The fifth most populated urban place in Ohio, the Toledo metropolitan area spreads over Lucas, Fulton, and Wood counties for a total land area of 3534.3 sq km (1364.6 sq mi). Included in the metropolitan area are the communities of Oregon, Sylvania, Perrysburg, Maumee, and the important state university center of Bowling Green, 32 km (20 mi) to the south.
The city of Toledo has a land area of 208.8 sq km (80.6 sq mi). The main section of the city extends along the northwest side of the Maumee River from where it broadens to form Maumee Bay on Lake Erie. The downtown core, about 8 km (about 5 mi) from the bay, lies slightly back from the river. Between the downtown and the Maumee is an area called Portside, a redevelopment project of the 1980s. Initially a financial failure, in the mid-1990s the project was being redeveloped to house a science and industry museum and is considered a sign of the city's rebirth. Numerous bridges connect East Toledo with the bulk of the city. To the west of the downtown are the principal residential neighborhoods, as well as the campus of the University of Toledo.
