FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. - Long-term care for seniors and the future of the aging Taylor Bridge topped the agenda when Premier David Eby met with Fort St. John Mayor Lilia Hansen and city council during a surprise visit to the Peace Region this week.
The meeting came as Eby toured northeast B.C., including stops in Dawson Creek and at the newly named John Horgan Dam, formerly known as Site C.
According to Mayor Hansen, council used the opportunity to press the province on what it sees as two of the region’s most pressing issue, infrastructure and healthcare challenges.
“We have to have reliable transportation, and the Taylor Bridge is a big piece of that,” Hansen told CJDC-TV News in an interview following the meeting.
The bridge, which carries Highway 97 across the Peace River south of Fort St. John, has long been a concern for local governments, residents and industry groups.
While studies and planning work have continued for years, municipal leaders have repeatedly called on the province to move a replacement project closer to construction.
Hansen said council raised the issue directly with the premier, arguing the crossing is critical to the movement of people, goods and services throughout northeast B.C.
“So much of our province’s revenue comes from the Peace Region,” she said. “We have to have reliable transportation.”
The mayor said no firm commitment was made during the meeting, but welcomed what she described as growing recognition within government of the bridge’s importance.
Seniors care a major concern
Council also delivered a message about what Hansen called an urgent need for additional long-term care spaces in the region. The future of a long-discussed expansion at Peace Villa was among the concerns raised with the premier.
Hansen said she remains disappointed that a previously announced third pod at Peace Villa has not moved ahead, noting local taxpayers had agreed to fund a portion of the project through a negotiated cost-sharing arrangement.
According to the mayor, demand for senior care continues to outstrip capacity, with dozens of residents waiting for placement.
“It has been full from the day it was built, and we’ve been waiting 10 years to have an expansion on it,” Hansen said. “It’s not just a nice-to-have. It is a significant need.”
She said the issue extends beyond Fort St. John, affecting communities across the Peace Region, including Dawson Creek and Fort Nelson, whose residents often rely on Fort St. John as a regional healthcare hub.
Hansen added the city is continuing to work with Northern Health and regional partners to explore alternative models that could accelerate the construction of new senior care facilities.
Preparing for growth
Beyond healthcare and transportation, council also discussed the region’s economic future and the need for workforce development as major energy, resource and infrastructure projects move forward.
Hansen pointed to the important role being played by Northern Lights College in training workers for healthcare, trades and industrial sectors.
The conversation comes as the Peace Region continues to position itself as a key driver of provincial economic growth through natural gas, hydroelectricity, agriculture, mining and renewable energy development. Hansen said those contributions must be matched by investments in local services and infrastructure.
First council visit
Hansen described Eby’s appearance before Fort St. John council as significant, saying it marked the first time the premier has sat down with the city’s council during his time in office.
She said having provincial leaders visit the region in person matters because it allows them to see the challenges residents face firsthand , from transportation concerns at the Taylor Bridge to increasing pressure on healthcare facilities.
“It makes a difference when somebody can come drive across the Taylor Bridge, drive our roads, come look at our hospitals, our schools and our community,” Hansen said. “This is why we need the province to invest back into us.”
The premier’s visit also included a tour of the John Horgan Dam near Fort St. John, where Eby highlighted the facility’s role in meeting future electricity demand and supporting economic growth across British Columbia.
For Fort St. John council, however, the message remained focused on local priorities: replacing a critical transportation link and ensuring seniors can access care closer to home.