Bamfield Community Hall

An Ambitious Project on the Wild West Coast of Vancouver Island

This Guild Community Building Project took place on Vancouver Island in the village of Bamfield. Our host, The Bamfield Community Hall Society, is a registered not-for-profit society of British Columbia established to rebuilt the hall lost to the community more than a decade ago. The hall will be used by the Bamfield community (population 200), a number of part-time residents, and a large number of summer visitors to this beautiful coastal village.

The first 3 days of the build were marked by an atmospheric river that brought torrential rain and heavy winds . Those extremes were followed by warmer than usual temperatures and lots of sun.   Working out in the elements combined with the remote location on a large ambitious frame made this an exciting and challenging build. Volunteers came from all over the US and Canada and crew members worked tirelessly for 3 weeks against the rugged and stunningly beautiful backdrop of Vancouver Island’s west coast. 

The frame was made almost entirely of red cedar which doesn’t have the same engineering characteristics as some other materials that might be more typical for larger frame construction.  This resulted in the timber needing to be on a much grander scale. This made for a dramatic build full of interesting challenges.  

About the Project

The new Bamfield Community Hall is approximately 5,000 square feet, and largely timber framed, with round log columns and steep-pitched scissor chord rafter assemblies that form multiple rooflines. There are three flat roof areas supported by timber framed beams and columns, and a large outdoor deck with timber support beams and posts on concrete columns.

All timbers are western red cedar with a few exceptions for Douglas fir in high-stress areas. The red cedar logs were harvested from the community forest nearby, and milling was done locally with a Woodmizer or similar, or trucked to a larger mill. 

The design of the frame provided many learning opportunities, including round log to square timber framing, chainsaw work, compound roof framing, scribing, crane rigging, and working with red cedar.