Civil Municipal - May 2024

of having a house or living in an area where nature is right in their backyard.” It’s hard to beat the open air of Torbay’s properties, with houses built on acres of land that sprawl across the eastern part of the Avalon Peninsula. And while the town serves its purpose as a bedroom community located 12 kilometers north of St. John’s, its history is fiercely independent, dating back to 1762, when Colonel William Amherst recaptured the area from French settlers. As Scott mentions, Torbay’s rugged beauty – from rocky shores to rolling hills – sets the ambiance for this Canadian East Coast community. But the local economy is Torbay’s engine, unbothered by storms or snowfall and always pumping value into the lives of every resident. And while the community is already very successful and self-sustaining, Mayor Scott has big plans to take Torbay’s local economy one step further. A SELFLESS COMMUNITY Torbay’s proximity to St. John’s, the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador, offers more opportunities than it does challenges. Firstly, Torbay provides a calm, safe living space for folks who work at bigger companies in St. John’s. Beyond that, though, Torbay has cultivated a distinct identity, blending urban and rural activity to differentiate itself from its larger neighboring city. For example, Torbay caters to families. There are three schools in Torbay, offering elementary, intermediate, and high school education, a luxury in the province, as kids don’t need long, daily bus rides to get to school. These amenities, supported by Torbay’s breezy way of life, keep residents happy and flush with income. “Our economy within our town is very good,” says Scott. “We have a lot of people that work in the oil and gas sector, the government, and a lot of young professionals. So our family incomes are relatively high compared to a lot of other places.” You think it’d be easy for a town with a solid income and humming economy to drift away from its 181 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 05, ISSUE 05 TORBAY, NL