History of Lions Bay
There are few relatively unknown areas left in the Lower Mainland and I believe the Sea to Sky communities still fall in that category. We have all driven past them for years on our way to Whistler but few stop, and fewer consider the real estate potential and lifestyle!
History:
Incorporated on January 2, 1971, the Village of Lions Bay is one of the smallest municipalities in British Columbia, Canada. As the result of a restructure study and referendum Brunswick Beach became amalgamated with Lions Bay in the fall of 1999.
Lions Bay can be traced back to the 1700's when Captain Vancouver named Howe Sound in June of 1792 after Lord Howe who was the Admiral of the British Navy. The first inhabitants of Lions Bay were the First Nations people. In the early 1900's the Japanese started logging in the area and Brunswick Beach was first surveyed in 1908.
During the early 1900s people from Vancouver traveled to Lions Bay on ships that were on their way to Squamish. They also came in private boats and would spend the summer in Lions Bay and then leave in the fall and return to Vancouver for the winter months. At that time you could purchase Lions Bay Real Estate for $1 down and $1 per week and the maximum price was no more than $250.
Lions Bay Beach Park was originally started as a summer camp for Saint Marks Church of Kitsilano and was sold in 1941.
In 1954 the PGE Railway opened and in 1958 the Squamish Highway, which is now part of the Sea to Sky Highway was built.
Electricity and telephone were brought to Lions Bay in the 1950's and families started to purchase Lions Bay Real Estate and move from Vancouver to settle in Lions Bay.
In 1971 the first General Store was opened and Post Office Boxes were installed in 1972. The first elementary school was opened in 1977. Currently in Lions Bay Village there is the General Store and Cafe, the Post Office and Michael Tickner's Artist Studio. On the water side of Lions Bay is Lions Bay Marina with a unique Dry Stack Land Storage Facility. They provide all boating needs for the Howe Sound boating community including gas, diesel and propane.
Many home based businesses are operated out of Lions Bay and artists of all disciplines are inspired by the natural beauty of the ocean and mountains.
In 1996 as part of the celebrations of 25 years of incorporation, the Lions Bay Historical Society sponsored a Flag Design Contest. Residents were asked to submit their designs for a municipal flag with resident Victor Miles winning the contest.
Currently to shop for groceries beyond what the small General Store can provide the residents of Lions Bay have to drive about 112 minutes South on the Sea to Sky Highway to the Caulfield Shopping Centre or North to Squamish. As Lions Bay does not have any gas stations the residents must also drive either North to Squamish or South to the Westmount area in West Vancouver to purchase gas.
With Concord Pacific planning a large housing development in Porteau Cove just North of Lions Bay and further Britannia Beach Real Estate development there will be many changes in the communities along the Sea to Sky Highway. The highway expansion for the 2010 Winter Olympics has contributed to the growth of the Sea to Sky Corridor and the future is very bright for all of these Howe Sound communities.
