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Front Street (Toronto)
Encyclopedia
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The street marks the rough outline of the shoreline of Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...
as it existed during the original English settlement of York
York, Upper Canada
York was the name of Old Toronto between 1793 and 1834. It was the second capital of Upper Canada.- History :The town was established in 1793 by Governor John Graves Simcoe, with a new 'Fort York' on the site of the last French 'Fort Toronto'...
, then called Palace Street (this street name in honour of the second Parliament Buildings of Upper Canada or Palace of Parliament at the corner of Front and Parliament). The current shoreline is about 800m south as much of the inner harbour was filled in the late 19th and early 20th century for industrial development.
Famous sites that are located on Front Street include the CN Tower
CN Tower
The CN Tower is a communications and observation tower in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Standing tall, it was completed in 1976, becoming the world's tallest free-standing structure and world's tallest tower at the time. It held both records for 34 years until the completion of the Burj...
, Fairmont Royal York
Fairmont Royal York
The Fairmont Royal York Hotel, formerly the Royal York Hotel and still often so called, is a large and historic hotel in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, at 100 Front Street West. Opened on June 11, 1929, the Royal York was designed by Ross and Macdonald and built by the Canadian Pacific Railway...
and Union Station
Union Station (Toronto)
Union Station is the major inter-city rail station and a major commuter rail hub in Toronto, located on Front Street West and occupying the south side of the block bounded by Bay Street and York Street in the central business district. The station building is owned by the City of Toronto, while the...
. Metro Toronto Convention Centre
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
Metro Toronto Convention Centre , located in Downtown Toronto, Ontario at 255 Front Street West, has of space. The convention centre was completed in October 1984 and is home to the 1330-seat John Bassett Theatre...
is located at 255 Front Street West. 151 Front Street West is a carrier hotel
Colocation centre
A colocation centre or colocation center , is a type of data centre where equipment space and bandwidth are available for rental to retail customers...
that houses more than 100 telecommunications companies, as well as the Toronto Internet Exchange
Toronto Internet Exchange
The Toronto Internet Exchange Community is a not-for-profit Internet Exchange Point located in a carrier hotel at 151 Front Street West in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. , TorIX had 142 members and peak traffic rates of 75 Gbit/s, making it the largest IXP in Canada...
.
Originally beginning at the foot of the Bayview extension, construction in the West Donlands has cut the street back to Cherry Street in the east and ends at Bathurst Street in the west.
Front Street extension
A proposal to extend Front Street was made in 1999 as part of the Waterfront Regeneration plan. The plan would have extended the road west to Dufferin StreetDufferin Street
Dufferin Street is a major north-south street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a concession road, two concessions west of Yonge Street. The street starts at the foot of Lake Ontario, continues north to Toronto's northern boundary with some discontinuities and continues into York Region where it...
, adding connections to the Gardiner Expressway
Gardiner Expressway
The Frederick G. Gardiner Expressway, colloquially referred to as "the Gardiner", is a municipal expressway in the Canadian province of Ontario, connecting downtown Toronto with its western suburbs...
. The proposed extension is supported by local councillor Joe Pantalone
Joe Pantalone
Joe Pantalone is a former Canadian politician, city councillor for Ward 19, one of two wards in Trinity—Spadina. He served as deputy mayor under David Miller from 2003 to 2010...
but is opposed by local residents who fear an influx of traffic into the Parkdale
Parkdale, Toronto
Parkdale is a neighbourhood and former village in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, west of downtown. The neighbourhood is bounded on the west by Roncesvalles Avenue, on the north by Queen Street. It is bounded on the east by Dufferin Street from Queen Street south, and on the south by Lake Ontario...
area.
Two local entrepreneurs Fred Dominelli
Fred Dominelli
Fred Dominelli is a municipal politician in Toronto, Ontario.On May 22, 2003, City Council appointed Dominelli as an interim councillor to fill the vacancy in Ward 17 that was created when Betty Disero resigned her seat. Dominelli served as councillor until the 2003 municipal election in November,...
and Dale Martin purchased some land on the extension's route for $280,000 and stand to make a profit of nearly $7 million which is now the cost required to expropriate the land. The entire cost of the extension, once estimated at $120 million, has now grown to $245 million.
On May 30, 2008, Toronto Mayor David Miller
David Miller (Canadian politician)
David Raymond Miller is a Canadian politician. He was the 63rd Mayor of Toronto and the second since the 1998 amalgamation. He was elected to the position in 2003 for a three-year term and re-elected in 2006 for a four-year term...
announced that the Front Street extension project would be cancelled as part of a waterfront development plan.
Crossroad connections
- Bayview AvenueBayview AvenueBayview Avenue is a major north-south route in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario. North of Toronto, in York Region, Bayview is also designated as York Regional Road 34.-History:...
- Parliament Street
- Sherbourne Street
- Jarvis StreetJarvis StreetJarvis Street is a north-south thoroughfare in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, passing through some of the oldest developed areas in the city. Its alignment extends from Bloor Street in the north to Queens Quay East in the south. South of Front Street, it continues as Lower Jarvis Street...
- Yonge StreetYonge StreetYonge Street is a major arterial route connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. It was formerly listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest street in the world at , and the construction of Yonge Street is designated an "Event of...
- Bay StreetBay StreetBay Street, originally known as Bear Street, is a major thoroughfare in Downtown Toronto. It is the centre of Toronto's Financial District and is often used by metonymy to refer to Canada's financial industry since succeeding Montreal's St. James Street in that role in the 1970s...
- York Street
- Spadina AvenueSpadina AvenueSpadina Avenue is one of the most prominent streets in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Running through the western section of downtown, the road has a very different character in different neighbourhoods....
- Bathurst Street