For much of its history, Pickering was primarily a rural, farming region of Ontario. However after World War II, the landscape of Pickering started to change as more industry started to move here. The creation of new industry in this area lead to more jobs and soon much of the farmland was being developed and transformed into suburban housing. Many people have moved to Pickering over the last few decades, however in recent years, this trend has slowed down a little because of development restrictions on land in the northern portion of Pickering. In 2000, Pickering was officially incorporated as a city.