Vestnes is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Vestnes is part of the traditional district of Romsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vestnes. Other villages in the municipality include Vikebukt, Vik, Vågstranda, Øverås, Fiksdal, Tomrefjord, and Tresfjord. The area is known for nature and outdoor pursuits, and has a long history in ship building and maritime crafts. The village of Vestnes (Helland) dates back to early medieval times, and has 24-hour ferry and water taxi service with the town of Molde to the northeast. The ferry takes about 35-minutes each way. The 405 km2 municipality is the 239th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Vestnes is the 142nd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 7,051. The municipality's population density is 17.7 PD/km2 and its population has increased by 6.4% over the previous 10-year period.

History

The municipality of Vestnes was established in the fall of 1838 when the western district of the large Veøy Municipality was separated to form its own municipality (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 1 January 1899, the southern district of the municipality (population: 1,408) was separated from Vestnes to form the new municipality of Sylte. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the neighboring municipalities of Vestnes (population: 3,895) and Tresfjord, formerly known as Sylte, (population: 1,319) were merged to form a new, larger municipality called Vestnes. On 1 January 2021, the 53 km2 Vågstranda area in the northwestern part of Rauma Municipality was transferred to the neighboring municipality of Vestnes. A Viking barrow burial was uncovered at Villa Farm near Vestnes in 1894. Now in the British Museum's collection in London, the rich grave finds include a pair of oval brooches and other dress accessories, a comb, remnants of a bucket and a box, a bridle-bit, agricultural tools, a bronze bowl, a whalebone plaque, a weaving batten and a whetstone.

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Vestnes farm since the first Vestnes Church was built there. The first element is which means "west". The last element is which means "headland". Prior to 1889, the name was written Vestnæs.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 11 April 1980. The official blazon is "Gules, two piles issuant from dexter Or". This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is two piles (triangles) extending from the left to the right. The charge has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The arms are designed to symbolize the geography of the municipality: a headland between two fjords—the Tresfjorden and the Tomrefjorden. The arms were designed by Jarle Skuseth. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Museums

The Møre og Romsdal Agricultural Museum (Landbruksmuseet for Møre og Romsdal) was established in the municipality at the Gjermundnes Farm in 1979.

Churches

The Church of Norway has five parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Vestnes. It is part of the Indre Romsdal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Møre.

Geography

Vestnes is located in an area of great natural splendour on the southern shores of the vast Romsdal Fjord. The Tresfjorden and Tomrefjorden branch off Romsdal Fjord to the south. Vestnes borders Rauma Municipality to the east, as well as Fjord Municipality and Ålesund Municipality to the south. Across the Moldefjorden to the north is Molde Municipality.

Government

Vestnes Municipality is responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Møre og Romsdal District Court and the Frostating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Vestnes is made up of 23 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.

Mayors

The mayors of Vestnes (incomplete list):

Economy

Vestnes is a relatively good agricultural community with emphasis on livestock and milk production. Vestnes, however, is primarily a manufacturing district. The main industry is the ship-building industry with a number of different companies located in Vestnes. A total of 63% of industry employment (2004) in Vestnes is part of the ship-building industry. Other that shipbuilding, there are several companies in the food, textile and clothing, wood products, furniture, and metal products industries in Vestnes.

Media

The newspaper Vestnesavisa is published in Vestnes.

Transportation

The European route E39 highway goes through Vestnes on its way from Sjøholt to Molde. The European route E136 highway goes through Vestnes on its way from Ålesund to Dombås. The two highways intersect and share part of the route through Vestnes. The new Tresfjord Bridge carries the E136 highway over the Tresfjorden rather than the previous roadway that follows the shoreline all the way around the fjord.

Notable people