Now that 2016 is wrapping up, many Squamish residents are thinking more about how lucky they are to live here.
It seems that Squamish – our small community in the mountains – has been a haven from shocking events around the world.
We hear stories of horrific wars, devastating natural disasters and the contentious election in the U.S.
Sometimes it hits close to home – Squamish welcomed refugees from war-torn Syria earlier this year and American visitors can be heard relaying their fears about their president-elect – but, for the most part, we feel safe and sheltered.
Squamish, however, isn’t without its problems. The ongoing housing crisis has made it difficult for a lot of people to find homes and forced others to move away. In November, a fire was set to the Woodfibre LNG office downtown, causing further heated debate on both sides of the liquefied natural gas project. One spot on the highway, just north of Lions Bay, continues to cause problems, including the tragic death of a commuter and several significant injuries.
Squamish isn’t without it’s problems, but a lot of great things have happened this year.
On a summer evening, hundreds of people huddled around a giant screen downtown to watch The Tragically Hip perform for the last time. Squamish’s athletes further put us on the map by competing among the best in the world. This Christmas, Squamish residents donated thousands of cans of food, children’s gifts and money to Community Christmas Care to help the less fortunate.
The year that was saw Squamish quickly becoming more recognized as what we already know – an awesome place to live.
New housing developments are forever changing the face of our community and bringing more people to town, who are opening innovative businesses and are out exploring what the community has to offer. Tourism is on the rise, as Squamish becomes much more of it’s own destination instead of a stop on the way. Currently, the annual influx of bald eagles to Brackendale is attracting people from all over.
Now that 2017 is set to gear up, let’s remember how lucky we are to live in Squamish, while also working on the problems we have in town. Squamish is a great place to live and, with the help of the residents and our many community organizations, we can continue to make it even better.
