Williamsburg MLS® Listings

Like many areas around Ontario, Whitby was named after a British town (Whitby in Yorkshire, England) back in the early 18th Century. The attraction of the area to the British was the beautiful harbour on Lake Ontario., the potential for trade via shipping was enticing. It was not long before a road was constructed that began at Whitby’s harbour and continued to Georgian Bay and Lake Simcoe (1840). The new road brought a great deal of trade and continuous new settlers, which flourished the area with activity. In 1870, the Port Whitby and Port Perry Railway was developed and built and now formed a tight bond between Whitby harbour and Port Perry (with later expansions that drew in Lindsay). Even through the structuring period of time when Durham Region was being created and boundaries of municipalities were being drawn out, Whitby remained unchanged (with the exception of both the Town of Whitby and the Township of Whitby’s amalgamation). Whitby is, by many, thought to be a part of the Greater Toronto Area, but contrary to popular belief, Whitby is part of the Greater Oshawa Metropolitan Area (and the eastern part of the Golden Horseshoe Region). Whitby is host to the headquarters for all of the Durham Region.Whitby is unique in its qualities, it is a suburb of eastern Greater Toronto (only a 30-minute drive from Scarborough) and the southern portion of Whitby possesses an urbanized & economic environment, while the northern part of Whitby remains a more rural environment and encompasses the communities of Brooklin, Myrtle Station, Ashburn and Myrtle. It is fair to say that Whitby is diverse and offers a lot of options to the people that have wisely chosen to live here. Commuting into Toronto and surrounding cities is not the only choice for employment as there are many large-scale corporations located right in Whitby (Gerdau Ameristeel, a Liquor Control Board of Ontario warehouse, the Lear Corporation, Patheon and Johnson Controls to name a few).Investing in Whitby is not only a smart move, but it is investing in an ever-growing, solid economized area. Family homes, Executive homes, condominiums, townhouses, semi-detached and detached houses is just the beginning when it comes to real estate for sale and land/property investments in Whitby. Home buyers will be over-delighted at the spacious interiors and exteriors of houses in this area and business investors & developers will have their full attention peaked at the offerings of vacant land lots and commercial & industrial properties for sale. Whitby possesses a wealth of amenities, from 24 elementary schools & 5 secondary schools (public), 12 Catholic elementary schools & 2 Catholic secondary schools (Trafalgar Castle School, built in the 18th Century, is still used today as an independent school). Where there are children, there is health care services in place and Lakeridge Health Whitby, Lakeridge Health Oshawa, Markham Stouffville Hospital and Rouge Valley Health System take care of all resident’s health care needs.Through the southern end of Whitby is Highway 401, which conveniently interchanges at Thickson Road and Brock Street. Just south of Brooklyn at Highway 407 is Highway 12 and this makes driving in and out of Whitby easier. Public transportation is also available in and around Whitby via the in-town GO Station trains & buses and Durham Regional Transit buses. Another unique aspect of Whitby is its 4 railway systems that pass through (Canadian National Railway, Canadian Pacific Railway, Via Rail and GO Station train). The Whitby Harbour Marina is a source of not only recreational fun through sailing, yachting (the Whitby Yacht Club) and fishing, it also is another ‘mode of transportation’ for some residents of the area.One of the largest minor sports centres in Canada is located right in Whitby; the Iroquois Park Sports Centre (possessing a swimming pool, elite athletic training facilities, 6 tennis courts, 6 ice pads, 1 soccer pitch, 3 batting cages, 5 ball diamonds and a skatepark). The McKinney Sports Complex also has a skatepark, 3 ice pads and 2 tennis courts, whereas the Luther Vipond Arena (located in Brooklyn) has 1 ice pad. The combination of all 3 sports complex’s makes Whitby a favourable sporting events host. Outside fun and fitness can be happily enjoyed at any of Whitby’s 125 parks, its 7 trails (one of which runs along the waterfront) and beaches (Iroquois Beach Park, Kiwanis Heydenshore Park and Lions Promenade at Whitby Harbour Park).Home to many festivals and events that take place all throughout the year, Whitby and Brooklyn both are loaded with spring (spring fairs, Food Truck Frenzy), summer (Harbour Day, Whitby Ribfest, Music in the Park), fall (Brooklyn Harvest Festival, Culture Days) and winter fun (Brooklyn’s Christmas in the Village, Whitby’s Annual Christmas Tree Lighting). Culture and the arts can be enjoyed at the Whitby Public Library, the Whitby Museum, Station Gallery, Whitby Courthouse Theatre and the Centennial Building.