Gibsons is a town on the Sunshine Coast in southwestern British Columbia, Canada, on the northwest shore of Howe Sound. Located within the Pacific coastal rainforest and serving as the gateway to the rest of the Sunshine Coast, Gibsons is a regional tourist destination.
Established in 1886 by George Gibson, the settlement was incorporated in 1929 as Gibson's Landing and renamed Gibsons in 1947. Historically a centre for forestry and commercial fishing, the town has since developed a more diversified economy. In 2009, it received the International Award for Liveable Communities for "the world's most liveable community with a population under 20,000". It is best known as the setting of the long-running CBC Television series The Beachcombers and has served as a filming location for productions including Murder in a Small Town, Charlie St. Cloud, and Needful Things.
The land currently known as Gibsons is part of the traditional and ancestral lands of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw, which also includes parts of Greater Vancouver and the Squamish River watershed. Sḵwx̱wú7mesh oral history tells that the region around Gibsons was the birthplace of the Squamish people after what is called The Great Flood.
The European settlement town of Gibsons was established in 1886 by George Gibson and his sons. It was incorporated in 1929 as Gibson's Landing, and in 1947 was renamed Gibsons at the residents' request. The town's two main sections are:
Lower Gibsons, the mostly residential seaside area that includes Gibsons Marina, Molly's Reach, and Winegarden Park, with an auditorium that hosts live performances in the summer. It also has shops and restaurants catering mostly to vacationers.
Upper Gibsons, along the Sunshine Coast Highway (BC Highway 101), with commercial areas including Sunnycrest Mall, the town's two major supermarkets, a variety of fast food restaurants, the largest elementary school, and the high school.
Gibsons is the first town in British Columbia to accept styrofoam at its recycling facility, the Gibsons Recycling Depot. Its staff has travelled widely to promote styrofoam recycling; founder Buddy Boyd was invited to address an international Zero Waste conference in Florianopolis, Brazil.
Economy
The Sunshine Coast has seen a three-decade transition from a forestry- and fishing-based economy to a more diverse one with construction trades, business services, retail and tourism becoming prominent.
Between 2016 and 2021, its population grew 3.3% compared with BC's overall growth rate of 7.6%. In 2021, the median resident age was 56.0 years, compared with the provincial median of 42.8 years.
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Gibsons had a population of 4,758 living in 2,282 of its 2,482 total private dwellings, a change of 3.3% from its 2016 population of 4,605. With a land area of 4.31km2 (1.66sqmi), it had a population density of 1,103.9/km2 (2,859.2/sqmi) in 2021.
Gibsons Harbour, Sunshine Coast
Ethnicity
Panethnic groups in the Town of Gibsons (2001−2021)
In February 2005, Gibsons won the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting contest, coming first in the world.
In October 2009, the town was declared the "Most Liveable Community in the World" (under 20,000 population) at the international Livcom Awards. Endorsed by the United Nations Environment Programme, the LivCom competition focuses on best practices for local environmental management.
In 2009 Gibsons won an Energy & Climate Action Award for Community Planning and Development from the Community Energy Association. A major factor in the award was a new housing development, which will be heated by Canada's first publicly owned geoexchange system.
In 2013, the Town of Gibsons was recognized by the Community Energy Association for its Natural Asset Management as a Climate Adaptation Approach.
Other awards include:
1st Place among all world cities in LivCom's "Planning for the Future" category in 2009.
Communities in Bloom awards – 2008 Provincial Champions; 2007 Provincial Champions award for Environmental Awareness; 2006 Provincial Champions for best floral displays.
OCP award, SmartGrowth BC, 2007
Notes
↑Statistic includes all persons that did not make up part of a visible minority or an indigenous identity.
↑Statistic includes total responses of "Chinese", "Korean", and "Japanese" under visible minority section on census.
↑Statistic includes total responses of "Filipino" and "Southeast Asian" under visible minority section on census.
↑Statistic includes total responses of "West Asian" and "Arab" under visible minority section on census.
↑Statistic includes total responses of "Visible minority, n.i.e." and "Multiple visible minorities" under visible minority section on census.
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