Statistics Canada: Revelstoke grows by 5.7% in 2016 census

Revelstoke has reversed decades of population decline according to the 2016 Canada census. The city grew by 5.7% between 2011 and 2016, from 7,139 to 7,547.

On Feb. 8, Statistics Canada released their first batch of data from the 2016 Canada census. The information released focused on population size and growth in Canada.

The national census found that Canada grew by 5.0% over the same period, from 33.48 million to 35.15 million. This increase of 1.7 million was a slightly lower rate than 5.9% from 2006 to 2011.

The census found that Revelstoke had 3,531 private dwellings, of which 3,252 were occupied by usual residents, which refers to a private dwelling in which a person or a group of persons is permanently residing. (This statistic is one of the few details Stats Canada provides during this information release from the 2016 survey; several more information releases are scheduled through the year).

The rural area around Revelstoke, which includes lands just outside of city limits like the Begbie Bench and lands near and south of the Revelstoke Airport (in addition to the communities of Trout Lake and Mica Dam village), also experienced an increase. The population there increased by 8.3% between 2011 and 2016, from 552 to 598. There were a total of 486 private dwellings in that area. But only 267 of them were occupied by what Stats Canada calls “usual residents.” This high percentage of non-permanently occupied homes represents the nature of much of the rural recreational nature of the area, especially in the Trout Lake region, where many structures are seasonal vacation homes.

How do our numbers compare to the rest of B.C. and Canada? According to the census, we are the 73rd largest city in B.C., and 524th in Canada.