St. Catharines

St. Catharines is the most populous city in Canada's Niagara Region and the 8th-largest urban area in the province of Ontario. As of 2021, St. Catharines has an area of 96.2 square kilometres (37.1 mi2) and 136,803 residents. It lies in Southern Ontario, 51 kilometres (32 mi) south of Toronto across Lake Ontario, and 19 kilometres (12 mi) inland from the international boundary with the United States along the Niagara River. It is the northern entrance of the Welland Canal. St. Catharines carries the official nickname "The Garden City" due to its 4 square kilometres (1.5 mi2) of parks, gardens, and trails. St. Catharines is between the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) and the Canada–U.S. border at Fort Erie. Manufacturing was the city's dominant industry, as noted by the heraldic motto, "Industry and Liberality". General Motors of Canada, Ltd., the Canadian subsidiary of General Motors, was the city's largest employer, a distinction now held by the District School Board of Niagara. THK Rhythm Automotive, formerly TRW, operates a plant in the city, although in recent years, employment there has shifted from heavy industry and manufacturing to services. St. Catharines lies on one of the main telecommunications backbones between Canada and the United States. As a result, a number of call centres operate in the city. It is designated an Urban Growth Centre by the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, intended to achieve a minimum density target of 150 jobs and residents combined per hectare by 2032 or earlier. St. Catharines is also home to Brock University, a campus of Trillium College, and a university prep school Ridley College.