Neighbourhood

Mill Lake, Abbotsford, BC

With an estimated population of 141,397 people, it is the largest municipality in the province outside Metro Vancouver.

Some 62% of residents in Abbotsford work in the City of Abbotsford itself. Most of the remaining 38% commute to Mission, Chilliwack, or Vancouver and its suburbs (primarily Surrey and Langley). More than 25% of Abbotsford’s workforce commutes to Abbotsford from other municipalities.

The Conference Board of Canada has identified the local economy as one of the most diverse in the country.

Abbotsford’s main industries are agriculture, transportation, manufacturing, and retail. The city earns the highest dollar per acre of agricultural land in the country.

Forty-six public elementary, middle, and secondary schools are administered by the Abbotsford School District. This includes a virtual school called the “Abbotsford Virtual School” that offers more than 30 semestered online courses.

Culture

The City of Abbotsford is committed to helping our community build strong, healthy, and cohesive neighbourhoods. We want to invite residents to be a part of building relationships, promoting neighbourhood safety and creating a sense of community, while getting out to meet their neighbours and have fun!

Gallery 7 Theatre and Performing Arts has been one of Abbotsford only performing arts organizations since 1991 and operates out of Mennonite Educational Institute. They produce four mainstage productions every year.

Arts & Heritage

The Abbotsford Arts Council hosts a number of free local events including music in Mill Lake Park, the Arty Awards, and more recently, the Christmas Artisan Gift Fair. It has been involved in projects such as the Abbotsford “Unity Statue”, Abbotsford Christmas Craft Fair, Art in the Park, Abbotsford’s Art and Heritage Unity Festival, and the Historical Downtown Art Bench Project. As well as maintaining the Kariton Art Gallery which features and hosts exhibitions from local artists of all mediums residing in the Lower Mainland.

The Reach Gallery Museum features exhibitions from across Canada and around the world, as well as the work of local artists. It houses a heritage archive, runs special events, programs and courses and seeks to promote local arts and culture.

Trethewey House Heritage Site features a restored 1920s Craftsman-style house built by J.O. Trethewey, one of the owners of the lumber and shingle mill that gave Mill Lake Park its name. The municipally designated heritage house and adjacent gallery are open to the public for special events, educational programming, and drop-in tours.

The Mennonite Heritage Museum, which opened in January 2016, features a permanent exhibit that tells the 500 year old story of the Anabaptist / Mennonite movement, with a particular focus on the history of those Mennonites who settled in Abbotsford beginning in the early 1930s. The Museum also has a gallery that features the work of local Mennonite artists, a coffee shop serving traditional Mennonite foods, a bookstore, and a replica traditional Mennonite housebarn that includes a permanent exhibit focusing on Mennonites and agriculture. The Museum is also home to the library and archive of the Mennonite Historical Society of British Columbia.