Richmond Hill names street after former MPP’s birthplace in Iran
Urmia Avenue is located in a new subdivision north of Elgin Mills
Yorkregion.com
December 4, 2018
Sheila Wang
Richmond Hill residents will soon see a road sign with the name of an ancient Iranian city on a brand-new street.
The Town of Richmond Hill recently announced the naming of a street after Urmia -- the birthplace of former Richmond Hill MPP Reza Moridi -- to recognize his 11 years of service to Richmond Hill.
“It came as a surprise,” said Moridi who accepted the new road sign of Urmia Avenue at a tribute dinner held on Oct. 12 by a group of local Iranian-Canadian volunteers in Richmond Hill.
Moridi is the first Iranian-Canadian elected to a provincial legislature in Canada, who represented the riding of Richmond Hill from 2007 to 2018.
The former MPP has made transit and health-care improvements his priorities during his long service. Among his many achievements, Moridi said he helped secure funding for widening Highway 7 and Yonge Street, and helped facilitate the redevelopment of MacKenzie Richmond Hill Hospital.
Richmond Hill Mayor Dave Barrow, who officially announced the naming of the street at the event, said it was fitting for the town to name one of the streets after Moridi’s birthplace in Iranian for his contribution to the town in the past decade.
“The ancient city of Urmia was established about 4,000 years ago. After the capital city of Tehran, Urmia is the most diverse and multi-ethnic city in Iran. We felt in that it was very close to Richmond Hill,” Barrow said.
For Moridi, Urmia held a special place in his heart as both he and his wife were born and raised in the Iranian city.
Known by many as “Paris of Iran,” Urmia is now home to home to about 650,000 people of diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds.
The demographics of Richmond Hill have changed significantly over the last decade. While Chinese immigrants are the largest minority group in town, the Iranian population has been one of the fastest-growing groups in Richmond Hill, which accounted for about 11 per cent of the town’s population, according to the 2016 census.
The Iranian-Canadian community is very happy about the naming of the street, said Mehrdad Hariri, one of the organizers of the tribute dinner for Moridi.
“It is also recognition of the diversity of the Richmond Hill community,” Hariri said. “It is recognition of the Iranian-Canadian community and their contribution to the Canadian society as a whole. And it shows one of the mosaics of our multiculturalism.”
As an immigrant himself, Moridi who came to Canada in 1990, and settled in Richmond Hill the following year, said he was “very grateful” for the recognition of his service by the town.
“This wasn’t only a recognition of my service to Richmond Hill. I think it’s a recognition by the Town of Richmond Hill -- and the Greater Toronto Area -- of the whole Iranian community of Canada,” Moridi said.
Around 1,000 guests witnessed Barrow’s announcement of the naming of Urmia Avenue at the tribute dinner at Le Parc last month.
Many politicians and local officials including former premier Kathleen Wynne, Toronto Mayor John Tory and Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti celebrated with Moridi at the event as well.
In a video message, Prime Minster Justin Trudeau also thanked Moridi for his dedicated contribution to Richmond Hill and across Ontario.
Located on the west side of Leslie Street, the new street Urmia Avenue will be a mainstreet of a new subdivision just north of Elgin Mills which is currently under construction.
