St. Catharines

The Welland Canal is a ship canal that connects Lake Erie to Lake Ontario and runs through the city of St. Catharine’s. The canal system serves to transport shipping vessels in such a way that they can ascend and descend the altitude difference caused by the Niagara Escarpment and circumvent the Niagara Falls on their journey. This vast and integral shipping route is considered to be an important factor in the economic growth of the Golden Horseshoe. With the largest population in the region, St Catharine's is a city whose history began in farming and shipping and then became the home of several large-scale manufacturing plants. Since late last century, the current economy has shifted to service industry. The city is designated by the Ontario Government’s Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe to increase jobs and residents in the area in plan that extends to 2033.
The downtown offers restaurants, café’s, shopping, and an impressive performing arts centre, which has gained a reputation for excellent theatre and world class performances. As a main hub for the surrounding towns, the city is a destination for shopping and entertainment for those all over the region and beyond.
The neighborhood of Port Dalhousie sits on Lake Ontario, with a soft sand public beach and promenade along the marina to the long pier that extends into the lake. The views of the Toronto skyline are unbeatable. The Royal Canadian Henley Regatta, a world-famous rowing championship is held here annually. Every summer, thousands of rowers and spectators gather at Henley Island and Port Dalhousie from all over the world to cheer on competitors in this prestigious championship rowing event.
St. Catharine’s neighbors the city of Thorold, which is the official home of Brock University. Nearly 20,000 students per year attend Brock at all levels, and the school also employs hundreds of staff and faculty. Many of the students and faculty live in St. Catharines throughout the school year as well as year-round. The University offers a wide selection of programs at the undergraduate and graduate level, and its competitive co-op program has one of the highest employment rates in the province after graduation.
The housing market in this and the surrounding area have been steadily on the rise for decades. Now with the recent completion of the region’s largest hospital in the west end of St. Catharine’s, housing developments and improvements to the area continue to abound.