LaSalle, Ontario

LaSalle, Ontario
LaSalle is a town in Essex County, Ontario, Canada. It is a bedroom community of the City of Windsor and part of the Windsor Census Metropolitan Area, and is located south of that city. LaSalle, along with Windsor, is the oldest French settlement area in Southwestern Ontario, and the oldest continually inhabited European settlement in Canada west of the Quebec border. The town was named for explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle.
The current Town of Lasalle was originally incorporated as the Township of Sandwich West in 1861. A portion of the township incorporated as the Town of Lasalle in 1924, but was dissolved in 1959 and rejoined Sandwich West. In 1991, the Township changed its status to that of a Town and was renamed Lasalle. It is the second most populous municipality within Essex County after the Municipality of Lakeshore. The town's land area includes Fighting Island in the Detroit River at its western side. Fighting Island is privately owned by BASF, the world's largest chemical company.
Town features
One of LaSalle's biggest events is the annual Strawberry Festival which takes place on the first weekend in June. The annual LaSalle Craft Beer Festival, put on by the Corporation of the Town of LaSalle, is another annual event that features different types of beer, from popular brands to smaller microbreweries.
In LaSalle, there are two secondary schools: Sandwich Secondary School and St. Thomas of Villanova Catholic Secondary School. Elementary schools include Sacred Heart Elementary School, Legacy Oak Trail Public School, LaSalle Public School, Sandwich West Public School, School Monseigneur Augustin Caron, Legacy Grove Public School and Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School.
LaSalle also has a bicycle trail network called the LaSalle Trail, which links up to neighbouring Windsor Trail network, allowing people to ride from Sandwich Secondary School to Windsor's Riverfront Trail. The town has expressed intention to connect LaSalle (and indirectly, Windsor) to the Chrysler Canada Greenway by constructing a link to the Trans Canada Trail near Oldcastle.
The town also features the Vollmer Culture and Recreation Complex, home to the LaSalle Vipers, of the GOJHL and the LaSalle Sabres, of the OMHA. It is also home to the LaSalle Stompers, of the Ontario Soccer Association. The complex has multiple rooms for hosting of events, 2 arenas, an Olympic-sized pool and slide, outdoor skate park, soccer fields, and baseball diamonds.
LaSalle Landing
LaSalle is currently revitalizing their waterfront with an initiative called the LaSalle Landing. This project will include an event centre, a retention pond, sport zone, water fountain, skate trail, boat launch and multiple new bridges. This project is projected to cost 48.5 million dollars. LaSalle will be using $4 500 000 from the Federal Gas Tax and $500 000 from the Pedestrian Safety Reserve to help pay for the project. LaSalle has taken on $12 000 000 of debt after being denied a grant through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program.
Communities
Besides the urban area proper of LaSalle itself, the town of LaSalle comprises a number of villages and hamlets, including Delisle's Corners, Heritage Estates, Lukerville, Oliver and River Canard.
Demographics
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, LaSalle had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
Notable people
Jeff Burrows - member of rock band The Tea Party; grew up in LaSalle
Stuart Chatwood - member of rock band The Tea Party; grew up in LaSalle
Pete Craig - former MLB player
Andy Delmore - former NHL player
David Finch - comic book artist
Zack Kassian - NHL player
Paul Lucier - Senator
Jeff Martin - member of rock band The Tea Party; grew up in LaSalle
Kylie Masse - competitive swimmer; a world champion and a world record holder in the 100 m backstroke; grew up in LaSalle
Dalton Prout - NHL player
Amanda Reason - former world record holder and Olympic swimmer
Derek Wilkinson - former NHL player
Luke Willson - former NFL tight end, Super Bowl Champion
See also
List of townships in Ontario
References
External links
Towns in Ontario
Lower-tier municipalities in Ontario
Municipalities in Essex County, Ontario
Ontario populated places on the Detroit River