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Fact Sheet

General
  • Richmond is seven years older than Vancouver and was incorporated on November 10, 1879
  • Richmond is home to the Vancouver International Airport (YVR) which supports 16.8 million airport passengers annually
  • Richmond is home to an international seaport, including major multimodal rail, truck and marine distribution hubs and Western Canada’s largest commercial fishing fleet
  • Number of hotels and hotel rooms: 26 international brand-name hotels / 4,500 rooms
  • Total combined square feet of meeting space: 145,000
  • Richmond is located at the mouth of the 1,375 km long mighty Fraser River
  • Steveston Fishing Port is the largest commercial fishing harbour in Canada
  • 20 minutes by freeway from the US/Canada border
  • 38 % of Richmond’s land is in the Agricultural Land Reserve
  • Richmond is home to the iconic Richmond Olympic Oval
  • Largest producer of cranberries in North America
  • 1.4 million birds migrate through Richmond on the Pacific Flyway
Population
  • Richmond has a population of over 193,255 people as of February 2009
  • By 2021, it is projected that Richmond will have a population of over 226,000
  • 57% of Richmond’s population was born outside of Canada; the highest percentage among Canada’s municipalities
  • 60% percent of the population is of Asian decent
  • The top 3 places that immigrants have arrived to Richmond from have been: Hong Kong, China and Taiwan 
  • Richmond has approximately 1,354 People per square km (Vancouver has 5,000 and Hong Kong has 6,500.)
  • The average life expectancy is 83.4 years – higher than Japan, who are at the top of the United Nations’ World Health Organization (WHO) ranking.
Economy
  • Richmond currently has over 100,000 jobs in a variety of sectors
  • Richmond boasts a number of Shopping Centres including (but not limited to): Richmond Centre, Lansdowne Centre, Aberdeen Centre, Continental Centre, and Yaohan Centre
  • Film and television production have grown significantly in Richmond. You can see our sights in productions such as: X-Men, Smallville, Final Destination, Blade II, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and many others
  • In Richmond, The Agricultural Land Reserve preserves over 4,900 hectares of farmland which hosts 247 local farms
  • The dominant crops that are grown in Richmond are blueberries and cranberries but you can also find: strawberries, corn, pumpkins, potatoes and more
  • Opening in 2009, the Canada Line SkyTrain system has made Richmond more accessible from the Vancouver International Airport and throughout the Lower Mainland