Regional Municipality of Waterloo
Encyclopedia
The Regional Municipality of Waterloo is a regional municipality
Regional municipality
A regional municipality is a type of Canadian municipal government similar to and at the same municipal government level as a county, although the specific structure and servicing responsibilities may vary from place to place...
located in Southern
Southern Ontario
Southern Ontario is a region of the province of Ontario, Canada that lies south of the French River and Algonquin Park. Depending on the inclusion of the Parry Sound and Muskoka districts, its surface area would cover between 14 to 15% of the province. It is the southernmost region of...
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...
. It consists of the cities of Kitchener
Kitchener, Ontario
The City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census...
, Cambridge
Cambridge, Ontario
Cambridge is a city located in Southern Ontario at the confluence of the Grand and Speed rivers in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgamation of the City of Galt, the towns of Preston and Hespeler, and the hamlet of Blair.Galt covers the largest portion of...
, and Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It is the smallest of the three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, and is adjacent to the city of Kitchener....
, and the townships of Wellesley
Wellesley, Ontario
The Township of Wellesley is the rural, north-western township of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. It encompasses 277.84 km2 and had a population of 9,789 in the Canada 2006 Census.-Communities:...
, Woolwich
Woolwich, Ontario
The Township of Woolwich is a rural township in Ontario, Canada. It is part of the Region of Waterloo, immediately to the north and east of the City of Waterloo. Its 2006 census population was 19,658.-Communities:*Bloomingdale*Breslau*Conestogo*Elmira...
, Wilmot
Wilmot, Ontario
The Township of Wilmot is a rural township in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in southwestern Ontario, Canada. Its 2006 Census population was 17,097.-Communities:*Baden* Mannheim*New Dundee*New Hamburg* Petersburg* Phillipsburg*St...
, and North Dumfries
North Dumfries, Ontario
The Township of North Dumfries is a rural township in Ontario, Canada, part of the Region of Waterloo. Its 2006 Census population was 9,063.The township includes the communities of Ayr, Branchton, Clyde, Reidsville and Roseville.-History:...
. It is often referred to as the Region of Waterloo or just Waterloo Region. The Region is 1,382 square kilometres in size and its regional seat of government is in Kitchener
Kitchener, Ontario
The City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census...
. The population estimate for the Kitchener CMA (which excludes the Townships of Wellesley and Wilmot) as of 2010 is 492,390. The estimated population for the region was 534,900 as of 2009. The difference in estimates results primarily from the census undercount of temporary residents such as students.
History
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the area was inhabited by the Iroquoian speaking AttawandaronNeutral Nation
The Neutrals, also known as the Attawandaron, were an Iroquoian nation of North American native people who lived near the shores of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie.-Territory:...
nation.
Historical accounts differ on exactly how the Attawandaron tribe was wiped out, but it is generally agreed that the Seneca and the Mohawk tribes of the Six Nations destroyed the smaller Attawandaron tribe while severely crippling the Huron in the 17th century. After the invasion of the Six Nations into the Grand River Valley, the Neutral tribe ceased to have any political existence. Any dispersed survivors were taken captive or escaped to other tribes such as the Mississaugas and were assimilated in that culture. There are no distinct Attawandarons today.
In 1784, the British government granted the Grand River
Grand River (Ontario)
The Grand River is a large river in southwestern Ontario, Canada. From its source, it flows south through Grand Valley, Fergus, Elora, Waterloo, Kitchener, Cambridge, Paris, Brantford, Caledonia, and Cayuga before emptying into the north shore of Lake Erie south of Dunnville at Port Maitland...
Valley to the Iroquois
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
, who had supported the Loyalists in the American War of Independence, to compensate them for the loss of their land in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The Iroquois settled in the lower Grand River Valley (now The County of Brant), and sold parts of the land which was part of Waterloo Township to Colonel Richard Beasley, a United Empire Loyalist. Another developer was William Dickson who, in 1816, came into sole possession of 90000 acres (364.2 km²) of land along the Grand River that was later to make up North and South Dumfries Townships.
North and South Dumfries Townships Area Settlement
It was Dickson's intention to divide the land into smaller lots that would be sold primarily to the Scottish settlers that he hoped to attract to Canada. In the company of Absalom Shade, Dickson immediately toured his new lands with the intention of developing a town site that would serve as the focal point for his attempts to populate the countryside. They chose the site where Mill Creek flows into the Grand River and in 1816 the settlement of Shade's Mills was born. The new settlement grew slowly but by 1825, though still very small, was the largest settlement in the area and was important enough to obtain a post office. Dickson decided that a new name was needed for the Post Office and consequently the settlement and he chose Galt in honour of the Scottish novelist and Commissioner of the Canada Company, John Galt. The settlers resisted the introduction of the new name preferring the more familiar Shade's Mills. However, after Galt visited Dickson in the settlement in 1827 the name Galt received more widespread acceptance. In its early days Galt was an agricultural community serving the needs of the farmers in the surrounding countryside. By the late 1830s, however, the settlement began to develop an industrial capacity and reputation for quality products that in later years earned the town the nickname "The Manchester of Canada". Galt was the largest and most important town in the area until the beginning of the 20th century when it was finally overtaken by Kitchener.Waterloo Township Area Settlement
The land owned by Beasley appealed to a particular group of Pennsylvania German MennoniteMennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
farmers. They pooled resources to purchase all of the unsold land from Beasley, forming the German Company Tract and dividing the lands into 128 farms of 18,100 square metres and 32 farms of 12,000 square metres each for distribution. By the 1840s, the presence of the German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
-speaking Mennonite
Mennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
s made the area a popular choice for German settlers from Europe. These Germans founded their own communities in the south of the area settled by the Mennonites, the largest being the town of Berlin (changed to Kitchener
Berlin to Kitchener name change
Through the latter half of the 19th century and into the first decade of the 20th, the City of Berlin, Ontario, Canada, was a bustling industrial centre celebrating its German heritage...
, named for Lord Kitchener, due to anti-German sentiments during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
).
Restructuring
The Waterloo region remained predominantly German-speaking until the early 20th century, and its German heritage is reflected in the region’s large Lutheran community and the annual Kitchener-Waterloo OktoberfestOktoberfest
Oktoberfest, or Wiesn, is a 16–18 day beer festival held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, running from late September to the first weekend in October. It is one of the most famous events in Germany and is the world's largest fair, with more than 5 million people attending every year. The...
.
There are still traditional Mennonite communities located north of Kitchener-Waterloo. While the most famous is St. Jacobs
St. Jacobs, Ontario
The community of St. Jacobs is located in southwest Ontario, just north of Waterloo in Woolwich Township, Waterloo Region. It is a popular location for tourism, due to its Mennonite heritage and retail focus. The Conestogo River, which powered the village's original gristmill, runs through the...
, with its well-known thrice-weekly outdoor market, the community of Linwood
Linwood
Linwood is a small town in Renfrewshire, Scotland, 14 miles south-west of Glasgow.Linwood is a commuter town, with proximity to Glasgow International Airport and the M8 motorway to Glasgow and Edinburgh...
has attracted increased tourism volume in recent years due to its highly authentic mennonite lifestyle.
In 1973, the regional municipality style of government was imposed on the county. In that major reorganization, the fifteen towns and townships of the county were reduced to just seven in the new Region of Waterloo. The new city of Cambridge
Cambridge, Ontario
Cambridge is a city located in Southern Ontario at the confluence of the Grand and Speed rivers in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgamation of the City of Galt, the towns of Preston and Hespeler, and the hamlet of Blair.Galt covers the largest portion of...
was created through the merger of the city of Galt, the towns of Preston and Hespeler, the village of Blair and various parcels of township land. One township vanished when the former Waterloo Township was divided among Woolwich Township and the three cities of Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge. The settlement of Erbsville was annexed to the city of Waterloo and the settlement of Freeport was annexed to Kitchener. The independent village of Bridgeport was also annexed to Kitchener and this created many hard feelings both in Bridgeport (which had once upon a time been larger than Kitchener, but failed to grow when the railways passed it by) and also in the city of Waterloo, where Bridgeport Road is a major thoroughfare terminating in the village centre. The former county government was given broader powers as a regional municipality
Regional municipality
A regional municipality is a type of Canadian municipal government similar to and at the same municipal government level as a county, although the specific structure and servicing responsibilities may vary from place to place...
.
Further municipal amalgamation began discussions in the 1990s, with little progress. In late 2005, Kitchener’s city council voted to visit the subject again, with the possibility of reducing the seven constituent municipalities into one or more cities. A new proposal in 2010 would study only the merger of Kitchener and Waterloo, with a public referendum on whether the idea should be looked into.
Government
The region's governing body is the 16-member Waterloo Regional council. The council consists of the regional chair, the mayors of the seven cities and townships, plus four additional councillors from Kitchener and two additional councillors each from both Cambridge and Waterloo.Ken Seiling has been the regional chair since 1985. Starting with the 1997 election, he has been directly elected by the citizens of Waterloo Region. Prior to 1997, the chair was appointed by the elected councillors. Of the nine regional municipalities in Ontario, Waterloo Region and Halton are the only ones with an elected chair.
| Regional Chair | Ken Seiling |
|---|---|
| City of Cambridge | Doug Craig (Mayor), Jane Brewer, Claudette Millar |
| City of Kitchener | Carl Zehr (Mayor), Tom Galloway, Jean Haalboom, Geoff Lorentz, Jim Wideman |
| City of Waterloo | Brenda Halloran (Mayor), Jane Mitchell, Sean Strickland |
| Township of Woolwich | Todd Cowan (Mayor) |
| Township of Wellesley | Ross Kelterborn (Mayor) |
| Township of Wilmot | Les Armstrong (Mayor) |
| Township of North Dumfries | Rob Deutschmann (Mayor) |
Past Regional Chairs:
- Jack A. Young, first Chairman of the Region
- Robert Milligan
Communities
| Census Subdivision | Population (2006 census) |
|---|---|
| Kitchener Kitchener, Ontario The City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census... |
204,668 |
| Cambridge Cambridge, Ontario Cambridge is a city located in Southern Ontario at the confluence of the Grand and Speed rivers in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgamation of the City of Galt, the towns of Preston and Hespeler, and the hamlet of Blair.Galt covers the largest portion of... |
120,371 |
| Waterloo Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It is the smallest of the three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, and is adjacent to the city of Kitchener.... |
97,475 |
| Woolwich Woolwich, Ontario The Township of Woolwich is a rural township in Ontario, Canada. It is part of the Region of Waterloo, immediately to the north and east of the City of Waterloo. Its 2006 census population was 19,658.-Communities:*Bloomingdale*Breslau*Conestogo*Elmira... |
19,658 |
| Wilmot Wilmot, Ontario The Township of Wilmot is a rural township in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in southwestern Ontario, Canada. Its 2006 Census population was 17,097.-Communities:*Baden* Mannheim*New Dundee*New Hamburg* Petersburg* Phillipsburg*St... |
17,097 |
| Wellesley Wellesley, Ontario The Township of Wellesley is the rural, north-western township of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. It encompasses 277.84 km2 and had a population of 9,789 in the Canada 2006 Census.-Communities:... |
9,789 |
| North Dumfries North Dumfries, Ontario The Township of North Dumfries is a rural township in Ontario, Canada, part of the Region of Waterloo. Its 2006 Census population was 9,063.The township includes the communities of Ayr, Branchton, Clyde, Reidsville and Roseville.-History:... |
9,063 |
Within the townships are many communities. Some were once independent and had their own reeves and councils but lost this status in amalgamation. These communities include: Ayr
Ayr, Ontario
The village of Ayr, Ontario, Canada is a settlement located within the Township of North Dumfries in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in Southwestern Ontario...
, Baden
Baden, Ontario
Baden is a community in Township of Wilmot, Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It has a population of less than 1000 and was named after Baden-Baden in Germany...
, Bloomingdale, Breslau
Breslau, Ontario
Breslau is a community located within the township of Woolwich, part of the Waterloo Regional Municipality in Ontario Canada. Separated from the city of Kitchener by the Grand River, Breslau is named after the former German city of Breslau, now Wrocław, capital of Poland's Lower Silesia.It is...
, Conestogo
Conestogo, Ontario
Conestogo is a community in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the township of Woolwich in Waterloo Region.The community is located at the junction of the Grand and Conestogo Rivers....
, Doon, Elmira
Elmira, Ontario
The town of Elmira in Ontario, Canada is the largest community within the Township of Woolwich in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo and is located 15 km to the north of the city of Waterloo.-History:...
, Freeport, Heidelberg, Mannheim, Maryhill
Maryhill, Ontario
Maryhill is a small Canadian hamlet in Ontario near Guelph. Its main feature is the gothic St. Boniface Roman Catholic Church built in the late 1870s, which is visible from miles around. At its side is a cemetery with dozens of old stones, an iron gate, and a stone wall. Across the street is St....
, New Dundee
New Dundee, Ontario
New Dundee is a small community of about 1,500 people in the Township of Wilmot, Ontario, Canada, south-west of Kitchener.It is home to the Dundee Country Club golf course and the New Dundee Emporium, founded in 1887. Many small businesses are located within the community on Alder Lake. Some...
, New Hamburg
New Hamburg, Ontario
New Hamburg is a community of approximately 8,739 in Wilmot Township, a rural township of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario...
, Petersberg, Roseville
Roseville, Ontario
Roseville is a community in Ontario, Canada located at . It is within the rural township of North Dumfries, which forms part of the Region of Waterloo, and is located between Ayr, Kitchener & Highway 401....
, St. Agatha, St. Jacobs
St. Jacobs, Ontario
The community of St. Jacobs is located in southwest Ontario, just north of Waterloo in Woolwich Township, Waterloo Region. It is a popular location for tourism, due to its Mennonite heritage and retail focus. The Conestogo River, which powered the village's original gristmill, runs through the...
, Wellesley, West Montrose
West Montrose, Ontario
West Montrose is a village in the Township of Woolwich in the Region of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.-Location:West Montrose straddles the Grand River, north of the City of Waterloo. Together with nearby St...
, and Winterbourne
Winterbourne, Ontario
Winterbourne is a small community in the township of Woolwich, Ontario. It is located just northeast of the city of Waterloo.-Geography:Cox Creek flows through the village. The village is close to the Grand River.-Transportation:...
.
Demographics
The estimated population of Waterloo Region, including full-time university and college students, is 534,900 as of December 31, 2009. Since 1993, the region's population has grown on average 1.9 per cent per year. By 2031, the Region's population is expected to grow to 729,000.The population is increasingly diverse. Immigrants accounted for 22.3% of the region's total population according to the 2006 census.
This, among other factors, has made new residential construction rates very high; concerns about urban sprawl
Urban sprawl
Urban sprawl, also known as suburban sprawl, is a multifaceted concept, which includes the spreading outwards of a city and its suburbs to its outskirts to low-density and auto-dependent development on rural land, high segregation of uses Urban sprawl, also known as suburban sprawl, is a...
, with all its effects, continue to be raised. Because of this spur in population, Waterloo is one of the fastest growing regions in Southwestern Ontario
Southwestern Ontario
Southwestern Ontario is a subregion of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario, centred on the city of London. It extends north to south from the Bruce Peninsula on Lake Huron to the Lake Erie shoreline, and east to south-west roughly from Guelph to Windsor. The region had a population...
.
Education
Waterloo Region is home to the University of WaterlooUniversity of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
, Wilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University is a university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It also has campuses in Brantford, Ontario, Kitchener, Ontario and Toronto, Ontario and a future proposed campus in Milton, Ontario. It is named in honour of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, the seventh Prime Minister of Canada....
, and Conestoga College
Conestoga College
The Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning is a public college based in Kitchener, Ontario in Canada.-History:The College was founded in 1967 as the Conestoga College of Applied Arts and Technology, one of many such institutions established in that time by the Ontario...
. For a list of all elementary and secondary schools in the area, see the List of Waterloo Region, Ontario schools.
Business
Waterloo Region is expanding in both commercial and population terms. The presence of two universities, the University of WaterlooUniversity of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
and Wilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University is a university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It also has campuses in Brantford, Ontario, Kitchener, Ontario and Toronto, Ontario and a future proposed campus in Milton, Ontario. It is named in honour of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, the seventh Prime Minister of Canada....
, acts as a catalyst for growth in the high-tech area.
Major employers in the region
- Research In MotionResearch In MotionResearch In Motion Limited or RIM is a Canadian multinational telecommunications company headquartered in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada that designs, manufactures and markets wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market...
(8,000 employees ) - Waterloo Region District School BoardWaterloo Region District School BoardWaterloo Region District School Board is the public school board for the Region of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. It operates 103 elementary schools, 16 secondary schools, and other facilities, serving 60,000 students in the Region of Waterloo. It has approximately 5500 staff and a budget of $675...
(5,000 employees) - Toyota Motor Manufacturing CanadaToyota Motor Manufacturing CanadaToyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc. is a Canadian automotive manufacturer and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation...
(4,300 employees) - University of WaterlooUniversity of WaterlooThe University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
(3,500 employees) - Manulife FinancialManulife FinancialManulife Financial Corporation , is a Canadian insurance company and financial services provider. Manulife Financial's global head office is located in Toronto, Canada and the Company has operations in 21 countries and territories worldwide.The Company operates in Canada and Asia through the brand...
(3,800 employees) - Sun Life FinancialSun Life FinancialSun Life Financial Inc. is an international financial services company known primarily as a life insurance company. Based in Toronto, Canada, Sun Life and its partners provide insurance, retirement and investment solutions for individuals and businesses around the world including Canada, the United...
(3,300 employees) - Grand River HospitalGrand River HospitalGrand River Hospital is a 495-bed hospital serving Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada and surrounding communities, primarily through the K-W Health Centre and the Freeport Health Centre, both located in Kitchener...
(2,200 employees) - ATS Automation Tooling SystemsATS Automation Tooling SystemsATS Automation Tooling Systems is a Cambridge, Ontario based Canadian company which designs and builds factory automation solutions. They have designed and built more than 10,000 automation systems in the areas of medical devices, pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, semiconductor, fiber optics,...
(1,800 employees) - City of Kitchener (1,700 employees)
Services
Over time, many municipal services have come under the jurisdiction of the regional government. These include policePolice
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
, emergency medical services
Emergency medical services
Emergency medical services are a type of emergency service dedicated to providing out-of-hospital acute medical care and/or transport to definitive care, to patients with illnesses and injuries which the patient, or the medical practitioner, believes constitutes a medical emergency...
, waste management
Waste management
Waste management is the collection, transport, processing or disposal,managing and monitoring of waste materials. The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and the process is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics...
, licensing enforcement and recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
, and the public transit
Grand River Transit
Grand River Transit, or GRT, is the public transport operator for the Region of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It operates daily bus services in the region, primarily in the cities of Kitchener, Waterloo, and Cambridge....
system. The main administration is run from the seat in Kitchener; various service offices are found in many parts of the Region. From a geographically central location in north Cambridge, maintenance operations and the police headquarters are able to reach anywhere in their service area.
Transport
Public transport is provided by Grand River TransitGrand River Transit
Grand River Transit, or GRT, is the public transport operator for the Region of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It operates daily bus services in the region, primarily in the cities of Kitchener, Waterloo, and Cambridge....
, created from amalgamation of the former Cambridge Transit and Kitchener Transit systems. The Region also owns and operates the Region of Waterloo International Airport
Region of Waterloo International Airport
Region of Waterloo International Airport or Kitchener/Waterloo Airport is situated near Breslau, in Woolwich Township, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada....
, near Breslau
Breslau, Ontario
Breslau is a community located within the township of Woolwich, part of the Waterloo Regional Municipality in Ontario Canada. Separated from the city of Kitchener by the Grand River, Breslau is named after the former German city of Breslau, now Wrocław, capital of Poland's Lower Silesia.It is...
. The airport is the 20th busiest in Canada as of December 2010 and underwent a major expansion in 2003. According to GO Transit's
GO Transit
GO Transit is an inter-regional public transit system in Southern Ontario, Canada. It primarily serves the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area conurbation, with operations extending to several communities beyond the GTHA proper in the Greater Golden Horseshoe...
website, the agency is planning to expand its rail services to the region by the end of 2011. The plan calls for extending its Georgetown line along existing CN track with stations in Acton, Guelph (existing station), Breslau and Kitchener.)
The Region is in the planning stages of a rapid transit
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
link system between Waterloo, Kitchener, and Cambridge. Regional council has approved the initiative and the Region is currently in discussions with Provincial and Federal governments to obtain funding for the $790 million project. Light Rail Transit
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
has been short-listed as the technology for the new rapid transit system. The Region has decided upon a Staged approach for building Light Rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
from Conestoga Mall to Fairview Park Mall, passing through Uptown Waterloo and Downtown Kitchener on the way. Adapted Bus Rapid Transit
Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. Often this is achieved by making improvements to existing infrastructure, vehicles and scheduling...
is to be built initially from Fairview Park Mall to the Ainslie St. Transit Terminal
Ainslie St. Transit Terminal
Ainslie St. Transit Terminal is the main hub for local Grand River Transit bus services in Cambridge, Ontario. It was built as a replacement for the Mill Street Terminal, in response to a 1988 report, commissioned by the city, which concluded that the existing facilities were totally inadequate and...
in Cambridge utilizing shoulder bypass lanes along highways 8 and 401 during heavy traffic where speeds are 40 km/h or less. The rapid transit decision will be made in June 2011.
A unique innovation of the area is that it is home to Ontario's first CarSharing organization, Grand River CarShare. CarShare provides access to vehicles on a self serve pay per use basis, located in many neighbourhoods around the Region. It is meant to complement other sustainable modes of transportation such as public transit, biking, carpooling, and acts as a transition out of owning a vehicle. Grand River CarShare has 12 vehicles stationed in the Region of Waterloo.
Notable residents
- Rich Beddoe, is the current drummer for the Canadian Rock band Finger ElevenFinger ElevenFinger Eleven is a Canadian rock band from Burlington, Ontario, formed in 1989. They have currently released five studio albums, with their album The Greyest of Blue Skies bringing them into the mainstream...
. He is from Cambridge, OntarioCambridge, OntarioCambridge is a city located in Southern Ontario at the confluence of the Grand and Speed rivers in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgamation of the City of Galt, the towns of Preston and Hespeler, and the hamlet of Blair.Galt covers the largest portion of...
. - Tim BrentTim BrentTim Brent is a Canadian professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League .-Playing career:...
is a hockey player from Cambridge, OntarioCambridge, OntarioCambridge is a city located in Southern Ontario at the confluence of the Grand and Speed rivers in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgamation of the City of Galt, the towns of Preston and Hespeler, and the hamlet of Blair.Galt covers the largest portion of...
. - Kitchener is the birthplace of William Lyon Mackenzie KingWilliam Lyon Mackenzie KingWilliam Lyon Mackenzie King, PC, OM, CMG was the dominant Canadian political leader from the 1920s through the 1940s. He served as the tenth Prime Minister of Canada from December 29, 1921 to June 28, 1926; from September 25, 1926 to August 7, 1930; and from October 23, 1935 to November 15, 1948...
, Canada’s longest serving prime minister. His boyhood home is now Woodside National Historic Site. - Joseph E. SeagramJoseph E. SeagramJoseph Emm Seagram was a British Canadian distillery founder, politician, philanthropist, and major owner of thoroughbred racehorses....
a partner in 1869 and sole owner in 1883, in the company later known as SeagramSeagramThe Seagram Company Ltd. was a large corporation headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that was the largest distiller of alcoholic beverages in the world. Toward the end of its independent existence it also controlled various entertainment and other business ventures...
. - Lois MaxwellLois MaxwellLois Maxwell was a Canadian actress.Maxwell began her film career in the late 1940s, and won a Golden Globe Award for the New Actress of the Year for her performance in That Hagen Girl...
, Golden Globe winning actress, and the original Miss MoneypennyMiss MoneypennyJane Moneypenny, better known as Miss Moneypenny, is a fictional character in the James Bond novels and films. She is secretary to M, who is Bond's boss and head of the British Secret Service...
in the James BondJames BondJames Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
movies, was born in Kitchener. - Actor Jeremy Ratchford from Cold Case grew up in Kitchener
- Actor David Orth, formerly of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World grew up in Kitchener.
- Artist Homer WatsonHomer WatsonHomer Ransford Watson was a Canadian landscape painter. He was "the man who first saw Canada as Canada, rather than as dreamy blurred pastiches of European painting," according to J. Russell Harper, a former curator of Canadian art at the National Gallery of Canada...
, internationally renowned landscape artist from Kitchener. - Dave SimDave SimDavid Victor Sim is an award-winning Canadian comic book writer and artist.A pioneer of self-published comics and creators' rights, Sim is best known as the creator of Cerebus the Aardvark, a comic book published from 1977 to 2004, which chronicles its main character in a 6,000-page self-contained...
, creator of the comic book Cerebus the AardvarkCerebus the AardvarkCerebus the Aardvark, or simply Cerebus , is an independent comic book, written and illustrated by Canadian artist Dave Sim, with backgrounds by fellow Canadian Gerhard. Cerebus ran for 300 issues from December 1977 to 2004, and was over 6000 pages long, the longest-running original...
, has lived in Kitchener since he was two years old. - Mike LazaridisMike LazaridisMihalis "Mike" Lazaridis , OC, O.Ont is a Greek Canadian businessman. He is the founder and co-CEO of Research In Motion , which created and manufactures the BlackBerry wireless handheld device. He is also a former chancellor of the University of Waterloo, and an Officer of the Order of Canada...
, founder of Research In MotionResearch In MotionResearch In Motion Limited or RIM is a Canadian multinational telecommunications company headquartered in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada that designs, manufactures and markets wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market...
came as a student to attend the University of WaterlooUniversity of WaterlooThe University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
. - Boxer Lennox LewisLennox LewisLennox Claudius Lewis, CM, CBE is a retired boxer and the most recent British undisputed world heavyweight champion. He holds dual British and Canadian citizenship...
lived from the age of 12, and began his boxing career in Kitchener. He maintains a home in Kitchener. - Former hockeyIce hockeyIce hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
all-star Scott StevensScott StevensRonald Scott Stevens is a retired professional ice hockey defenceman. Stevens played 22 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Washington Capitals, St. Louis Blues, and the New Jersey Devils...
of the New Jersey DevilsNew Jersey DevilsThe New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey, United States. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
was born in Kitchener and played for the Kitchener RangersKitchener RangersThe Kitchener Rangers are a major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League that have called Kitchener, Ontario, Canada their home since 1963. The Rangers are a publicly owned hockey team, governed by a 40-person Board of Directors made up of season ticket subscribers. The Rangers hosted...
. He also maintains a home there. - Author David Chilton, who wrote the best-selling Canadian book to date, a financial planning guide, The Wealthy BarberThe Wealthy BarberThe Wealthy Barber is a personal finance book by David Chilton. The book is structured around a story of three people in their late 20s visiting Roy, the title character, for lessons in financial planning. Each chapter of the book describes a different visit and a different element of financial...
, was born in KitchenerKitchener, OntarioThe City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census...
and lives in the region. - Hockey player Todd BertuzziTodd BertuzziTodd Bertuzzi is a Canadian professional ice hockey winger with the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League...
of the Detroit Red WingsDetroit Red WingsThe Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
makes his offseason home in Kitchener. - Former hockey player Paul CoffeyPaul CoffeyPaul Douglas Coffey is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey defenceman in the National Hockey League. Known for his speed and scoring prowess, Coffey ranks second all-time among NHL defencemen in career goals, assists, and points, behind Ray Bourque.-Playing career:Coffey was drafted 6th...
is a Kitchener Rangers alumnus and owns and operates Paul Coffey Nissan in Kitchener.