About Your City

Burlington Skyline

Burlington is ranked as Canada best community.

Burlington, Ontario, with its population of 183,000, is ranked by Maclean's Magazine as Canada's best community and best place to raise a family.

Burlington is close to major transportation, to the cities of Hamilton and Toronto and to the U.S. border. We are fortunate to have the UNESCO world biosphere reserve Niagara Escarpment in our backyard and Lake Ontario in our front yard.

Burlington boasts great employment opportunities, low crime rates and a community feel. More than half of the city is protected rural space.

The city offers world-class urban amenities, including shopping and dining and is home to some of Ontario's top festivals and events. Attractions include the Royal Botanical Gardens and the Burlington Performing Arts Centre.

Where people thrive

Burlington is a prosperous city with a small-town feel that is home to more than 175,000 people.

95 per cent of Burlington residents rate their quality of life as excellent or good.
You'll have fun getting active here, with waterfront activities, hiking on the Bruce Trail. We have 31.6 kilometres of multi-use trails and 84 kilometres of multi-use pathways along roads. Burlington has 119 parks and 5.6 kilometres of park land on the shore of Lake Ontario.
There is world-class dining at award-winning restaurants.
You can shop, visit art galleries--like the Art Gallery of Burlington--and theatres, like the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. Enjoy our Festival City for celebrations of Canada Day, the Burlington Children's Festival, the Sound of Music and Canada's Largest Ribfest. Visit the Museums of Burlington, Bronte Creek Provincial Park or the world-renowned Royal Botanical Gardens.
We've put thought and effort into making Burlington an inclusive city with accessible public buildings and services.
Burlington is a culturally active city, and has developed a Cultural Action Plan with community input
Burlington is a youth-friendly city, and was awarded a Youth Friendly Community Recognition Award through Playworks - The Ontario Partnership for Active Youth
Burlington is a health-focused city. City Council contributed $60 million to the redevelopment of Joseph Brant Hospital.
Burlington preserves its history. We have legends, historic buildings and a proud heritage that goes back to 1798 and our founding father, Six Nations Captain Joseph Brant. The city first developed at Port Nelson and Aldershot, where goods such as wheat, fruit and lumber were transported by water. The desirable climate and waterfront location launched a history of agriculture, shipping and tourism.

Find out more about why Burlington's quality of life will make you feel at home.

Where nature thrives

Living, visiting or doing business in Burlington means you're immersed in nature, part of what makes this one of the most livable cities in Canada.

We're in the heart of Southern Ontario. The shores of Lake Ontario lap against one side and the cliffs of the Niagara Escarpment, a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, carves the other.
On our doorstep lies Canada's oldest footpath and conservation corridor, the Bruce Trail, with more than 1,200 kilometres (745 miles) of nature.
Burlington blooms with greenery, including conservation areas, waterfront parks and trails, the Royal Botanical Gardens and Bronte Creek Provincial Park.
Sustainability and an environmental focus make sure we're planning for a prosperous city for years to come.
Burlington is a sustainable city that offers walking and cycling opportunities, promotes community gardens and local food, and supports energy efficiency measures as well as local community environmental organizations.

Where business thrives

The City of Burlington has kept both its agricultural and commercial roots. We've attracted business from across Canada and around the world, and more than 13,000 businesses employ more than 85,000 people here.

Burlington is close enough to enjoy larger metropolitan centres like Toronto, yet far enough that land prices and property rents are lower.
Burlington is part of the Golden Horseshoe and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). The U.S. border and Southwestern Ontario are a short distance away, and three international airports are within a one-hour drive.
Businesses recruit from a well-educated, skilled workforce of more than two million people within a 45-minute commute.
Burlington features such industries as advanced manufacturing, software development, financial services, biotechnology, environmental and logistics.

Find out more about at Burlington Economic Development.

City Hall Tours

The City of Burlington offers fun, interactive tours to educate students, residents and tourists about Burlington City Hall.

While the program is geared to meet the grade 5 civics curriculum anyone is welcome to book a tour with us.

Tours are

One and half to two hours long
Available on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings

What you will learn

About Burlington's history
The Burlington community
How decisions are made
How you as a citizen of Burlington can get involved in our decision making process
How municipal government works
The services that the City of Burlington offers

Tours talk about

City departments
Our twinning with Apeldoorn, The Netherlands and Itabashi, Japan

What you will see

Our Digital Copy Centre
Council Chambers
Monuments

What you will do

Participate in a mock Council meeting - for Civics classes only

To book a tour of Burlington City Hall, please contact:

Debbie Hordyk
debbie.hordyk@burlington.ca
905-335-7600, ext. 7805

City Service Delivery

The City of Burlington is increasingly being asked to make tough choices among competing priorities and to deliver good service for good value. By refocusing on services, investing in services and ensuring their continuous improvement, the city can make important decisions in a timely, informed manner.

Service management is a framework that includes:

A consistent and fair approach to performance measurement and continuous improvement
Corporate accountability
Alignment of operations to achieve the city's strategic directions, corporate priorities and objectives
Informed decision-making by City Council and the city's Senior Management Team and service owners.

The city is using a number of tools to support Burlington's service management. They are:

Results-Based Accountability
Business Process Management
Service-Based Budgeting
Enterprise Risk Management
Employee Performance Evaluation

Community engagement helps shape our future

In April 2013, the City of Burlington approved the first Burlington Community Engagement Charter. The charter states that engaging people on issues that affect their lives and their city is "a key component of democratic society. Public involvement encourages participation, actions and personal responsibility."

The goal of community engagement is to lead to more informed and, therefore, better decision-making.

More than 4,000 people create the strategic plan

More than 4,000 people helped create the strategic plan that guides Burlington City Council decisions. The plan supports vibrant neighbourhoods, a prosperous city and excellence in government. More engagement is planned for 2015.

Burlington is working hard to manage the expected growth of population and jobs. As surrounding land becomes developed, we're looking at smart ways to build within the city (infill).
World awareness. Burlington promotes peaceful co-operation within the world through its twinning relationship with two cities: Itabashi, Japan and Apeldoorn, The Netherlands.

Want to join our progressive team? Find out about careers and what Burlington has to offer.

Community Links

Community Partners

Twin Cities

Government Links

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