Community Services
The Community Services section is designed to orient people who live here and people who are thinking about moving here to services and regulatory background in the West Boundary.
We get a lot of questions from both locals and visitors.
This is our attempt to direct people to the right service or agency. We are not the providers of these services and we are not attempting to represent the service providers or government agencies that we refer to in this section. We are trying to index information from other sources in order to help people find the information sources they need.
Please email us at admin@westboundaryconnect.com if you find any errors in the information provided in this section.
Building Construction
- Building Permits
Building permits in the West Boundary are managed through the Regional District. The Building Bylaw has been in place since the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary was established in 1966, and it applies to all of the West Boundary. The Regional District manages permitting and inspection for the City of Greenwood and the Village of Midway as well.
This link to RDKB website includes the information you will need to work your way through the permitting and inspection process.
- Contractors
There are a number of contractors and trades people in the West Boundary. Some are listed in the Business Directory on this website. Not all of them are listed however, because they often can’t keep up with demand even without advertising. Construction in the West Boundary has been booming in the last several years.
- Building Supplies
There are a few small building supply businesses and custom timber manufacturers in the West Boundary listed in the Business Directory on this website.
- Building Stats
Construction in the West Boundary as a whole has been booming in the last several years. Big White on it’s own is usually at the top of the list.
Cemeteries & Funeral Homes
- Active Cemeteries
There are 4 active cemeteries in the West Boundary:
- Greenwood: operated by the City of Greenwood 250 445-6644
- Midway: operated by the Village of Midway 250 449-2222
- Rock Creek: contact Mary Cannon 250 446-2454
- Bridesville: operated by Bridesville Community Club, contact Ed Brouwer 250 495-4877
- Inactive Cemeteries
There are two inactive cemeteries in the West Boundary:
- Westbridge: Westbridge Recreation Society are the caretakers
- Beaverdell: Beaverdell Community Club are the caretakers
Many of us consider the historic Phoenix Cemetery to be part of the West Boundary. It is however located in Area D-Rural Grand Forks. It is maintained by the Boundary Historical Society.
There are multiple historic gravesites across the area. Information about these can be found in the following places:
- Kettle River Museum, Midway
- Greenwood Museum
- Boundary Museum & Archives, Grand Forks
- Cemetery Service
A Regional District cemetery service was established in 20xx that includes Area E (except for Big White) and City of Greenwood. An ad hoc Cemetery Committee meets annually. The managers of the active and inactive cemeteries (except Midway, which is not in the service) meet to present their financial and activity reports to the Regional District and to request funding for projects for the upcoming year. The service pays for maintenance costs as well as capital costs when needed (e.g. fencing).
- Funeral Homes
There are no funeral homes located in the West Boundary. The closest ones are in Oliver and Grand Forks.
Fire Departments
- Fire protection in the West Boundary
The West Boundary is composed of 3 political jurisdictions (Area E, City of Greenwood, Village of Midway). Area E encompasses 53% of the entire Regional District, covering 4,295 sq km of unorganized territory. This land base is primarily mountainous, forested land. Structural fire services only cover a small portion of the entire area.
It is often a surprise to newcomers to the area that the less densely populated areas don’t have structural fire protection service. This is something to keep in mind when considering locating in these areas, as insurance premiums are generally higher outside fire protection areas.
Fires in rural areas are handled by BC Wildfire Service, but their mandate is not structural fire protection: “The BC Wildfire Service is tasked with managing wildfires through a combination of wildfire prevention, mitigation and suppression strategies, on both Crown and private lands outside of organised areas such as municipalities or regional districts.”
- Four fire departments in the West Boundary
Contact the local governments responsible for structural fire protection to see if you fall in their service area. Note that all four provide road rescue services.
- Big White Fire Rescue is operated by the Regional District
- Beaverdell Fire Rescue is operated by the Regional District
- Greenwood Fire Department is operated by the City of Greenwood
- Midway Volunteer Fire Department is operated by the Village of Midway, and it includes a satellite hall and service coverage in Kettle Valley (Rock Creek area)
- Challenges of providing structural fire protection services in rural areas
Providing fire services is expensive due to the strict regulatory environment governing the provision of services. Even though the services are mostly staffed by volunteers, the cost of safety equipment and training for firefighters is high. There are also stringent guidelines governing the need for apparatus (fire trucks, tenders) to be replaced. The smaller the population paying into the service, the higher the tax rates for property owners in the service area.
Fire Underwriters is the influencing organization for many of the requirements.
- Advocating for new or extended fire protection services
From time to time there have been public expressions of interest in extending or creating fire protection service in uncovered parts of Area E. There is a process for extending or creating a service that will require public approval. Advocacy for additional services should be directed to the Area E Director (areaedirector@rdkb.com).
Roads
- Understanding who is responsible for road maintenance in BC
Municipalities (e.g. Village of Midway, City of Greenwood) own and are responsible to maintain most roadways within their municipality, with the exception of Hwy 3. If your property is in Midway or Greenwood, your property taxes pay for road maintenance in your community.
The Province owns and is responsible for roads outside municipalities (in electoral areas). Property owners in electoral areas pay for roads outside municipalities and for arterial/provincial highways (e.g. Hwy 3), for the whole province, on their property taxes.
There are no roads under Federal jurisdiction in the West Boundary, but an example would be a road through a Federal Park.
- How highway maintenance works in BC
Highways in BC are maintained by private contractors through Ministry of Transportation & Infrastructure. There are 28 contract areas in the Province. Click here to see the duties of the contractors and how the contracting process works.
When was road maintenance privatized in BC? Roads were privatized in 1988, under the leadership of Premier Bill Vander Zalm and the Social Credit Party.
- How to report concerns about road conditions in your area
- Big White community: AIM Roads 1-866-222-4204 or email aimcommunications.ca@acciona.com
- Greenwood: call YRB for Hwy 3 and City of Greenwood for other roads: 250 445-6644
- Midway: call YRB for Hwy 3 and Village of Midway for other roads: 250 449-2222
- All other roads outside Big White, Midway & Greenwood:
- YRB non emergency 250-693-5609
- YRB emergency 888-630-1420
- Email: use their online contact form
- Road classifications & maintenance standards
Road contractors are required to maintain roads according to standards established by the Province. Often complaints from the public about winter maintenance standards show that we aren’t aware of the classifications, the standards and the priorities. See The ABCs of Winter Highway Classification and Maintenance.
- Understanding my responsibility as a property owner
Road maintenance contractors do not remove snow from driveway intersections. That is the responsibility of the property owner.
Advocacy: taking my concerns to a higher level
If your concerns aren’t be addressed, you can escalate your concern through the following. Keep good notes about your concerns and use email to document your correspondence.
Local government
- City of Greenwood: 250 445-6644, oc.greenwoodcity@shaw.ca
- Village of Midway: 250 449-2222, midwaybc@shaw.ca
- Area E Director for Regional District of Kootenay Boundary: areaedirector@rdkb.com
Ministry of Transportation & Infrastructure
Ask for an email contact:
- Grand Forks: 250 442-4384
- Kelowna: 250 712-3660