Robert Hainsworth is spending 16 weeks in Powell River as a summer student with Fleming and Associates. He is writing a story for the Peak each month from a newcomer’s perspective about living in the area. This is his second story.
I have now been in Powell River for a month or so and my mind has been turned to the future. Despite having a crippling amount of student debt, I feel myself on the path of most young professionals. First, we go to school, then we get a job, after that buy a house and so on and so on. Tabitha and I have decided we are ready to be members of the Powell River community for the long haul so I have been researching and exploring the Powell River real estate market.
Powell River is a small community but it clearly punches above its weight class in what it offers for housing. As I explored, I learned that many homes have a beautiful view, large sized lots, huge decks, access to so many recreational options and, of course, affordable price tags. My current rental is on Quadra Avenue, the homes there are large, accessible and have a wonderful sense of community. I have also done some exploring south of town where the homes are nestled in the forest, surrounded by peace and quiet and enough room to have a wonderfully productive garden (or farm depending on personal ambition). And then there is Townsite, a town within a town full of character homes and a real sense of history. Just looking down the street gives one a feeling of the hustle and bustle that must have encompassed Powell River during the mill’s heyday. It is in Townsite that I want to settle down. I can appreciate the wonderful options that are within and surround Powell River but here is something special about those old homes.
As I biked around Townsite, I saw Dwight Hall, the Patricia Theatre and of course the ever-present Catalyst Paper Corporation mill, all standing as anchors, holding the community stable through the ripples of time. Every street in Townsite is full of homes that are dedicated to the people who live in this wonderful place; they fit the landscape and the lifestyles of their owners. I come from a place where people have many kilometres between where they live and where they work; it is nice to see that this hasn’t been the norm forever and that someone along the line was thinking about the relationship between economic drivers and balance with one’s life.
Many of the Townsite homes have been restored to their original (or better than original) glory, with sharp paint colours, matched trim, manicured landscaping and, I would assume, beautiful interiors. The next generation of Townsite has a very high standard and the benefits of this will help all members of the community. It will be this standard that Tabitha and I will strive for but for us, it will have to be a goal and not an initial reality.
What is really appealing to me are the hidden gems. It is the overgrown hedges, faded exterior paint and cracked walkways that really get my creative mind fluttering. Where others see work, I am beginning to see potential; potential to own a home (which would not be possible in a large city), potential to work at something that will make its mark on the community and, of course, the potential to share that with others. I can see it now: Tabitha and I will be making a ritual of going to the building supply stores and spending our weekends pruning, painting, installing and relaxing. I will never be the home’s intended owner or even its last owner but I am excited to have the opportunity to be one person who will occupy Townsite and take part in something clearly larger than myself.
I am left with the wonderful thought that I will have the chance to begin my life and career in Powell River by building and contributing to the world around me. This will be particularly the case when I finally have the opportunity to buy a home in Townsite and return it to its full splendour. I can’t wait.
