​On June 1, the minimum wage in BC will increase to $15.65 per hour based on a 2.8% rate of inflation in 2021. It will be the first increase tied to inflation, as announced in last month’s BC Budget.
 
“I spoke to Finance Minister Robinson about this after the provincial budget was unveiled and made sure she understood that our members were concerned about how the government was going to tie an increase to inflation. Businesses need to be able to plan their costs,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams said in a statement to media. “An increase of 2.8% is reasonable, given the uncertainty over the fluctuation in inflation caused by global events and supply chain issues connected to the pandemic.
 
“However, this represents one more cost for businesses already operating with tight margins. Raising wages contributes to rising prices, and we can’t take economic recovery for granted. Government has other options for making life more affordable, such as improving conditions for the construction of more homes to meet the demand of all the people who want to move to our region. It’s clear that without adequate housing supply, costs will continue to increase and make it even harder for people earning minimum wage to live in our province.”

The provincial government says new legislation will make it easier for people to understand liens and protect property rights.
 
“Liens commonly give people the right to keep another person’s property to secure payment for services that improve the property’s value,” the province said in a news release.
 
The proposed Commercial Liens Act will apply to the following services:

• providing labour or materials for the purposes of restoring, improving or maintaining the condition or properties of goods
• storing goods
• transporting, carrying or towing goods
• salvaging goods.

 
The change will unify rules for repair, storage and transportation liens, which have caused confusion in the past, the province said.

In the early days of the pandemic, BC Housing made a number of purchases of hotels and other properties to house people experiencing homelessness. The deals cost taxpayers a total of $221 million, raising questions from people concerned about the expense.

Those questions were answered this week by the Office of Auditor General of BC, which released its audit of the purchases.

“BC Housing met all relevant approvals and policy requirements for the purchases of nine properties in Vancouver and Victoria in 2020 and 2021,” the report concludes.

“BC Housing obtained market value appraisals for all nine properties as required by internal policies and procedures. The total of the purchases ($202.4 million) was 8.5% below the total appraised market values ($220 million) for the nine properties.”

Within Victoria, properties purchased by BC Housing include the former Comfort Inn at 3020 Blanshard St., Paul’s Motor Inn at 1900 Douglas St., Capital City Centre at 1961 Douglas St. and a housing project at 225 Russell St.

The provincial government recently announced plans for a “cooling-off period” for home buyers, allowing them to opt out of purchases for a limited time after agreeing to buy. BC Finance Minister Selina Robinson said the goal is to reduce pressure on buyers so they can make sound decisions.

However, the Victoria Real Estate Board says there are better solutions than the government proposal, which doesn’t address the root of the problem — a lack of housing supply.

The BC Real Estate Association says the province needs to add another 25,000 homes for sale before supply will be in balance with current demand.

“We want this plan to support downtown businesses for the long-term by building on the success of the Build Back Victoria program, create more accessible and welcoming public spaces, and work with the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations to tell a more complete history of this land through cultural interpretation and economic development opportunities,” Helps said.

The draft design includes a new gateway to a Lekwungen plaza at Humboldt and an intersection realignment to create a new plaza for Chinatown.

Area businesses can expect to receive an invitation to one of two virtual discussions on March 8. There is also an online survey at engage.victoria.ca.
City seeks to re-imagine Government Street
One of Greater Victoria’s most iconic public spaces is getting a modern makeover. The City of Victoria announced today that a draft plan for redesigning the downtown street is ready for public feedback.

“Making Government Street a people-priority street is a key action of the City’s Strategic Plan and now it’s time to tell us what you think – what have we got right, what have we missed?” Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps said in a news release.

Government Street hasn’t changed in more than 50 years.

Replacements are needed for ageing street furniture, trees, traffic signals and other infrastructure.Chamber Events

“We want this plan to support downtown businesses for the long-term by building on the success of the Build Back Victoria program, create more accessible and welcoming public spaces, and work with the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations to tell a more complete history of this land through cultural interpretation and economic development opportunities,” Helps said.

The draft design includes a new gateway to a Lekwungen plaza at Humboldt and an intersection realignment to create a new plaza for Chinatown.

Area businesses can expect to receive an invitation to one of two virtual discussions on March 8. There is also an online survey at engage.victoria.ca.