TRU Power Point presentation on mapping the capacity of a community.

1. By Heather Colman

2.  Cumberland was founded in 1888
after the discovery of coal.
 Coal mines were set up and the
town grew quickly.
 A significant piece of the history
here would be the China town
that developed in Cumberland.
 The Chinese population in the
1800’s in Cumberland was the
largest Chinese settlement in
North America aside from San
Francisco. They largely worked
in the mines.
 The last of the mines closed in
the 1960’s.

5.  It is known as the Village of
Cumberland.
 It is a part of the Comox Valley, the
Comox Valley includes Courtenay
(where I live), Comox, Black Creek,
Merville, Union Bay, Royston and
Fanny Bay.
 The population of the Comox Valley
is roughly 60,000.
 The landfill for the Valley is in
Cumberland (it is a large source of
revenue). Primary Building Block.
 Drinking water for the Valley is also
largely provided by Cumberland’s
Comox Lake.

6.  A quieter place with a population
of roughly 3000
 The economy no longer relies
upon the mines.
 The demographics show that
Cumberland is young. The
median age here is 38 years old.
 Major employers aren’t found in
Cumberland, most people travel
to either to Courtenay/Comox or
Alberta.
 Three major groups of
population in the Village,
according to Mayor Leslie Baird.

7. Young
Families
Elderly People
“Lifers”
Alberta
Workers

8.  There are talks to try and open up a
coal mine however the Village of
Cumberland is not interested.
 A recent National Post I found when
researching “my” community showed
how outside interests will decide that
they know what is best for a
community without taking the time to
listen first.
 Cumberland is not reliant on fossil
fuels anymore which brings me to the
strengths that I see in this community.

10. Provincial Government – Potential building block
Heritage-Primary building block
Emergency Services-Secondary building block
Churches-Secondary building block
The Library-Secondary building block
Cumberland Community School-Secondary building block
Parks and recreation- Primary building block
Arts-Primary building block/potential building block
Cumberland Community School Society-Primary building block
Cumberland Health Centre-Secondary
Funky little shops-Primary Building Block
Community-Primary Resource

11.  Heritage
 Tight knit community
 They promote community in
many ways.
 Small community! People say hello
on the streets!
 Many opportunities for getting
together: lots of cafes and
restaurants, amazing parks (more
on that soon), recreation centre
that is top notch, fantastic venues
for music, and the school
 Annual festivals: Cumberland
Empire Days, Taiwanese Lantern
Festival, yearly music festivals, and
more…

12. The Wandering Moose Café is located in the Post Office
building. It is just one of several places to catch a bite to
eat.

13.  Cumberland is home to some
very unique stores:
 The Patch (fabulous consignment)
 Polka Dot Pants (clothing)
 Dark Side Chocolates
 Delphine Flowers and Garden
 The Rusty Rooster
 Seeds Natural Food Market
 The Cumberland Village Bakery
There are no “big box” stores here.

14. I don’t mind the drive to come shop at The Patch. It
is a delightful consignment shop. The store is very
old ,the floors are wooden and they creak as your
wander your way through.

15. Still warm … it took self control to
snap a photo before I ate it.

16.  Includes private surgical clinic.
There is also a
residential care
facility for elderly
people. There are 66
beds and it is
publically funded.

17.  Cumberland Village Works
 Produced The Big Time Outs (live
music events that brought 2000+
people out to Cumberland each
time).
 De La Soul
 KaNaan (Juno Award Winner)
 Sam Roberts
 Delhi 2 Dublin
 Kuba Oms
 And so many more …

18. After watching, and listening,
to Kuba perform at the Big
Time Out, I fell in love with his
music. I have seen Kuba
several times since and he was
kind enough to give me tickets
to a show he did last summer
in Campbell River. I’m slightly
star struck in this photo. As a
little plug for Comox Lake (in
Cumberland), Kuba camps
there every chance he gets.

19. (hint) go find them
on iTunes!!

22. This is the
Waverly
Pub

23. Weekly live musical performance by world class
musicians. Excellent sound and they have a very
friendly atmosphere.

24. Primary building block, connected to the school, a
secondary building block.
Before I did this project, I hadn’t heard of the
Cumberland Community School Society. This society
exemplifies what we should be striving for in our
communities. They have opened up (very recently) a
youth drop in centre for younger teens with plans to
include the older teens in the upcoming months.
The society offers many free programs for the
community, including a healthy lunch program, fitness
classes, biking classes, massage, and employment skills.
The society is connected with the Cumberland
Community School and operates largely out of the school
but they have their own board.

25. It’s nice and modern inside the library.
When I poked my head in, I saw several
people enjoying the library.

26. Churches

27.  Comox Lake Campground and
Park is a beautiful place that is
popular for swimmers, campers,
and boaters. The scenery is
breathtaking and the coffee they
serve at the concession (after a
night of tent camping) is like the
nectar of the gods.
 Comox Lake is also the main
water source for the Comox
Valley.
 Cumberland Recreation Centre
 BMX Park
 Mountain Biking
 Hiking

28. Fun park and it has the bouncy rubber material which
makes it even better for the little ones.

30. This is photo I took while camping at Comox Lake.
Comox Lake is a popular place for camping,
swimming, hiking, and boating.

32. It is truly magnificent out here.

33. It is an older building but well utilized by the community.
There is a fantastic climbing wall inside that is very
popular . In front of the recreation centre, you might be
able to see the rough road. This leads me into the
challenges Cumberland faces.

34. Room to Grow

35. Reputation of being a ‘rougher’ area
No high school
No grocery store
Traditional social services are not in the
community
Major employers are not within the community
Lack of police presence
Rough roads

36. Cumberland’s roads are in dire need of some
maintenance. This is supposed to be happening soon.
It does appear in the budget, so here is hoping!

37. Due to the low population in Cumberland, they don’t pay
for policing. The police come when called but that can
take a while. This becomes and issue when there are
situations requiring a quick police response. It is over 10
kilometres from Courtenay where the RCMP are stationed.

38. Most employment is found in Courtenay, Comox or
even Alberta. It is about 10 km away from Courtenay
but a bit far to cycle or walk.

39. Not in Cumberland
This is a definite issue. I sat down with Cumberland’s
mayor and I asked her about this specifically. The
Village is in the process of applying to a provincial
program to get some services in Cumberland. The
Village will provide free office space to ministry
offices in order to facilitate services coming to
Cumberland.
A vulnerable person needing services right now
would have to get on a bus or get a ride from
someone in order to access traditional social services
that are all located in Courtenay (10km away) or
Comox (15 km away).

40. Like the social services, this is an issue that I would
assume would be an issue for vulnerable populations in
Cumberland. For someone with money and a vehicle,
making the trek to the grocery store isn’t a huge deal.
It also adds to the general expenses per month having
to drive a distance in order to purchase food.

41. Hard to measure but it is there.
 I grew up in the Comox Valley and
Cumberland has carried with it a
reputation of being rough.
 It was the place people joked
about although I don’t hear it as
much now.
 My mother, who was born there,
didn’t like telling people where
she was born as it wasn’t deemed
to be a “good place”.
 These are hard things to shake,
especially with the older
generations.
 My hope is that this is a thing of
the past. With more digging, I am
hoping to get a better idea of
what the bias is like now.

42. On the bus with you …
Unfortunately Cumberland
doesn’t have the
population to have its own
high school. This means
the kids need to leave
their community after the
9th grade. They go by bus
to Courtenay (that would
add an easy half hour on
either side of their school
day).

43. Weighing out the
strengths and challenges:
• I have really enjoyed getting to
know Cumberland a little bit better.
In speaking with residents and
politicians, I’d consider moving
there.
• The sense of community is what
brings it all together for me.
• The incredible music that comes to
Cumberland regularly is a draw for
me as well.
• I have 3 teen daughters though and
wouldn’t relish the thought of
sending them to another
community to go to school.

44. Citations
• Interview with Mayor Leslie Baird on
April 1, 2015
• Statistics Canada. 2012. Cumberland,
British Columbia (Code 5926014) and
Comox Valley, British Columbia (Code
5926) (table). Census Profile.
2011 Census. Statistics Canada
Catalogue no. 98-316-XWE. Ottawa.
Released October 24, 2012.
• Hopper.T. (2015, February 15). In B.C.’s
19th century coal mining epicentre,
residents push hard against plans for a
new coal mine. National Post Retrieved
from
http://news.nationalpost.com/news/can
ada/opposition-mounts-to-block-new-b-
c-mine-as-town-shuns-its-coal-mining-
heritage