	2019 September	20 Brunel Court

Getting Around CityPlace

Southbound streetcars from the 510 Spadina line entering CityPlace.

CityPlace is easy to get to because it's located between the Gardiner Expressway and Union Station. The area also has great public transit. You can use the Toronto Transit Commission's streetcar lines: the 509 Harbourfront, 510 Spadina, and 511 Bathurst routes.

There are also plans for a future streetcar route along Fort York Boulevard, which is the main road through CityPlace.

A special footbridge, called Puente de Luz (which means Bridge of Light), connects CityPlace to Front Street. It goes over the train tracks and is for people walking and biking. It opened in October 2012. After a short closure for safety checks, it reopened in December 2012. This 100-meter bridge was designed by a sculptor from Chile named Francisco Gazitua.

Images for kids

• 

  View of CityPlace with CN Tower in the centre background

• 

  Vicinity