Salisbury, N.B. beats out Toronto to be named most active Canadian community

The town of Salisbury has won the title of Canada’s most active community after stiff competition from Red Deer, Alta., and even the City of Toronto.

The win comes after Salisbury won the provincial title in 2022.

The title from ParticipACTION comes with a prize of $100,000 to spend on recreation, in addition to the $15,000 the town won last year.

Austin Henderson, chief administration officer of Salisbury, said residents will be able to vote on a few different options for how the town uses the money. Trail connectivity might be one such option.

“There’s one trail, in particular, we’re hearing from residents, that would connect (Highland Park) to the opposite end of the community,” he said.

“And we’re also hearing from residents who want things like an upgraded outdoor ice rink or an updated playground. So those are some of the options.”

He said the survey would go out to residents in the coming weeks.

Over 750 residents participated in the month-long challenge throughout the month of June.

Donna Hunnwicks-Hopper, Salisbury’s events coordinator, said she is “super proud” of the community for participating in such large numbers.

“We went kayaking. We went hiking weekly. We had days at the park with kids. We had learned to play with kids where kids could play basketball, soccer, and pickleball,” she said in an interview.

She said town staff made visits to local daycares and special care homes to encourage residents young and old to get active.

Special care home resident Alice Jones said she enjoyed participating.

“We went for a lot of walks. We did exercises in the rooms in the building. We just kept walking and doing exercises in the buildings — yoga, and all sorts,” she said.

Fellow care home resident Bill Thurber also enjoyed participating.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been competitive but I enjoyed it!” he said.

“The fact that the whole town was there, it’s great, how the whole town pulled together like that.”