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Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1184822
DESTINATION BC/GRANT HARDER DECEMBER/JANUARY 2020 BCBUSINESS 31 UNEMPLOY- MENT RATE (10%) AVERAGE HOUSE- HOLD SPENDING ON RECREATION (10%) AVERAGE SHELTER SPENDING (10%) FIVE-YEAR POPULATION GROWTH (10%) 26.7% $6,066 $26,950 $881,949 28.1 14.3% 249.0 4.9% 25.9% $6,580 $30,584 $1,154,315 16.8 16.6% 12.5 4.9% 23.1% $6,281 $27,221 $867,919 28.1 11.5% 96.8 4.6% 22.5% $8,500 $34,747 $1,361,237 26.4 3.3% 57.7 4.6% 20.7% $5,793 $24,324 $564,928 18.5 8.9% 91.1 4.1% 18.1% $6,439 $25,321 $381,422 15.0 6.6% 18.9 6.2% 18.0% $5,179 $20,869 $408,557 16.8 8.7% 86.7 4.5% 20.7% $4,664 $20,394 $452,616 20.9 7.2% 115.5 4.1% 23.6% $4,252 $17,563 $296,967 12.2 –1.4% 13.6 4.9% 19.7% $4,298 $18,642 $422,492 18.2 6.5% 130.0 4.1% 22.9% $4,730 $23,624 $944,027 26.4 9.3% 109.3 4.6% 23.6% $5,783 $25,467 $683,112 34.5 8.3% 46.3 4.6% 23.3% $5,180 $24,582 $994,365 33.8 9.4% 99.3 4.6% 21.1% $4,792 $20,600 $537,904 20.4 5.7% 13.2 3.2% 20.1% $4,175 $17,128 $434,734 18.1 6.8% 80.8 4.1% 21.8% $4,791 $21,641 $499,409 24.4 9.0% 70.3 4.9% 22.9% $6,501 $27,843 $939,166 31.6 4.3% 47.9 4.6% AVERAGE VALUE OF PRIMARY REAL ESTATE (5%) FIVE-YEAR AVERAGE HOUSE- HOLD INCOME GROWTH (15%) AVERAGE COMMUTE TIME IN MINUTES (10%) HOUSING STARTS PER 10,000 RESIDENTS (10%) According to SFU's Hall, the relatively weak Canadian dollar has also helped sustain tourism in the Sea-to-Sky Corridor. However, he thinks the upgraded highway to Whistler may be a bigger factor in the area's sustained economic success. "You build a nice road for people and you don't make them pay for it—they reap the benefits." T H E B R I G H T S P O T S After last year's fall from multi-year stints in the top three, the northeastern communities of Fort St. John and Dawson Creek have regained some ground, with Fort St. John just shy of cracking the top five this year and Dawson Creek recov- ering three spots to reach No. 27. Even with muted oil and gas prices, major energy infra- structure projects like the Site C dam have kept the region's economic wheels turning. Couple that with high average incomes, inexpensive housing and—in Fort St. John's case—generous household spend i ng on recreation, and the Northeast remains com- petitively positioned. To the west, on B.C.'s Nor th Coast, Prince Rupert has maintained an appearance in the top 10 for two consecutive years, aided by healthy income growth. Hall isn't surprised to see it performing so well, given its growing stature as a port city. "The way the port is developing in relation to the city is quite Category weights shown in brackets. Full methodology on page 33 HOLD STEADY Powered by the growth of its port, Prince Rupert again makes our top 10