The demographic trend toward urbanization in Canada began well before Confederation and it is still growing in that way. According to the Canadian Encyclopedia “80% of Canadians live in urban areas, meaning cities, towns, villages or unincorporated settlements with populations greater than 1000 persons, or in built-up fringes of incorporated areas”. In the last days on Bow Valley Network some locals have been talking about Canmore as a possible “city” due to its population (13,992 in 2016 census).
What population makes a city in Canada?
In Canada “city” is a broad, generic term usually referring to an urbanized area. When looking at the cities of Canada, the designations that make an area a “city” varies by province. For example, any area that is qualified as a city in the province of Alberta must have a population that exceeds 10,000 people, along with other criteria including the size of land parcels of the area’s buildings. According to Alberta.ca “a town can be formed when the population is at least 1,000 people and may exceed 10,000 people unless it requests a change to city status”. In Alberta there are a total of 107 towns and 19 municipalities that have been granted city status. Cochrane is still a town even though it has a population of 29,277 (2019 census).
For some people cities can feel too crowded and that means more stress or pressure. It is more difficult to form tight communities in urban areas than in rural areas. Other individuals love the idea of having a more “modern urban life” and less rural. What do you think about the town of Canmore becoming a city? What would be the benefits to its population? Do you prefer if Canmore remains as a town? You can express your ideas about this subject on our Bow Valley Network Facebook Group in the following link
Bow Valley Network Facebook Group
For more information about this subject visit
https://www.alberta.ca/types-of-municipalities-in-alberta.aspx
