Community Overview

Port Alberni is located on the west coast of Vancouver Island at the end of a 48 kilometer salt water inlet, on the Somass River estuary and surrounded by a few large lakes.  First Nations established villages in the area centuries ago to utilize the abundant resources here. The development of the City of Port Alberni is linked to the forestry, fishing and marine commercial industries.  A deep water, sheltered, ice-free seaport still handles the export of logs, lumber and fish.

In recent years tourism, the arts, aerospace, agriculture, post-secondary education and high tech industries have played an increasingly important role in the economy.

A regional airport is being expanded to 5,000 feet of paved runway to provide more infrastructure for the aerospace industry there now.

Our community of 25,000 people is fortunate to have a new $60 million high-school, a modern hospital, a parks & recreation infrastructure that is the envy of larger communities, a central location, and the most affordable real estate on Vancouver Island.

Recreational activities in the area are primarily water and trails-based and include kite-boarding; windsurfing; swimming; paddle-boarding; fishing; hiking; mountain climbing; riding all-terrain vehicles, dirt bikes and mountain bikes; scuba diving; golfing; kayaking; water-skiing and wakeboarding.  

Marketing Initiatives

The City of Port Alberni’s Economic Development office is in the process of a long term rebranding initiative in order to assist with the attraction of new businesses, residents and visitors.  

A specially selected team of millennials is taking on the economic development rebranding work.  

Work to Date has consisted of:

• Consultations with a number of rebranding professionals including:
  • David Reeves of Unleash Culture
  • Chris Neary of Frank Strategies
  • Lanie McMullin, keynote speaker at 2015 BC EDA Conference
  • Carol Vincent, Redbird Communications
  • Laura Tetzlaff, Integrated Marketing & Business Development Solutions
  • Roger Brooks, Roger Brooks International
• Interviews with people from our target demographic (millennials)
• A community survey netting 943 responses

Next Steps

1. Create an asset inventory and map that showcases the identified water theme and associated activities and economic sectors  
2. Identify product development needs
3. Secure resources that would assist in product development
4. Create an authentic brand promise and a tag line

[excerpts from the December 14, 2015 delegation to council]