In 2010, Village of Valemount received a $27,170 grant and a $19,340 loan from Northern Development through the Community Halls and Recreation Facilities program towards this $81,510 project. This has been a funding partnership of Village of Valemount and Northern Development
2012 – Valemount’s community hall is an important center of activity, particularly during Valemountain Days, within the idyllic rural community that is nestled in a valley amongst three majestic mountain ranges. Having long served the community, the hall was in need of updates and upgrades to enable the facility to continue hosting events throughout the year. The municipality, which owns and operates the Valemount Community Hall, was focused on a comprehensive renovation project that will not only make the building more attractive for hosting community events, but also increase the facility’s flexibility in accommodating a wide variety of uses.
The community hall is an important hub for events in Valemount from weddings, community dances, family reunions and fitness activities, to a meeting place for local clubs and community groups. As a result, the hall plays an important role for service-based businesses and non-profits that rely on the facility as their venue for activities that generate revenue to support their organizations.
The hall does not have the capacity to support all of the functions that are demanded, but with funding from Northern Development in partnership with the Village of Valemount, the municipality is beginning the process of modernizing the facility, making it ideal for all forms of uses that community groups and small business owners have been seeking.
The Village of Valemount has undertaken many renovations under this project in order to modernize the facility which was starting to look tired and out of date. By updating the interior and installing a new commercial grade floor in the community hall, the Village will be able to make the facility more suitable for a variety of uses that will help drive an increase in overall rental fees that support continued maintenance and operation of the hall.
A key area of focus for the Village of Valemount has been in marketing Valemount as a tourism destination community, while also partnering with McBride and the Regional District of Fraser Fort-George to market and increase awareness of both the Robson and Canoe Valley where Valemount is located.
Valemount has recently undergone a major downtown revitalization while also constructing a new Visitor Information and Interpretive Centre. Village Council plans to make improvements to a number of other facilities in order to capitalize on the positive momentum of these projects to draw tourists into Valemount's downtown, helping to encourage tourism spending in local businesses within the community.
Over the long term, the improvements that will be made to the community hall will be focused on increasing the use of this facility for community festivals and destination weddings while also increasing its attractiveness for hosting community concerts. This project will help improve a range of important aspects of Valemount's community from its well known Canada Day events to helping small business owners that operate fitness and yoga classes at the hall.