Search for B.C.'s best small town: Northern region, Round 2
The final contender for Haida Gwaii, the Peace and plenty of regions in between will be decided this week
There are plenty of interesting communities remaining in the Search for B.C.'s Best Small Town, but there's only one that requires people to leave British Columbia in order to visit it.
"It's a weird mixture," admits Leandra Brient, the owner of Atlin Mountain Coffee Roasters.
Atlin is a community of a few hundred people in the far northwest corner of the province, on Taku River Tlingit First Nation lands, accessible on road only by passing through the Yukon.
It might best known for its annual music festival and the Llewellyn Glacier that can be seen from the other side of Atlin Lake — but from a governance perspective, its most unique aspect is its relationship with British Columbia.
Any major goods are bought in Whitehorse. The town stays in Yukon's time zone year-round. There's a Service B.C. location and a quaint 1900s-era courthouse that provide the legal framework for Atlin residents conducting life in B.C., but there are many more links with the territory an hour's drive to the north.
"People in the Yukon, particularly here in Whitehorse, definitely consider Atlin part of the territory," said Dave White, host of Airplay, CBC Yukon's afternoon radio show — which is broadcast in Atlin.
"Lots of people from Whitehorse have places … in Atlin. A lot of people take their RVs down and park them for the summer. We go camping in Atlin all the time, it's like another town in the Yukon, except it's not."
Provincial Court judges sit regularly in the Atlin courthouse. For their job description, see "Wanted: judge, cook, teacher & long distance driver" <a href="https://t.co/Jpu0sQaeA1">https://t.co/Jpu0sQaeA1</a>, a Provincial Court eNews article. Follow us & subscribe to eNews for more fascinating info like this! <a href="https://t.co/jb9scYM3g0">https://t.co/jb9scYM3g0</a>
—@BCProvCourt'The little town that can'
Brient said a stir was caused a couple years ago by the arrival of a few bumper stickers that said "Atlin, YT", referring to the Yukon Territory.
"It created a hot topic of people being very much for or against, but I think people generally feel [that] we are very proud British Columbians," she said.
"It's just handy to have …. a big city right there that just happens to be in the Yukon."
And she hopes that the rest of the B.C. supports Atlin — even if it requires a detour out of province to arrive.
"Atlin is the little town that can, it's full of artists, full of people that happened to come traveling and for some reason decided to stay."
After defeating Houston last week, Atlin faces a much larger foe in the second round of the Search for B.C.'s Best Small Town as it takes on Kitimat.
Each day from Tuesday to Friday, there will be a new series of one-on-one votes in a different region. Each week, we'll narrow the field down — from 128 to 64, 64 to 32, and so on, until we have a champion.
Voting will take place until 10 p.m. PT each day, with today's votes determining the eight quarterfinalists in the Interior quadrant of the competition.