SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - It's the spot where Yellowknife got its start more than 75 years ago, a unique location on the shore of Great Slave Lake, where people live in log cabins, houseboats, shacks and luxurious new homes.

It's the home of Weaver and Devore, the Wildcat Cafe, Bullock's Bistro and the Snowking Snowcastle.

It's a place full of history, character and an incredible sense of community.

And now, because of all of its wonder, Old Town has a chance to be named one of the Great Places in Canada.

The Canadian Institute of Planners announced the 26 finalists in the first Great Places in Canada contest Wednesday, placing Old Town among 10 other Canadian spots in the Great Neighbourhoods category.

Barb Bromley, who moved to Old Town as a 22-year-old woman in 1948, said it's no surprise Old Town made it on the list.

"It's a very wonderful place to be," she said. "The people are very friendly and very, very generous."

She said it's been like that since the sunny spring day when she landed in the community.

"I was welcomed so suddenly," the 85-year-old said. "It was just amazing."

Sixty-three years later, Bromley says she thinks that welcoming nature can still be found in Old Town.

Mayor Gord Van Tighem, who has lived in the area for 19 years, agrees.

"It's got a lot of neat people," he said.

"The people that live there are the ones that create the community and the neighbourhood."

But it's not just the people that make the area special. Van Tighem said it's also the history, the scenery and the diversity of the area that sets Old Town apart.

"In Yellowknife you can live in anything from the suburbia that you would find in any other community, down to a log cabin with a wood stove and a honey bucket and all of those things. The full spectrum exists in Old Town.

"Where I am, it's sort of like having a cabin out in lake country, but you're within 15 minutes to work if you walk and three or four if you drive."

Van Tighem said when he thinks about Old Town, the first thing that comes to mind is Great Slave Lake, a place with many uses in the summer and winter.

There are float planes and boats in the summer and dog sledders and a snow castle in the winter, among many other things.

"Diverse is the word," he said, mentioning it's also the home to some of the oldest businesses in town, Bullock's Bistro, the Wildcat Cafe and Weaver and Devore.

Ken Weaver, who owns Weaver and Devore - a general store his grandfather opened in 1936 - said Old Town will always be home to his family.

"The Weavers aren't going anywhere soon," he said.

"I'm sure that there's many nice places in Canada, but none would be nicer than what we have right here.

"It was a great place to grow up."

The winners of the Great Places in Canada contest will be announced May 13. There will be three winners in each of the three categories: Great Streets, Great Neighbourhoods and Great Public Spaces.

In the running against Old Town is, among others, the Exchange District in Winnipeg and the Hydrostone in Halifax.

The finalists will be judged by a panel that includes professional planners, a member of the College of Fellows, a student and a member of the Canadian Urban Institute.

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