True North Climbing: The Location

I found a great place for the new gym. It's been hard to keep the location under wraps the past couple of months, but I thought it was important to do so until I knew I had it locked down (meaning the lease is worked out and the loan is approved). Now I'm ready to spill the beans.

True North Climbing is proud to be part of the Downsview Park Sports Centre. We're at 75 Carl Hall Road, within Downsview Park. That's the building marked as Indoor Rec. Facility on this map.

Downsview Park is a National Park run as a Crown corporation, on the site of what used to be Downsview Air Force Base. The location offers:

Convenient Access by Car or Public Transit

Downsview Park is handy to Highways 401 and 400, as well as the Allen Rd. There is plenty of free parking right outside our door. For those relying on public transit, we're close to the Downsview subway station, and bus route 101 is a 10-minute ride running every 20 minutes from the subway to the Downsview Park Sports Centre. I picked this location to serve the northern part of Toronto as well as Vaughan and Richmond Hill, as the closest climbing gym for the vast majority of people in those areas, without directly competing with the other existing gyms. In a few years the TTC access will get even better, when the new Sheppard West subway station opens within Downsview Park, connecting to York University and Vaughan, as well as the Barrie Go line.

A Community of Cool Sports-related Businesses

The Downsview Park Sports Centre has been growing for a few years, and currently includes:

• The Hangar, with indoor and outdoor soccer fields, beach volleyball courts and a ball hockey court. There is also a full-service restaurant and bar here.
• Hoopdome, featuring several indoor basketball courts
• Grand Prix Kartways: indoor go-karting with electric go-karts
• The Rail Skateboard park
• Toronto School of Circus Arts
• Defcon Paintball
• Toronto Roller Derby League

More information about the Downsview Park Sports Centre.

A Very Cool Building

The building used to be an airplane hangar, and features high clerestory windows bringing in natural light from above. The ceiling is a mix of 26' and 36' high, and our space is 100' by 120', giving us lots of room for great climbing terrain without being crowded. Stay tuned to this blog for more information about the design of the gym, as our planning progresses.

I'm excited to finally be able to talk about the joint!

John Gross
Owner, True North Climbing Inc.