Why Markham?

Markham is a great city. It is safe, has good housing stock and is near tons of shopping. It’s not particularly cheap, although it’s cheaper than Toronto.

Markham is very suburban. It’s a personal choice. If you want to be close to downtown, but able to commute more easily, you might consider the Yonge and Eglinton area, or Leaside. Or downtown, somewhere close to the Don Valley Parkway (404), which is the main highway route from the city to Markham. When living in Markham you’ll most likely be driving or taking Go Transit to work.

Markham is very unique, as it is an eclectic city of old and new. The old neighbourhoods in the city are extremely picturesque and well worth wondering around. Such charming neighbourhoods that are made up of beautiful homes, great restaurants and fabulous boutiques.

Markham is home to high-quality healthcare services through the expanded Markham Stouffville Hospital and other medical facilities. Markham is going to be the city in York region to have a world class university. York University Markham campus will be opening its doors to thousands of students in the next few years.

Markham is a vibrant city with several cultural centers, recreational facilities, parks and heritage sights. However, for some reason it is often overlooked by tourists, even though there is plenty to see and do here. Too good Park is famous for its pond. The park is located in Unionville and is a great place for an afternoon stroll. There is a trail that encircles the pond, which is a popular hiking spot. The park also features rocky hills and lovely bridges, as well as some beautiful vegetation. There are also several other great parks within Markham.

Markham Village is another great community to walk around, especially along Main Street. This street is lined with historic homes that have been converted into local shops and restaurants.

Markham is home to a plethora of recreational and community centers, all of which offer various indoor activities. Most of them are located in the city’s most populated areas. One of the most interesting places to shop is the Village Market, which is a Chinese market with over 170-family-run stores. This is the place to go for anything made in China. Pacific mall is another Chinese mall, which was designed to resemble Pacific Place in Hong Kong.

There are a few fantastic theatres in Markham where you can spend an evening enjoying a show. Stand-up comedy, plays, dance theatre and musicals can all be seen.

In Markham around Thanksgiving, one must go to the Markham Fair. Not only is this one of the oldest county fairs in the country, but it is also Canada’s largest community-based volunteer organization. Apart from the Markham Fair, the Taste of Asia Festival is one of the city’s largest annual events. It is Canada’s largest Asian festival, attracting over 150,000 people each year.

The City of Markham is an award-winning community located within the Greater Toronto Area. With over 350,000 residents and over 10,400 businesses, there are more than 400 Canadian head offices and over 1,000 technology and life sciences companies based in Markham. Most of the tech organizations are located in the IBM Innovation Space – Markham Convergence Centre like Venture Lab and Markham Small Business Centre (MSBC).

Throughout Markham, residents, students and workers have the opportunity to enjoy an emerging downtown with urban amenities and cultural attractions such as award-winning community centers and libraries, top-performing schools, prestigious neighborhoods, festive celebration events, and charming heritage villages. The City supports a Group of Seven-inspired art galleries, a museum, a 500-seat theatre and extensive parklands.
The City of Markham is one of the fastest growing municipalities in Ontario and the most ethnically diverse community in Canada. The City has earned distinction for strong economic growth and enviable livable facilities and spaces.

Markham is maintaining its economic momentum in targeting specific growth sectors, the City continues to attract companies specializing in ICT, life sciences, financial services, design and engineering, professional scientific services, and information and cultural industries. Here, businesses find skilled workers from around the world who are drawn to Markham for its exceptional quality of life. Internationally, the City’s profile has benefited from several economic alliances and a frequent exchange of business missions to and from Asia, the USA and Europe – reaching out to global markets to bring investment into Markham as well as opening doors for Markham-based businesses to expand.

Markham has been identified as a growth center in the Greater Toronto Area by the Ontario Places to Grow Act, and their projections indicate Markham’s population will increase by 35 per cent in the next 16 years. The City of Markham is well prepared for this growth through our strategic plan. The plan’s four strategic priorities:

Digital Markham is the city’s new digital strategy, the objective is to ignite sparks of innovation across the community, the strategy will become a foundation for digital advances, collaboration and partnerships among citizens, businesses and government.

The goal of the strategy is to transform Markham into a “frictionless city”, improving the quality of life in the community and making Markham a digital destination, leveraging opportunities in the new Future Urban Area and Markham Centre. The City will connect with partners including the new York University Markham campus, set to open in 2020. The campus will prepare tech-savvy graduates for the workforce in the City of Markham, York Region and the broader GTA, strengthening our economy.

Digital Strategy makes it easier to do business in Markham by implementing innovation and expedite decision-making. This will position Markham as the digital destination of choice for business.