Restoration work on Yukon's oldest town site Forty Mile could start this summer
A group of Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in citizens gathered at the Dänojà Zho Cultural Centre in Dawson City, Yukon last week to discuss the future of the territory's oldest town - the Forty Mile historic town site.
Last spring the site was nearly destroyed after ice jammed up at the confluence of Fortymile River and Yukon River causing water and ice to flood the area. The flood moved buildings off their foundations, and knocked over anything it its path.
Debbie Nagano, director of heritage for the Tr'ondek Hwech'in First Nation, said community members are eager to participate in the restoration.
"It's been a year since the flood happened," said Nagano, who's department co-manages the Forty Mile town site with the Yukon Government.
"In that year though, the community spoke up and they want to help out any way they could to try and rebuild it."Restoring the site is a task easier said than done as it's still not safe to access, Nagano said.
That's why the First Nation, and the Yukon Government hired assessors to look at the site and create a plan on how to proceed.
"It's a big job," she said. "It's going to happen slow. It's just the access of it. Getting that much equipment down there. We've got slews to cross and bridges and trails to break open, and clear. It's just unreal how the trees have grown. They're as high as seven feet now. It'll take section by section."
Before the flood, the First Nation primarily used the site to host cultural camps. Youth groups would spend time there hearing stories from Elders about how the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in people used the area as a fish camp.
Nagano hopes the work will start this summer and said that once access to the site is safe, crews will try to stabilize it and rebuild the structures.
Site priorities
The Yukon Government hired heritage contractor ERA Architects Inc to hold a public engagement session to gather input from citizens on how they'd like to see the site restored.
Emma Abramowicz, a senior project manager with the firm, said she heard a couple common themes from the people who attended the session on June 14.
"One, is that this is part of the story of what happened here," Abramowicz said. "There's not really a moment where history stops and starts, and this flood is also part of the story of what happened here."
Abramowicz said the goal won't be to rebuild the site to exactly to what it was before, but to incorporate how Forty Mile still remains resilient despite the incident.
Another thing Abramowicz heard from people was the need for flood and fire protection at the site.
Abramowicz said after hearing from citizens, she and her team will take all of the information gathered and determine the best way to move forward with the restoration.
Nagano said the Forty Mile site will never be the same again after last year's flooding but it offers an opportunity to make it better for visitors.
"The land will always be there," she said. "You just have to adapt to the change."
"You have past memories but hopefully you can bring them forward too, and make it better. It's such a beautiful spot."
