It’s clear that housing supply will be key to address affordability issues that are making it difficult for people to start families and grow their careers. Employers in Greater Victoria and across Canada have been calling for solutions to address a skills shortage keeping many organizations from realizing their potential.

On that note, The Chamber applauds recent news that Chard Development is working with BC Housing on a project that will add more than 400 units of affordable housing to the City of Victoria.

The proposal to redevelop the site of the former White Spot and Capital City Centre Hotel on Douglas Street is a great example of innovation led by business. If approved, the project will help people who work in the city afford to live there. It will also include day care — vital for helping parents stay in the workforce — and 90 units of supportive housing to help people overcome challenges that put them at risk of homelessness. Other amenities include a 9,000 square foot plaza, retail and office space and a grocery store.

In 2022, The Chamber will continue our advocacy for safe communities as a fundamental need for good business and great community for all.
There is reason for optimism. The Chamber’s efforts to partner with other community organizations are being heard by all levels of government. In the City of Victoria, the police chief says approval to hire an influx of new officers will help the Victoria Police Department better face challenges amplified by the pandemic and the toxic drug crisis.
“I’m hopeful that it’s going to be a bounce-back year, and a bounce-back year for all of us,” VicPD Police Chief Del Manak told the Times Colonist.

Greater Victoria’s unemployment rate fell to 4% last month, down from 4.4% in October. The numbers from Statistics Canada show there were 208,200 people working in November, up from 204,600 in October.
 
An increase in the number of people working in food services, financial industries and real estate has helped bolster the rate.
 
Our region now has the fourth lowest unemployment rate in Canada, after the Quebec regions of Gatineau, Sherbrooke and Quebec City.

Capital City Comic Con is coming back to Greater Victoria next March. The Sci-Fi and comic book convention hasn’t been held for two years because of the pandemic.
 
The 2022 event will run from March 25 to 27 at the Victoria Convention Centre as well as Crystal Garden across the street. Start planning your costume now!

Areas of Greater Victoria are experiencing their wettest fall on record, with the Gonzales weather station reporting almost 300 times the rainfall of a typical year.
 
The parade of storms caused substantial damage to infrastructure in BC. And while the current forecast suggests the worst is over, the coming winter is expected to be wetter and colder than most years. Meteorologists at the Weather Network have released their winter forecast and say we can expect “tumultuous temperature patterns.”
 
The prediction is based on a La Niña weather pattern in the Pacific Ocean that will bring frigid weather that could extend ski season well into March.
 
“This will bring an abundance of snow to the alpine regions, and, at times, we expect significant snowfall across lower elevations, including Vancouver and the Lower Mainland, Victoria and the Okanagan Valley,” the network’s report says.