Belcarra is a village on the shore of Indian Arm, a side inlet of Burrard Inlet, and is part of Metro Vancouver. It lies northwest of Port Moody and immediately east of the Deep Cove area of North Vancouver, across the waters of Indian Arm. Isolated by geography on a narrow peninsula, Belcarra is accessible by a single winding paved road or by water. Before incorporation it was commonly known as Belcarra Bay. It is largely a residential bedroom community for Vancouver and its suburbs. Belcarra is the only community in this area that is not growing substantially. While the small neighbouring Village of Anmore has grown and changed, Belcarra has remained a relatively small community. This is a result of small land area and zoning for single family residential homes. With a population of 643 as of 2016, it has the lowest population of any independent settlement in the Vancouver area. Many residents in Belcarra have private docks and boats; even houses that are not on the water are sometimes able to procure a shared dock. Belcarra Regional Park winds its way through the village.
History
Belcarra was a traditional camping area for the Tsleil-Waututh, the First Nations people whose territory it is in. Its beach and exposed westerly view give it a fine outlook and afternoon sun. The site was abandoned sometime between 1858 and 1864 when smallpox ravaged the Indigenous population. The remaining people moved their main permanent village across the inlet. The site at Belcarra was pre-empted early by European settlers, who were involved in an murder in 1882. In turn, the land was deeded to the defending solicitor, who named the place Belcarra. A summer cabin was subsequently built. In time, more cabins were built, and the local ferry company built a pier, park, and campsite, for vacationers. Admiralty Point was a government naval reserve, and was thus saved from development. The area is now a regional park. Belcarra's adjacency to several islands makes it a desired spot for boaters. Bedwell Bay and Sasamat Lake also are nearby, increasing the appeal.
Demographics
As of the census of 2001, there were 682 people, 260 households, and 220 families residing in the village. The population density was 124.91/km². There were 293 housing units at an average density of 53.66/km². The racial makeup of the village was 95.91% White, 2.91% Asian Canadian. The 2016 census shows population at 643, and residents have noted a decline in population as the residents children have moved away due to high property costs. The linguistic makeup of the village is English as the first language of 91.2% of the population, and 8.0% first learnt other languages. 94.2% of the population can speak only English, 5.1% can speak both English and French. In the village the population is spread out with 17.6% under the age of 14, 11.0% from 15 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 40.4% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 44 years. For every 100 females there are 101.5 males. For every 100 females age 15 and over, there are 107.3 males. There are 260 households out of which 26.9% had children living with them, 69.2% ware married couples living together, 4.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.2% of all households are made up of individuals. The average married-couple family size was 2.7. Christians makes up 55.1% of the population, or 22.8% Catholic, 27.2% Protestant, 0.0% Orthodox, and 5.1% other Christian. Other religions in the village include 1.5% Jewish, and 1.5% other religions. 41.2% of the population claimed to have no religious affiliation. The median income for a household in the village was $100,995, and the median income for a family was $105,016. Males had an average income of $61,200 versus $34,840 for females. About 3.7% of the labour force was unemployed. The largest occupation categories were 23.5% employed in social science, education, government service and religion occupations, 17.3% business, finance and administration occupations, 17.3% sales and service occupations, and 16.0% in management occupations. Note: Percentages may not add up to 100 percent due to rounding of data samples.
Belcarra in June 2007 was twinned with its namesake, Belcarra, County Mayo, Ireland. William Norman Bole, a successful criminal lawyer in New Westminster, was an immigrant from that county in the 19th century. As payment for his defence of the Irishman John Hall, Belcarra's first European settler, Bole acquired the land that would become the Village of Belcarra, naming it after a village in his native Ireland.
