Clarington

Clarington
Municipality (lower-tier)
Municipality of Clarington

The town centre of Bowmanville, Clarington's largest community

Coat of arms
Logo
Motto: "Wisdom Knowledge and Trust"

Location of Clarington within Durham Region.
Coordinates: 43°56′06″N 78°36′30″W / 43.93500°N 78.60833°W
Country  Canada
Province  Ontario
Region Durham Region
Established 1974
Government
 • Mayor Adrian Foster
 • Governing body Clarington Council
 • MP Erin O'Toole (Durham)
 • MPP Granville Anderson (Durham)
Area[1]
 • Total 611.3 km2 (236.0 sq mi)
Elevation 106 m (348 ft)
Population (2011)[1]
 • Total 84,548 (Ranked 60th)
 • Density 138.3/km2 (358/sq mi)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) Eastern (EDT) (UTC-4)
Website www.clarington.net

Clarington (2011 population 84,548[1]) is a municipality in Ontario, Canada in the Regional Municipality of Durham. It was created in 1973 with the merging of the Town of Bowmanville, and the townships of Clarke and Darlington. It took its present name in 1994 after having been known as the Town of Newcastle from 1974-93. The name change was made to alleviate long-standing confusion between the municipality as a whole and the included village of the same name. Bowmanville is the largest community in the municipality and is the home of the municipal offices. The name "Clarington" is a portmanteau of the names of the two historical townships, Clarke and Darlington, that made up the majority of the geographic area.

It is part of the census metropolitan area of Oshawa and forms the eastern end of the Greater Toronto Area. Major employers in Clarington include the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station, General Motors in Oshawa, and several medium-to-large sized manufacturing businesses; however, most residents travel to points west in Durham Region or to Toronto for employment.[2]

Clarington was a candidate in the race to host ITER in 2001,[3] but the Canadian bid to host the project was withdrawn two years later.

Local government

Clarington is governed by an elected municipal council consisting of a mayor, and local councillors representing each of the municipality's four wards. In addition, two regional councillors each represent a pair of wards. The mayor and the regional councillors sit on both Clarington Council and Durham Region Council.

The current council was elected on October 27, 2014, for a four-year term. The members of the council are the following:

Mayor: Adrian Foster

Members of Council:

Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board Trustees: Cathy Abraham and Sarah Bobka


Demographics

Clarington Demographics

According to the Canada 2011 Census from Statistics Canada there were 84,548 people living in Clarington, and its population in 2006 was 77,820, representing an increase of 8.6%. The 2011 Census counted 30,797 housing units and 29,880 being occupied.

2011 Census data[4] show that Clarington has one of the highest proportions of residents that have English as their mother tongue within the GTA (91.2%). French is the native language for 1.8% of the population of Clarington. No other language has more than 1% of native speakers (Dutch with 0.8% - 695 native speakers - tops the pack of immigrant languages).

Communities

A till cliff, Lake Ontario shoreline.
Bowmanville limestone quarry and cement factory.
the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station.

The municipality consists of several urban communities, including:

Rural communities include:

Canadian Tire Motorsport Park

A major attraction in the municipality is the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (formerly Mosport International Raceway), a multi-track facility located north of Bowmanville that features a 2.459-mile (4.0 km), 10-turn road course; a half-mile paved oval; a 2.4 km advanced driver and race driver training facility and a 1.4 km kart track (Mosport International Karting).

Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) was also the location of three major music festivals held between 1970 and 1980. The Strawberry Fields Festival held August 7–9, 1970 featured Alice Cooper, Jethro Tull, Grand Funk Railroad, Procol Harum, Ten Years After, Lighthouse, Crowbar and Sly and the Family Stone. John Lennon was to be the headline act, bidding to gain exposure for his peace campaign, but after months of planning he backed out due to differences with the show's promoter. However, the event still used the title of The Beatles' 1967 single of the same name. Led Zeppelin were booked to play but also backed out.

Canada Jam was held August 26, 1978 and the Heatwave Festival was held August 23, 1980.

Currently, CTMP is home to Republic Live's Boots & Hearts Music Festival (first opened summer of 2012).

Attractions

Clarington is home to five Christmas parades. It has more Santa Claus/Christmas parades than any other town-sized municipality in Canada. The parades are run in: Bowmanville, Newcastle, Courtice, Orono, and Enniskillen/Tyrone. The latter parade is organized by "T.H.E.E. Farmer's Parade of Lights", which is a special Christmas parade put on by the farmers from the communities of Tyrone, Haydon, Enniskillen and Enfield. A sixth parade in Kendal has been discussed for the future.

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Clarington, Municipality Ontario (Census Subdivision)". Census Profile, Canada 2011 Census. Statistics Canada. 8 February 2012. Retrieved 2012-02-24.
  2. ↑ Data Management Group (2006). "Municipality of Clarington, 2006 Statistics". Travel Survey Summaries for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. University of Toronto. Retrieved 25 September 2012. For trips from Clarington, 6% go to Pickering, 5% to Ajax, 12% to Whitby, 40% to Oshawa and 15% to Toronto, for a total of 78%.
  3. ↑ McCabe, Heather (August 3, 2000). "France may bid for fusion reactor". doi:10.1038/35020229. Retrieved March 13, 2009.
  4. ↑ , Census Profile for the Census Subvision of Clarington (Municipality), Ontario, Statistics Canada

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Clarington, Ontario.
 Scugog, Kawartha Lakes Cavan-Monaghan
Oshawa Port Hope
   Clarington  
Lake Ontario

Coordinates: 43°56′6″N 78°36′30″W / 43.93500°N 78.60833°W