Living in Bayview Southeast
Bayview Southeast is situated on the edges of the environmentally sensitive Oak Ridges Moraine which accounts for the fact that there has been very little residential development in this neighbourhood. The major landmark in Bayview Southeast is the Canadian headquarters for the corporate giant Magna International. The Magna French chateau inspired office building set well back from the road on Wellington Street East is a neighbourhood landmark. This impressive office complex includes an 18 hole golf course. Residential development in this neighbourhood is limited to a few isolated pockets of luxury homes near Bayview Avenue and Vandorf Road. The rest of the neighbourhood consists of golf courses, farmland and densely forested conservation areas.
History of Bayview Southeast
Bayview Southeast was originally part of the Township of Whitchurch. Many of the first settlers who arrived here in the 1790s and early 1800s were Quakers, who were awarded 200 acre land grants in return for clearing the dense forest and bush, clearing roads and then establishing viable homesteads and farms on their land.
When the Regional Municipality of York was formed in 1970 the area now known as Bayview Southeast was ceded to the Town of Aurora by the former Township of Whitchurch. It was still farmland and conservation land at that time. In 1996, Anticipating a spike in population growth the Town of Aurora initiated an Urban Growth Management Study. The outcome of this study was the creation of the Bayview Southeast Secondary Plan created in 1997. This plan forms the guiding principles for the development of the Bayview Southeast neighbourhood.
Homes in Bayview Southeast
There are pockets of luxury homes on premium lots situated off Bayview Avenue south of Vandorf Sideroad and off Bloomington Road just east of Bayview Avenue. One of these communities is called Belfontain. It is situated just east of Bayview Avenue and south of Vandorf Road. Belfontain is an upscale collection of 75 homes on estate size lots. These luxury custom homes are among the largest homes in Aurora, in most cases exceeding 5,000 square feet with many also featuring three car garages.
Recreation in Bayview Southeast
There are numerous private golf courses in the area including the Magna Golf Club, Lebovic Golf Club, and Bloomington Downs Golf Club. David English Park located at 206 Carisbrooke Circle has two tennis courts and a children’s playground. This park can be accessed south off Vandorf Sideroad just east of Bayview Avenue.