Alta Vista Drive is a suburban road in Ottawa

Ottawa

Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...

, Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. It runs from Bank Street

Bank Street (Ottawa)

Bank Street is the major north-south road in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It runs south from Wellington Street in downtown Ottawa, south through the neighbourhoods of Centretown, The Glebe, Old Ottawa South, Alta Vista, Hunt Club, and then through the villages of Blossom Park, Leitrim, South...

 in the south to Industrial Avenue in the north covering the neighbourhoods of Ridgemont, Alta Vista

Alta Vista (Ottawa)

Alta Vista is a neighbourhood in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Its boundaries can be broadly described as: Smyth Road in the north, St. Laurent Boulevard in the east, Walkley Road and Heron Road in the south, and Bank Street and Riverside Drive in the west...

 and Riverview

Riverview (Ottawa)

Riverview also known as Riverview Park is a neighbourhood in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is southeast of the downtown adjacent to the Rideau River, its location on which is its namesake...

.

Alta Vista was created as the result of major residential developments in the region following World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. It was originally named Churchill Avenue but changed names as the result of Ottawa annexing that part of Gloucester Township

Gloucester, Ontario

Gloucester is a suburb of and within the City of Ottawa. Gloucester Township was established in 1792 and originally included lands east of the Rideau River from the Ottawa River south to Manotick. It was incorporated as a township in 1850 and became a city in 1981...

 (there was already a Churchill Avenue in Ottawa). The first stretch was built between Smyth Road

Smyth Road

Smyth Road is a main road in eastern Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It runs from Riverside Drive to St. Laurent Boulevard. This residential area was developed in the 1950s...

 and Kilborn Avenue in 1939.http://www.gloucesterhistory.com/history.html

Alta Vista originally ran past Industrial and connected with the Vanier Parkway, but the intersection, which also involved Riverside Drive

Riverside Drive

A number of cities around the world have a Riverside Drive.In the United States:*Riverside Drive *Riverside Drive *Riverside Drive *Riverside Drive...

 was re-aligned in 1986. Furthermore, in the 1990s, Alta Vista gained bicycle lanes along its entire stretch. Alta Vista is so named for its general height, as the neighbourhoods it runs through are generally higher than the rest of the city (the name means "a view from above" or "high view").

For the most part, Alta Vista runs through residential areas, and it is a two to four-lane minor arterial road, with a speed limit of 50 km/h (31.1 mph). The area consists mostly of single-home houses, with the exception of two apartment-style, low-rent buildings named the "Alta Vista Towers" located in the north near Industrial Avenue and the Alta Vista Plaza. Alta Vista Drive consists of mixed housing, ranging from small modest houses in the northern parts, to more expensive, small Colonial-style houses and bungalows in the area immediately south to Smyth Road

Smyth Road

Smyth Road is a main road in eastern Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It runs from Riverside Drive to St. Laurent Boulevard. This residential area was developed in the 1950s...

.

The road is characterized by large trees along both sides and the Via Rail

VIA Rail

Via Rail Canada is an independent crown corporation offering intercity passenger rail services in Canada. It is headquartered near Montreal Central Station at 3 Place Ville-Marie in Montreal, Quebec....

 train track running parallel between Alta Vista Drive and Riverside Drive from Industrial Avenue to Smyth Road.

Alta Vista is home to the National Defence Medical Centre

National Defence Medical Centre

The National Defence Medical Centre was the national and largest hospital of the Canadian Forces in Ottawa, Canada. It served the needs of the members of the military. Constructed in 1961, it was closed in the 1990s due to budget cutbacks in National Defence and Veterans' Affairs Canada...

, Canadian Pharmacists Association, Canadian Blood Services

Canadian Blood Services

Canadian Blood Services is a national, not-for-profit charitable organization that manages the blood supply in all provinces and territories of Canada, outside of Quebec, and oversees the OneMatch Stem Cell and Marrow Network . A separate organization, Héma-Québec, operates in the province of Quebec...

, Canadian Dental Association

Canadian Dental Association

The Canadian Dental Association, also known as the Association dentaire canadienne in French was founded in 1902. It is a non-profit professional association representing Canada's 18,000 dentists...

, Ontario Medical Association

Ontario Medical Association

The Ontario Medical Association is a professional organization for physicians in Ontario, Canada founded in 1880. It represents and, to a certain degree, governs approximately 24,000 physicians in Ontario. The association's main office is located at 150 Bloor St. West in Toronto. The current...

, the Canadian Medical Association

Canadian Medical Association

The Canadian Medical Association , with more than 70,000 members, is the largest association of doctors in Canada and works to represent their interests nationally. It formed in 1867, three months after Confederation...

, and its affiliate MD Management, and the Conference Board of Canada

Conference Board of Canada

The Conference Board of Canada is a not-for-profit Canadian organization dedicated to researching and analyzing economic trends, as well as organizational performance and public policy issues....

, located in the area north of the Smyth Road intersection in a stretch of the road that is not residential, as well as Ridgemont High School

Ridgemont High School (Ottawa)

Ridgemont High School. It is an Ottawa-Carleton District School Board secondary school in Ottawa, Canada. The school is located at 2597 Alta Vista Drive in the Alta Vista neighbourhood of Ottawa. It is next door to St...

 and St. Patrick's High School

St. Patrick's High School (Ottawa)

St. Patrick's High School, located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, is a Catholic high school publicly funded under the Ontario school system as part of the Ottawa-Carleton Catholic School Board...

 located south from Smyth Road. The area is home to the Anglican Church St. Thomas the Apostle

St. Thomas the Apostle

Saint Thomas the Apostle was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus.It may also refer to:-Places:*St. Thomas the Apostle , a large civil parish in Devon, England*St Thomas the Apostle Rural, a civil parish in east Cornwall, United Kingdom-Other:...

, the United Church Rideau Park, and the Presbyterian Church St. Timothy's. There is one branch of the Ottawa Library and two shopping centres, one being at the northern-most stretch near Industrial Avenue, and the other at the southern-most section abutting Bank Street.