No Magic Bullet To Increase P.G. Population
It seems that each election campaign we hear that the candidates are giving their slant on how they will grow the population of Prince George. The pitch isn’t new , it dates back to the days before John Backhouse. Problem is that to this date nothing has really come from it.
We seem unable to grasp onto a few things that have happened in this city over the past two decades.
One: The forest industry has shrunk, and shrunk considerably from its glory days. In the early days of the city there were 100 small contractors working in the bush, today that has shrunk to a few.
The ability to harvest the wood has changed dramatically, we now need fewer hands to get the tree from a standing position to market. Those lost jobs are significant. Factor in the Pine Beetle and the city that was formerly the drawing area for the region has gotten smaller . Look around the communities that we rely on for trade and commerce they have not grown as well.
Two: There also is the matter of the new age , which should be broken into two parts. a) We have seen a decline in our school enrollment of around 7500 children over the past decade and half. That alone would push the population of the city over 80,000 if it reflected days gone by. Add to that a new generation which is having fewer children and a later age and that must be accounted for.
b) The immigrants to Canada don’t like going to small centers. That is a fact. While the populations of the lower mainland communities continue to grow by leaps and bounds it should be noted much of this increase comes from immigration. Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, and Vancouver being the favourite cities of new Canadians.
Now back to what has replaced the forest industry . We saw the development of UNBC, Northern Health is our biggest employer, there is CNC and the three pulp mills. The number of mills cutting lumber has shrunk dramatically in the past ten years and is expected to continue that way.
Three: Now you must factor in the new buzz word in employment “mobility”. We now have a work force that can live in one center but work in an area several hundred miles away. The new mines being established are proof of that. Twenty days in and ten out are now the standard . You can live in any part of the country and still work at Ft McMurray, or one of the mines operating in this area. It is great for the companies because they no longer need to build communities at major expense, simply have them show up for work to a camp which is portable and then pick up the pieces when they leave.
The expansion at Kitimat is a prime example of a community that had hoped to have a boom, when Alcan began its major expansion, instead a cruise ship serves part of the work force and the rest housed in camps are encouraged to stay in those camps. It doesn’t lend itself well to increasing a population.
So where do we go? We simply can’t throw our hands in the air, but we have to face some serious facts. The Okanagan has, for the most part, better weather, and so the migration from the prairies and the lower mainland heads in that direction. If you factor in the time it takes to get from Vancouver to the resort area, you can see why our region has slipped badly in attracting that crowd. Would improved highways reduce the time line from nine hours to the lower mainland to perhaps five, and put us in a better position to compete? Of course it would . Former Premier Bill Bennet knew the Coquihalla highway would improve the fortunes of his region big time, and it did.
There is of course a major change slowly making its way in our favour and that is Global warming. As our region gets warmer and the area south of us turns into a desert, there is no question we will become very attractive. Problem is of course that most of you reading this won’t be around to see that happen.
So we may have to set our sights on something not as grandiose as we would like to see. We may have to settle for slow and steady growth, trying to build this city into a service center, and along the way attracting some new industry to replace those that are sunset or reaching that point.
So what’s wrong with that? We have been living with this problem for the past two decades and were are still around aren’t we?
I’m Meisner and that’s one man’s opinion.
Comments
I am one of those “Mobile” workers. Let me tell you that it’s a terrible way of life. Being away from friends and family for days on end isn’t very much fun. But you do what you have to in order to survive. The only way to significantly increase the population of Prince George is to increase the number of good, well paying jobs in Prince George. Cities like Grande Prairie, Ft St John, and Ft McMurray all enjoy robust population growth because they have the jobs….and they pay well. They don’t really offer anything more than Prince George as far as amenities and whatnot….but the well paying jobs brings people in droves.
I realize that it’s easier said than done….but PG was built on the backs of workers who came there to earn a good pay check. Take that away and…well….we can see the results.
Totally agreed. I am also one of those workers. For me it was simple. When I can make 150-200 k in grande prairie n only 80-100 for the same job in Prince George. The decision was made for me. My self I work in the gas industry in Alberta and grande prairie is where it’s booming. There’s tons of gas in the nechako basin but companies are scared to drill. It’s deeper than grande prairie. 7000-9000 m deep n would take years to become a producing well. And with the fear of the ndp getting in and jacking up corporate taxes again it’s a good reason to be Leary for corporate business
To be fair though…..I’d happily return to PG for a job paying 100k a year. IMO that is more than enough money to make it in today’s world. PG’s lower cost of living would make that more than worthwhile.
Yea I agree with this! See the thing is for a lot of people they’re not going to want to live 5 hours away plus travel another 5 to 8 hours for work and stay at a camp. Most would want their home where the job is closest to then travel for work. PG is in the middle. It sucks for us but there must be ways to make PG a better hub city for the branched off communities to West, North, and East. I get PG is the place to own a home because houses are so cheap compared to anywhere else in BC. The same house here that costs maybe $150,000 would be double that plus some in Fort St John or Grande Prairie. But I just don’t think that would intice me to move here if I worked in FSJ. Commuting would cost too much.
Increasing PG population to 100,000 in 4 years is nothing but hallucination. The town cannot even hold on to its retired pensioners who leave behind their network of friends and connections (developed over decades) and the prime example is the current (soon ex) MP Dick Harris who at the age of 70 has already moved to lower mainland. And if you ask psychologists and cognitive scientists, they will tell you that humans also follow a herd mentality, when one of the leaders move the rest will follow.
The sense of coupling and connectivity with the community is low that allows a stranger, the current mayor of town parachute into the town and get elected into its highest office. With low birthrate, limited job growth and migration of its pensioners, the PG population trend is ‘not’ increasing in short term, medium term and long term, taking into consideration that the university has also been doing an excellent job in targeting and mistreating the few foreign migrants who showed up in the city. The PG citizen has published some of the stories.
Is there a racism problem in PG? What is the solution to it by the next mayor?
Oh I’m sure many already know that a 20,000 increase in population in 4 years is the biggest joke we’ve heard. It’s been stated before by many. So to me we are pulling another drowned rat from the bucket. Yay.
Right on Ben. I especially liked that you slipped in the global warming factor. PG is actually a fantastic place to live these days, excellent health care, no (serious) rush hour traffic, great people, controversial municipal politics – what more could you ask for in a city?
Agree with you on that lbear. Wouldn’t change my location for the world. Couple hours in either direction bring you to a whole new eco-system of awe.
You never know when something big might come down the pipe! Never say never!
I think it is debatable that PG can use low housing costs as a benefit of living here. I spent almost a year looking for a house, and the prices are similar to Red Deer in the $350k to $450k range. $230k-250k is an entry level house built in the 70s. Perhaps these are cheaper compared to boom towns, but if you are starting new this is a heavy burden that may not be feasible. Without jobs that pay $75-$80k per year a double family income will likely be needed, putting us back into the position where family size is shrinking.
Add in the extra costs to go on a vacation once in a while or the expense of recreation in the area, good solid salaries are needed to want to live and stay in PG.
There really is no magic bullet. Without heavy industry development it will always be same-old same-old PG, up 5% down 4%, up 5% down 5%, etc.
Talking about the natural gas in the Nechako basin. The other reasons are low gas prices and dealing with the militant side of Firswt Nations people.
Your problem in PG is mirrored in hundreds of other communities all across the country. You have to ‘grow’ or you die. Yet even in those communities that ‘grow’ because they’re thought to be more amenable to live in than PG this never ending ‘growth’ soon reduces those very amenities that once made them seem so attractive. And soon they become progressively more both financially unaffordable and physically undesirable as places most people would really choose to live.
If the only way you can pay for the subdivision you’ve just put in is not from THAT subdivision but only from the NEXT one, you’ve got a problem. And this is exactly what attends. Everywhere.
So now you have some choices. You can pretend this isn’t so, that everything is just hunky-dory, people will move back because this is where they really want to be. And growth will resume. You can say it may well be so, but so what? We’ll always be growing, somewhere, because the population is growing and everything will all work out wherever people move to. Or you can start to look at ‘why’ we can’t ever FULLY pay FOR what we’ve done FROM what we’ve done. Instead of only from what we’re doing, or are going to have to do.
I’ve little hope the last option will ever be what we’ll do, so we’re fated to listen to endless arguments over the other two ad infinitum.
And wages have been stagnant for years with the exception of City staff and even though a lot of us have vehicles, transit is not keeping up. There are parts of the city it doesn’t serve in the evening and makes it difficult for people to settle downtown. Prices of everything going up except our wages aren’t keeping up. Hopefully with all this expected influx of Native Land Claims, we may have our small boom, at least the money will stay in the area
When the Coquihallawas built the population of both Kamloops and Kelowna was the same as P.G.. We all know there is no appetite for the power brokers in the south to spend that kind of money on something that does not get votes.
In the south it is ” build it and they will come”
In the north it is “when they come we will build it…maybe”
I like you last comment hindsight. The big challenge is to build so we improve the city and make it so it is attractive to others to move to.
Right now we spend millions to improve the downtown but this is not where people are. We are spread out everywhere but we must improve the downtown where no one really goes any more.
It is more like those who are there are stuck there because of their job. I think we are finally getting on the right track getting rid of the PG Hotel but the building owner need to do some work or why should we improve the downtown.
I would be interested in others thoughts whether you agree or disagree.
I agree that growing the city to 100,000 is a lofty goal. However, at least it is a goal. Right now there is no direction other than throw money at the downtown. IPG is no longer the economic development arm of the city because that is hard work so now they are recruiting employees for business because that is easier. We need to take a page from Mayor Kelham’s book in Mackenzie. That town was down and out and she could have given up but instead she rolled up her sleeves and today that town is back. I would rather vote for someone who has a big vision than someone who thinks it’s all about leadership and holding council meetings out in the “burbs”.
My husband has a job in Fort St. John, in the gas industry. It would be nice if he could make enough money in Prince George that he could come home, but we’ve given up on that ever happening. He comes home for his week off, every few weeks. His employer will fly him home to anywhere we want. We live in Prince George specifically because we can afford a much nicer house here, for much cheaper, allowing us a pretty decent standard of living. The snow doesn’t bother me, I like having 4 real seasons. It looks like the winters are getting milder too. Prince George offers the needed amenities for our family.
It would probably be a good idea to start marketing P.G. as a good place to live while they build the Site C dam. There will be a massive influx of workers up there, and they do not have the housing for them. Ft.St. John is not a nice place, and never has been. There is already absolutely zero chance of getting a Dr. in FSJ. That alone keeps people from wanting to live up there. We’d need (more) direct flights. It’s only a 40 minute flight, so a quick trip home, if you don’t have to go through Vancouver/Calgary.
The population of prince George has been relatively static for more the 30 years. One of the primary reasons the population has not declined has been the addition of institutions including the university and the expansion of the hospital.
The goal needs to shift from “growth” to “quality” and “sustainability.” Prince George leadership needs to think of strategies to provide the best quality of life at a sustainable population of 80 thousand people. A start would be to focus developers on “gentrifying” existing neighborhoods instead of approving expansion for more disposable housing on the edges of town. Then existing services like roads, water, sewer, schools, etc. would then have a fresh cash flow to restore deteriorating infrastructure. We have enough developed lots for 80 thousand people.
Another long term leadership issue that could save money and and improve the “quality” is to stop allowing businesses to locate in the flood plain on River Road. There was a move in the 60s and 70s to stop further development in this area. Then some how this got reversed. It is poor “sustainability” to approve development of river front land that will be regularly flooded and then allow the businesses to lobby for flood protection. And the public loses access to prime recreational land in the same move. Lose. Lose. Help the businesses move to the appropriate designated industrial zones. Get them out of our backyards.
Depending on “growth” is just poor planning in an economy that won’t support it and and environment that cannot sustain it.
News2me, you are correct. It is the direct flights to the oil patch that is need to help PG grow. At this time why would someone move to PG as the flights go to Vancouver, Edmonton, or Calgary as hubs. IPG should be working on making PG a hub for flights.
Ben, global warming, I assume you mean man caused warming of which there is no proof. Area south of us turning into a desert, what! I think your nose for BS is losing its scent.
Seamut, Their is an area south of us that IS a desert. Kamloops. Osoyoos. Vegas.
Kelowna is not just a warmer place to live, they also diversified and built-up their tourism industry. They went from simple orchards and cottages by the lake, to destination golf courses, world class wineries, and turned their ski area into a resort. They also had vision and invested in technological infrastructure. Now they have a thriving high tech industry. Even Disney has set up an animation lab there.
If it was just about warmer weather, Osoyoos would be exploding with people.
“”The population of prince George has been relatively static for more the 30 years.””
Is that a fact? It sure makes a person wonder who is living in all the new homes built in the last 30 years?? It would be fun to have an overlay of city maps from 30yrs ago vs today just to see how much development has gone on…and no increases in population….hmmmm
Where does the magic number 100,000 come from? Why is that the population needed to sustain the kind of city people want?
Jim13136… that stats I found had PG at 67,000 in 1986, peaked at 75,000 in 1996, and is now at 72,000. I suppose this could occur if people have fewer or no children per household.
I seemed to recall John Brink predicting huge population growth for PG a number of years ago. I Googled it and there was a story on O250 from 2006 where he predicted the population of PG could be 200,000 within the next 10 years. That would be 2016 for anyone taking notes . . .
I honestly don’t even know why Zurowski threw that 100,000 figure out there, it just seems so ridiculous given PG’s history, past predictions of the future “booms”, etc. I think it’s time for PG to look at things differently and I believe anotherside has the right idea in their post from 9:51.
IMHO, PG needs to focus on quality of life. Beautify the city. Reclaim the riverfront. Make smarter development decisions. Put some character into the city. Develop new parkland and green space. Make the community more connected with pathway and trail networks. Have more public art. Encourage all types of residential development and have integrated neighbourhoods. Create more public space.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it until I’m blue in the face. If the goal is growth, it doesn’t matter what people currently living in PG want, what matters is what people who aren’t living there want. Find out what those things are and start duplicating them. If you don’t, the people won’t even consider you and they will choose to live elsewhere. This may mean that the city has to look at itself in the mirror and re-prioritize what it thinks is important and how it needs to change in order to grow.
Phje, are those deserts new? I see no change in my 55 years of familiarity of those areas.
NMG, right on! Visitors often say to us that the surrounding wilderness area is awesome, as are the many lakes and nature itself! As for the city? They don’t want to say anything that smacks of outright condemnation but they will say that the city looks somehow not very nice and not very well looked after, as if those in charge really do not care what it looks like! The people are great but the rest needs work!
Someone said “We’re going to grow to 100,000 in 4 years”
Hope that person doesn’t hold any position of authority, wonder what other
strange things they’ll think.
Beware of politicians making promises! Often they do not know what they are talking about! A lawyer must study law to be called to the bar, a carpenter must serve an apprenticeship before she/he can practice the trade! But what about a politician?
this place stinks!!dirty,grubby,waspy aryan…
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