What is "downsview"

Downsview is an area in the north end of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located in the district of North York. Downsview was originally a farm located in the 1870s near the present-day intersection of Keele Street and Wilson Avenue. It now extends beyond the intersection of Sheppard Avenue and Dufferin Street. The area includes several large post-WWII subdivisions. Within the area is Downsview Airport, the former site of Canadian Forces Base Downsview, which has since been largely converted following the end of the Cold War into an urban park known as Downsview Park. However, the airport is still used as a manufacturing and testing facility for Bombardier Aerospace.

Downsview is a subway station on the Yonge–University line in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The station, which is located at the southeast corner of Sheppard Avenue West- William R. Allen Road intersection, is currently the northern terminus of the western branch of the line, until the Spadina subway extension is completed, no earlier than 2018.

The station opened in 1996 in what was then the City of North York, and the Viva Orange bus rapid transit route of York Region’s Viva Rapid Transit commenced service on October 16, 2005. The large commuter parking lot, accessible via Allen Road and Sheppard Avenue, opened in July 2005.

When this station opened, it was among the first accessible stations.

Downsview was a provincial riding in Ontario, Canada. It was created for the 1963 provincial election, and was retained until redistribution in 1999. Downsview was located in North York, which was previously part of Metropolitan Toronto and is now part of the City of Toronto. It was formed from part of the original riding of York Centre. In 1996 it was merged into a newly reconstituted riding of the same name.

For most of its history, Downsview was a hotly contested marginal seat between the Liberals and the New Democratic Party. Its final representative, however, was a Progressive Conservative: Annamarie Castrilli was elected as a Liberal in 1995, but crossed parties on the last sitting day of the legislature before the 1999 election.

The riding's demographics and boundaries shifted throughout its existence. In the 1960s, it consisted of the area of the borough of North York between Bathurst Street and Keele Street. During this period, the riding had a large Jewish community, representing about 40% of the population. In the 1975 election, the eastern, predominantly Jewish section of the riding was redistributed to the riding of Wilson Heights and the riding became predominantly Italian. Odoardo Di Santo, elected as a New Democrat in 1975, was one of the first three Italian-Canadians to serve in the Ontario legislature.