Canal Flats

Canal Flats is squeezed into a geographic pinch point in the Columbia Valley, on the flat corridor between Columbia Lake and the Kootenay River. The location is everything here. It was a natural portage for the Ktunaxa Nation for centuries and later the site of an ambitious canal project in the 1880s. What brokers need to grasp is that its modern story is also one of transition—from a pure resource town to something else entirely.

For almost a hundred years, this was a mill town, plain and simple. The sawmill was the only game in town from 1928 until it shut down in 2015, forcing a major identity crisis. The housing stock tells that story. Almost 80% of the homes are single-detached, built for generations of forestry workers. But look closer and you’ll find the rest is almost evenly split between row houses and movable dwellings, a housing mix that speaks to a practical, working-class history.

The town’s big bet on a new identity is the Columbia Lake Technology Center, built on the old mill site to tap into existing fibre optic lines. It’s a bold move away from forestry and into tech and skilled trades. But this pivot is still very much in progress. The population has jumped 20% to over 800 people, which is a good sign, but the economic fundamentals haven’t caught up. We see a town with a solid plan, but the foundation is still being poured.

What’s driving the economy right now isn’t tech; it’s accommodation, food services, and construction. Demographically, this isn’t a young boomtown either. The median age is nearly 50, and seniors make up almost a quarter of the population. This profile fits the lifestyle and retirement appeal—the area has incredible access to recreation—but it also raises questions about the future local workforce needed to support a tech hub.

All this directly informs our lending position. The lifestyle pitch is strong, but the underlying economics require a clear-eyed approach. With a median household income of $71,500 and an unemployment rate of 7.3%, local purchasing power is thin. In a foreclosure situation, a quick sale isn’t a guarantee. There’s a noticeable gap between the town’s high-tech ambitions and its current economic reality.

Because of that gap, we underwrite conservatively in Canal Flats. We need to see deals with strong borrower equity and a clear exit strategy that doesn’t rely on a tech boom that hasn’t happened yet. For this market, our maximum LTV is 55.0%. We’re absolutely lending here, but our approach is grounded in managing the very real risks of a small town in the middle of a massive economic shift.