Sparwood vs Elkford vs Crowsnest Pass as a place to live?

[Headdamage]

I might be getting a job offer in the Elk Valley soon and I'm wondering where to relocate to if I get it.

Back in the 90's I briefly lived in Pincher Creek, Hill Crest Mines, and Sparwood while working a couple of temp jobs in the area.

The Crowsnest Pass seems to be nicer with more services now than it had back then, Sparwood and Elkford don't seem to have changed much and Fernie is way too expensive.

I'm leaning towards the CNP of the three, any thoughts?

Thanks.

[lannie]

Originally Posted by Headdamage

I might be getting a job offer in the Elk Valley soon and I'm wondering where to relocate to if I get it.

Back in the 90's I briefly lived in Pincher Creek, Hill Crest Mines, and Sparwood while working a couple of temp jobs in the area.

The Crowsnest Pass seems to be nicer with more services now than it had back then, Sparwood and Elkford don't seem to have changed much and Fernie is way too expensive.

I'm leaning towards the CNP of the three, any thoughts?

Thanks.

Pincher is too far from the Elk Valley for winter commutes. I am a bit bias about Hillcrest and the Pass in general. It has the transition from foothills to mountains which is the best for my likes. Sparwood and Elkford are much more closed in if you like that and it is a beautiful area. If your into trout waters i think B.C. is the winner there and the hunting has more opportunity too. Fernie i think would be near the bottom of the pile even if the housing was lower priced. Not sure how property taxes compare but I find the Pass quite expensive. Awesome people in the Crownest with very few transients, even the 2 bottle pickers here are real polite folk who always seem to be wearing a smile.

[Positrac]

I work with a fellow from CNP who’s family have lived in the area for a long time and there is not much chance you would ever get him to move so it can’t be all that bad. Beautiful area for sure.

[DougC]

I don't think you can go wrong with any of the three, but if you fish you'll pay a lot less for your classified waters licences on the BC side.

[Trochu]

Wrong thread.

[twofifty]

If'n that opportunity is at a Coal mine, the workday is 12 hours. The schedule of days and nights is tough on sleep patterns.

Because of that, and the winter roads, and that you can't be late for a shift, lotsa guys prefer Sparwood or Elkford.

[Colin_r6]

Lots of good info here!
I'll add my 2 cents. Keep in mind, I may be biased, and some opinion sprinkled into the following;
I was born and raised in Sparwood. Moved back here after suffering the Calgary rat race for a few years.

Used to work for Finning. They shut the branch down and killed their warehouse/parts dept so I had to relocate to one of the mines. Finning preaches the "Finning Family" a lot when they need their employees to buy into their harebrained ideas, but as soon as times get slow - their relationship with employees is strictly a "business relationship". Anyway, thats a whole different topic. Finning sucks.

If you're expecting an offer from Fording River or Greenhills, i'd suggest Elkford. They're pretty small town, but have lots of ATV trail systems everywhere, and you can plate your quad so that you can ride from your house to the trail. Good fishing too. Hunting is ok, but lots of residents in the area hunt... it can get busy in the bush here. These two mines also don't run a bus from Sparwood/Fernie - so you gotta get to the parking lot in Elkford and hop on a bus.

If you're looking at Line Creek or Elkview or Coal Mountain - i'd consider Sparwood. These two mines run a bus from Sparwood/Fernie/CNP/HIllcrest I believe.

Fernie is too transient because of the ski hill. People come to party for the weekend, barf in the streets and crowd the mountain biking trails. The train blowing its horn thru town more than a dozen times gets old real fast like.

Some Sparwood numbers to consider... I have a 1200sqft house;
My Gas bill is about $73/month.
Electricity is about $67/month. (Includes a hot tub)
Property taxes last year were $1500.
Cable/Internet (Shaw) about the same everywhere else $120/month.
Wal-Mart in Pincher Creek 60 mins away.
Lethbridge is 90 mins away for shopping.
Kalispell about the same on the other side of the border. 110km to the shipping outlet in Eureka. 60km or so to some decent swimming lakes etc.

[Off in the Bushes]

I grew up out in the CNP through the 80s-90s and I wouldn't recommend it if you have a young family.
As a kids there is lots of time for getting in trouble as you know when your parents are going to be home. There was lots to see and do at the time if you where inclined. But times were different back then you could go out and come home the street light came on and your folks never had to worry, different world now.
It seemed that if you didn't play minor hockey you have no friends in school as that crowd was tight.
Drugs where more then abundant, so it didn't take much looking to find them if it had your interest. Now you can mail them to the door, again different times back then.
Due to the entire valley being on shift work there was always a party happening somewhere.
That school was not the great as the most of the teacher were there for a pay cheque did take long to see the teacher that cared, but they where out numbered by those that didn't.
Having the ski hill in town is nice.
I hope that town council has it together back in the day they were really holding back development in my opinion.

[HoytCRX32]

The Municipality of Crowsnest Pass is a tax addict...compare taxes to the MD of Pincher Creek and see what I mean.

[Husty]

Live in the community closest to the mine your located at.. I would choose Fernie personally but your right that it is expensive. If you have kids Fernie has a good academy if your kids need a decent education. I dislike Sparhole but don't mind Elkford or the CNP. The commute can kill you and really wares on you over time IMO.

[russelldyck]

Interesting,
I am also waiting to hear about a job in the same area, lol.

Originally Posted by Headdamage

I might be getting a job offer in the Elk Valley soon and I'm wondering where to relocate to if I get it.

Back in the 90's I briefly lived in Pincher Creek, Hill Crest Mines, and Sparwood while working a couple of temp jobs in the area.

The Crowsnest Pass seems to be nicer with more services now than it had back then, Sparwood and Elkford don't seem to have changed much and Fernie is way too expensive.

I'm leaning towards the CNP of the three, any thoughts?

Thanks.

[Dean2]

Very interesting thread. Learned a lot about the area I did not know.

[reddeerguy2015]

Anybody live out of town "permanently" and just rent a room while on shift ??

Too hard on the body??

Hard to get hired on vs someone local who lives there ??

How's the lifestyle, taking into factor the additional travel time from home and the 4-4 schedule ??

[Husty]

Originally Posted by reddeerguy2015

Anybody live out of town "permanently" and just rent a room while on shift ??

Too hard on the body??

Hard to get hired on vs someone local who lives there ??

How's the lifestyle, taking into factor the additional travel time from home and the 4-4 schedule ??

That gets old too, I know a few guys from Raymond who do that. Either you will be able to do it or you will be quitting in 3-6 months. I did something similar, what kills you is extra rent and spending like $500 a month on gas. Lots of places to rent based on what shift your on but work life balance sucks IMO. I was living in Fernie/Lethbridge working at mines north of Elkford turns my 9 hour days into 12 hour days that you dont get paid for. Earned days off are nice, every second Friday off if you were an office guy.

I think getting hired is 90% luck in the Elk Valley.

[6.5 shooter]

be sure to by a home on the "sunny" side of the valley.

[lannie]

Originally Posted by 6.5 shooter

be sure to by a home on the "sunny" side of the valley.

You usually have to pick between Sunny or Windy though and really windy.

[Headdamage]

I think they are considering me for a site based office type position. Just did a drug test for them today. I'll have a better idea if/when they make me an offer.

[Husty]

Originally Posted by Headdamage

I think they are considering me for a site based office type position. Just did a drug test for them today. I'll have a better idea if/when they make me an offer.

Weird both times I worked in the Valley my offer was contingent based on a pi$$ test.. I wouldn't pee in a cup if a job offer wasn't on the table anyways. I enjoy my privacy and dont really agree with testing. My guess is you got the position if they are testing you. Congratulations on the job. Great bonuses, RRSP, and other incentives..

[6.5 shooter]

Originally Posted by lannie

You usually have to pick between Sunny or Windy though and really windy.

Just a mild breeze till it hits a hundred

[Off in the Bushes]

FYI when the weather gets poor and they close the pass back into Alberta it really sucks as you are now looking for a couple of hundred hotel rooms. It used to happen to my dad a few times a year. With the nanny society that we live in now I can only see that happening more often. But living in Alberta you save the PST on your purchase.

[Headdamage]

Good point on the drive from the Pass to Sparwood. I'm waiting to find out which mine they have in mind for me at this point.

[CNP]

Originally Posted by Headdamage

Good point on the drive from the Pass to Sparwood. I'm waiting to find out which mine they have in mind for me at this point.

Teck operates a bus from the Pass to the mines in BC. If the road is closed it's closed for the bus too...………...just sayin'...……...if you didn't know about the bus.

[JustBen]

Originally Posted by CNP

Teck operates a bus from the Pass to the mines in BC. If the road is closed it's closed for the bus too...………...just sayin'...……...if you didn't know about the bus.

Bus is only for Line Creek employees. All others have to drive to BC.

[Headdamage]

Got my offer over the holidays, I'll be working at Elkview on a regular office hours type shift. Not a lot of rental accommodation on the market that I can find so far. Going down to look at a couple of places this week, I'll likely end up where I can find a place to rent rather than where I would prefer to be from a commuting stand point. I want to rent for a while before buying a place if that is what we decide to do.

[cdnltded]

Originally Posted by Colin_r6

Lots of good info here!

Some Sparwood numbers to consider... I have a 1200sqft house;
My Gas bill is about $73/month.
Electricity is about $67/month. (Includes a hot tub)
Property taxes last year were $1500.
Cable/Internet (Shaw) about the same everywhere else $120/month.
Wal-Mart in Pincher Creek 60 mins away.
Lethbridge is 90 mins away for shopping.
Kalispell about the same on the other side of the border. 110km to the shipping outlet in Eureka. 60km or so to some decent swimming lakes etc.

Pincher Creek to Lethbridge is 60 minutes

[kevinhits]

Originally Posted by cdnltded

Pincher Creek to Lethbridge is 60 minutes

Absolutely!

[wildbill]

Originally Posted by Headdamage

Got my offer over the holidays, I'll be working at Elkview on a regular office hours type shift. Not a lot of rental accommodation on the market that I can find so far. Going down to look at a couple of places this week, I'll likely end up where I can find a place to rent rather than where I would prefer to be from a commuting stand point. I want to rent for a while before buying a place if that is what we decide to do.

That stretch between Sparwood and the pass is pretty rank in the winter at times, a lot of tired people on that road, if it was me I’d go with with sparwood, a lot less wind too.

[Headdamage]

Very little in the way of rental housing at this time down there. Wife did not like Sparwood and we would like to keep Alberta healthcare for now because she has specilists in Calgary. Looks like it might be Hillcrest Mines for now, can't find anything else in the pass.