Jews are moving to the 'burbs

PAT JOHNSON SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN

The suburbanization of Vancouver's Jewish community continues unabated. Barely half of the Jews in the Lower Mainland now live within Vancouver city limits, according to a study of the most recent census figures.

Lower Mainland Jews are spread more evenly throughout the region than ever before, with just 54.6 per cent of all Lower Mainland Jews living in the city proper, as of census day 2001. Thirty years ago, that proportion was 77.9 per cent.

In all, the census indicated there were 22,590 Jews in the Vancouver census metropolitan area. Of these, 12,325 lived in the city of Vancouver.

"The changing residential patterns of the Jewish population of Greater Vancouver reveal important social, economic and cultural changes in the community," stated the report, which was written Charles Shahar and Jean Gerber, on behalf of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and UIA-Federations Canada.

The shift in the community's population centre is most noticeable in the southern suburbs of Richmond, Surrey and Surrey-White Rock and Delta, which has seen its Jewish population increase 13.1 per cent over the decade, to exactly 5,000. The North Shore Jewish population leapt 15.1 per cent to 2,510.

David Berson, director of community planning for the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, said the new statistics indicate that the population is spreading more evenly than ever. A decade ago, the relatively new Jewish communities of the North Shore and Richmond were the main locations of suburban Jews. Now, there are several equal-sized hubs.

"The North Shore [has] 12 per cent [of Lower Mainland Jews], Burquest 12 per cent, White Rock, 11 per cent," said Berson. "You're seeing a fairly even distribution in the outlying areas."

The suburbanization of the Jewish community, which began in earnest in the 1970s, according to the report's authors, continued not only in nearby suburbs like Richmond and the North Shore, but was most apparent in the more far-flung suburbs.

Burquest's 2,080 Jews represent a sharp increase of 52.4 per cent over a decade earlier, and the 670 Jews who live in Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows and Langley represent more than a doubling of that area's Jewish population. Port Coquitlam, Coquitlam and Port Moody have increased 92.6 per cent.

Though the statistics indicate that Lower Mainland Jews are moving to the suburbs, there was an increase in the population in every part of the region, including the city. Though about 300 Jews moved out of Vancouver proper, that number was more than compensated by 2,025 Jews moving into the city from areas outside the Lower Mainland, presumably from Eastern Canada or outside the country.

Though the statistics indicate a shift away from city life, the numbers also indicate a marked shift even within city limits. Of the city of Vancouver's 12,325 Jews, 9,380 lived on the West Side. While that has and continues to be the traditional centre of the Jewish community in recent decades, there are now 1,595 Jews on the East Side and 1,355 in the West End.

Though the West End number remains small, it represents the city's biggest increase in the last decade, as well as one of the historical ironies of the recent census figures. The area was the destination for some of the first German-Jewish immigrants to the city more than a century ago, said the authors, but it has not had a significant Jewish population for decades. In the 10 years since the previous census, the Jewish population of the West End increased by 49.7 per cent.

"Much of this growth can be attributed to empty nesters, young professionals and others moving into the growing number of condo units being built in the downtown core," according to the report.

By contrast, the Jewish population of the West Side of Vancouver – where the vast majority of the city's Jews still live – increased a mere 1.5 per cent.

The suburbanization of the Jewish community is not just a Lower Mainland phenomenon. Similar growth rates to those experienced in Vancouver's suburbs were noted in suburban Toronto and Ottawa as well, especially in Barrie, Aurora and Kanata, Ont.

Though the demographic changes in Vancouver reflect some of the changes nationally, Berson contends that there are very specific West Coast conditions that affect Jewish communal planning. Not only is the Vancouver Jewish community diffusing, he said, but even the relatively concentrated areas are not very concentrated.

"You have these huge neighborhoods in Toronto, Montreal and Winnipeg that have between 60 and 70 per cent Jews, and the whole West Side of Vancouver, which is our largest concentration, has 4.4 per cent Jews," said Berson.

Delivering services to these diverse communities is a challenge facing Jewish communal agencies, according to Berson. Among the projects being undertaken this summer by Federation is a West End Jewish Outreach Program, which is aimed at creating a more cohesive Jewish presence among the growing population there. Federation has anticipated the increased suburbanization of its constituency for years and has made significant inroads in developing services for the Jewish communities of Richmond, the North Shore and Surrey-White Rock, Berson said. The next challenge will be accommodating the growth in a constellation of other communities.

The report, The Jewish Community of Greater Vancouver: Jewish Populations in Geographic Areas, is the second in a series of studies being undertaken by Federation analyzing the results of the 2001 census. Further studies are under way, using the census to get a picture of Jewish senior citizens, poverty in the community and other implications. The studies are funded by donations to the annual Combined Jewish Appeal campaign.

Pat Johnson is a Vancouver journalist and commentator.

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