A. On any sunny day in Toronto, one is guaranteed to find crowds at the Jack Layton Ferry Terminal, waiting to travel to the Toronto Islands. In fact, roughly one million people visit the islands by boat every year. The Toronto Islands have an intriguing history due to their close proximity to the downtown core. An airport, an amusement park, several beaches, and about 250 family homes draw people south across the harbour, especially in summer months. The islands are the largest car-free urban community in North America. Their natural beauty, juxtaposed with the soaring skyline of downtown Toronto, provides a peaceful reprieve from the hustle and bustle of the city.

B. The region referred to as the Toronto Islands today was formerly a peninsula. When the city was settled by Europeans in 1750, the islands were connected to the mainland. The Gibraltar Point Lighthouse was the first building erected on the islands in 1808. Urbanization slowed after a powerful storm in 1858 flooded the eastern edge of the peninsula. Unbeknownst to locals at the time, the flood would create what would become one of Toronto’s most popular tourist attractions. Development continued throughout the nineteenth century, highlighted by the construction of an amusement park and baseball stadium by the first year-round inhabitants of the islands, the Hanlan family.

C. Proposals to reconnect the islands to the city by construction of a bridge or tunnel were commonly supported by local islanders throughout history. When a connection to the mainland by tunnel was completed in 2015, it was done through private funding and with the singular goal of improving access to the Billy Bishop airport for travellers. This tunnel is for pedestrians only; aside from the airport, the only vehicular access for those who reside on the islands is by private ferry boat. The number of houses on the islands peaked at roughly 650 in the mid-twentieth century. After building a downtown waterfront highway, city officials decided to replace lost recreational space with beaches and parkland on the islands. Two hundred sixty houses survived the city’s attempts to demolish all of the residential districts.

D. Today, in the warmer months, visitors are constantly queued up to take the island ferries. Many choose to rent bicycles to explore the island. Tourists commonly seek out the islands’ many iconic attractions, including the old lighthouse, the Olympic Island Bridge, and the Centreville Amusement Park, built in 1967. Some also come to swim and sunbathe. Located on the western part of the Toronto Islands, Hanlan’s Point Beach is not only recognized for its connection in name to the area’s first family, but also for its status as one of Canada’s two clothing-optional beaches.

E. Not given in any of the above paragraphs.