New population estimates published by Statistics Canada reveal Whistler, Pemberton and Mount Currie populations shrunk slightly between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024. The estimates depart from the near-uninterrupted growth the region has seen for the last decade.
Populations shrunk by 2.7 per cent in Whistler, 4.8 per cent in the Village of Pemberton and four per cent in Mount Currie.
The area's decline is at odds with a steady, province-wide increase in population. B.C. grew by three per cent in the same time span, to 5,698,430.
Whistler's population fell as demand for social services skyrocketed
Whistler’s permanent population fell to 15,625 in 2024—a decrease of 440 people from 2023. Although the resort has mostly experienced sustained, steady growth over the long-term—including a 19-per-cent uptick between the 2016 and 2021 census—its population showed greater signs of volatility emerging out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Stats Can, Whistler's population fell from 15,446 in 2020 to 14,771 in 2021, before climbing back up to 15,109 in 2022 and 16,065 in 2023, the first time the community's population has cracked 16,000. While Whistler was no doubt affected by pandemic-fuelled mobility trends—six in 10 Canadians who relocated during the pandemic cited COVID as a factor—Jackie Dickinson, executive director of the Whistler Community Services Society (WCSS), theorized the recent decline was likely influenced by economic factors.
"My first thought and concern goes to the people who potentially felt like this is an unaffordable place to live and exist," she said.
It's a trend Dickinson has seen first-hand at WCSS. She said several staff members, including those in supervisory roles, made the decision to leave the resort last year.
"They were valuable members of our team doing incredible work and there really wasn't much as an employer we could do to keep them here because they couldn’t see Whistler as a long-term home," she explained.
Whistler's population fell last year even as local demand for social services skyrocketed, continuing a pattern that began in the pandemic. November 2024 was the busiest month in the Whistler Food Bank's 35-year history, tallying 2,262 visits. The spike in demand is not relegated to the food bank, either.
"Every service we have has gone up," Dickinson said.
It's a burden social service organizations and food banks have had to shoulder across the country. A recent report from Food Banks BC found household visits to food banks rose by 81 per cent between 2019 and '24.
"Our usages have gone up every year, sometimes up to 35 per cent. What that’s telling me is we have people seeing the need to ask for help and also needing additional support to be able to continue to live in the community. We are very grateful to be part of their care support plan, but it’s a wider conversation across the community and in B.C. as well," Dickinson said.
"One thing we need to remember is 'rent always eats first," she added, citing a quote by Sahar Raza, VP of research and advocacy at Toronto's Daily Bread Food Bank.
While Stats Can didn't break down its recent population figures by demographic, Charalyn Kriz, board member for Whistler's Mature Action Community, said she's clocked a longer trend of local seniors leaving town, citing a number of reasons, including a lack of advanced medical care, concerns around accessibility, and frustration with overtourism.
"If there was a way for seniors to downsize that would free up homes for younger families, the community would stay vibrant," she said. "The housing situation is just so poor in Whistler."
Reached for comment, a communications official for the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) said in a statement the local government typically relies on population data from BC Statistics over Stats Can, as it provides more frequent updates and forecasts. It's also worth noting neither Stats Can's projections nor the federal census count temporary residents, who make up a significant portion of Whistler's workforce.
"We expect our population to continue growing, especially as Whistler progresses toward the development of new housing as outlined in the recent Housing Needs Report," the statement went on.
In December, elected officials got a look at the RMOW's Interim Housing Needs Report, an appendix to a 2022 housing report Victoria required local governments to compile. The report estimated Whistler will require 1,572 new housing units in the next five years, and 5,639 in the next 20 years.
Pemberton’s population declined for the second year in a row
Pemberton’s population contracted to 3,566—down 180 villagers from the previous year. It’s the second year in a row the Village of Pemberton’s estimates have declined, after a slight decrease of 0.75 per cent between 2022 and 2023.
According to Scott McRae, the village's manager of development services, the reported decline is not cause for concern.
“Despite these anomalies, the Village has experienced significant growth, with a 32-per-cent population increase between the 2016 and 2021 Census periods and an overall rise of 30.6 per cent from 2016 to 2024,” said McRae in a statement to Pique. “While recent slight declines in population estimates may reflect a normalization post-pandemic, long-term trends clearly point to sustained growth in our community.”
McRae said the Village is still planning for the population to reach the 5,000 population threshold, at which point the Village of Pemberton is eligible to become the City of Pemberton.
Existing and anticipated population growth is already causing a housing crunch in the village, which the village is addressing with initiatives like the 2024 Housing Strategy and recent zoning changes.
“Beyond the numbers, we see the ongoing impacts of this growth, including a housing shortage that is affecting our community,” noted McRae. “Local employers report continued challenges in attracting talent to the Pemberton Valley due to a lack of available housing, an issue that underscores the importance of addressing housing needs as a priority.”
Mount Currie’s population is steady over time
Stats Canada's new estimates don't provide data for the entirety of the Lil’wat Nation’s traditional territory, only the most populated area—Mount Currie. The unincorporated community's population is estimated to have declined to 1,239 in 2024 from 1,290 in 2023. Since 2020, the downtown core of the Lil’wat Nation has declined by 34 people.
Mount Currie's estimated population decline isn't as much of a departure as Whistler and Pemberton's; Stats Canada's figures for the area have been up and down for the last two decades.
“As we see it, the population has been fairly steady over quite some time,” said the Lil'wat Nation's chief administrative officer Rolf de Bruin. “When I look at the Census of 2021 [and] 2016, there is not a statistical trend or decline.”
De Bruin told Pique the Nation recognizes a lack of economic opportunities to meet a rising education level might be forcing some members out of the area.
"We’re working really hard to create more economic opportunities for our community members within our territory so that they can stay within the territory," said de Bruin. "But at this point, when you look at the numbers, individual income for community members within the subdivision is 50-per-cent lower than individual income in the Village of Pemberton."
As of the 2021 Census, the median total income for Pemberton residents was $49,600 compared to just $24,600 in Lil'wat Nation.
He also flagged housing availability and affordability as another hurdle to keeping the population local.
"These are challenges that I think are fairly universal within the corridor," said de Bruin. "We have to offer people a place to stay within our within our region that they can actually afford with corresponding employment.
"The Lil'wat business group has a very aggressive growth strategy in the areas of forestry and retail, construction, development and other industries to grow our opportunities here for members to stay within the territory."
Areas around population centres also saw declines.
Statistics Canada provides estimates for areas outside of population centres in the form of regional electoral district areas, including the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District's four RDAs.
Unlike the SLRD's designation, Stats Canada's four areas exclude population centres. For example, Area C, which encompasses Pemberton and Mount Currie, does not include those population centres when calculating population estimates. Instead, smaller municipalities like Birken and D'Arcy fall into those categories.
The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District saw decreases in all four of its electoral districts.
"While the SLRD has historically been one of the fastest-growing regional districts in the province, the decline in recent years is not entirely surprising, as things like overall affordability, lack of available and affordable housing and lack of transportation infrastructure can have an impact on population," a spokeperson for the SLRD told Pique.
"As some of the master-planned communities come online in the SLRD in the future, this trend will likely shift again," the spokesperson added, citing development plans for Electoral Area D.
That’s not to say the entire Sea to Sky area saw declines. The population of Squamish grew 5.6 per cent to 28,056 residents.
Check out Stats Canada to see how the Sea-to-Sky region compares to the rest of the country.
