Government Local Archives - Page 2 of 4

Pack the park for HarbourCats home opener June 7

May 29, 2024/in Government Local, Hospitality And Tourism Rescue And Recovery/by Jim Zeeben

Few experiences top going to the ballpark to watch a game in-person.

Fans of the Victoria HarbourCats get their first chance to cheer on the home team next week at Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park. The H’Cats play the Wenatchee Applesox at 6:30 pm and the early forecast calls for sunny skies and a warm evening.

The team is hoping supporters take advantage of every opportunity to enjoy the home stadium as a scheduling issue will prevent the HarbourCats from playing in Victoria if they make the playoffs.

“As you may be aware, the City of Victoria and the Canadian Football League have agreed to host a regular season football game at Royal Athletic Park on Aug. 31, featuring the BC Lions,” stated an email from the HarbourCats this morning. “Due to the apparent requirements for the stadium set-up (e.g., adding additional bleachers and grassing over the baseball infield), the HarbourCats have been advised we must end our use of Royal Athletic Park this summer following our final regular season game on Aug.7.”

This timing means no home playoff games later this summer.

The HarbourCats, who support the CFL playing in Victoria, said they are disappointed with the timing and hope to rally the community to sellout the stadium during the regular season.

For more information, go to harbourcats.com.

The Chamber is hosting an Emerge Connector at Wilson’s Group Stadium on June 27, as part of the HarbourCats game against the Port Angeles Lefties.

Victoria council discusses future of downtown traffic

May 22, 2024/in Business And Economic Strength, Government Local/by Jim Zeeben

The Chamber is working to engage with members and our partner organizations to make sure the voice of business is heard on proposals that will impact traffic in downtown Victoria.

The City of Victoria is looking at extending dedicated bus lanes along Douglas Street, potentially reworking the busy corridor to focus on transit. The idea would take more than a year of study before returning to council.

Chamber CEO Bruce Williams told the Times Colonist that making transit more convenient is a good thing. Giving commuters an option other than single occupancy vehicles will help with congestion and emissions.

However, changing downtown streetscapes will require consultation with businesses that could be impacted by changes to traffic patterns and potential loss of parking spaces.

“We don’t want to deter people from going downtown to shop, enjoy a meal or have some fun in the city,” Williams said, noting that any transportation plan for the city needs to consider how convenient it is for people travelling from neighbourhoods outside downtown Victoria.

One proposal — also in the early stages — is to look at developing a new parkade near north Douglas to allow people to park close to downtown and then walk into the compact central core.

Secondary suite program aims to add 3,000 homes

May 8, 2024/in Government Local, Government Provincial, Housing/by Jim Zeeben

Business and industry groups have been calling for policy changes to address the housing shortage facing Greater Victoria. And while many regions in the world are facing a similar challenge, we need solutions that work for Canada and BC.

Last week, the province revealed its three-year pilot to encourage homeowners to add secondary suites to their properties.

BC Housing will administer the program, which offers forgivable loans of as much as 50% of the total cost of renovations — up to a maximum of $40,000 — to add a secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit such as a garden suite, laneway house or carriage home. If the new unit is rented at below market rates for at least five years, the loan will be forgiven.

The province estimates the program will add 3,000 new rental units at below-market rates.

To be eligible, homeowners must also:

obtain a building and occupancy permit from their local government;
have a combined gross annual income of homeowners on title of less than $209,420; and
have a BC Assessment value on their property below the homeowner grant threshold ($2.15 million in 2024).

New rules for short-term rentals effective May 1

May 1, 2024/in Fair Rules, Government Local, Government Provincial, Housing/by Jim Zeeben

The Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act took effect today. Among the changes, according to the province, are:

Short-term rentals can only be offered in the principal residence of a host, plus one additional unit, secondary suite or laneway home/garden suite on the property.
Strata hotels and motels that have been operating in a manner similar to a hotel or motel before Dec. 8, 2023, and that meet select criteria moving forward, will be exempt from the Principal Residence Requirement.
Non-conforming use of property will no longer apply to short-term rentals.
Short-term rental hosts will be required to display a valid business licence number on their listing.
Short-term rental platforms will be required to share data with the Province.

If the new rules aren’t followed, fines can be levied ranging from $500 to $10,000 per day, depending on who is operating the rental.

BC Minister of Housing Ravi Kahlon told the Times Colonist that short-term rentals will be available on a smaller scale as the new rules aim to stop people from taking away large numbers of housing units that could serve as homes for people.

New Rules for STRs

Transportation crossroads getting major overhaul

April 24, 2024/in Government Local, Transportation Options/by Jim Zeeben

As part of the plan for transforming the Uptown corridor, the province is proposing changes to Ravine Way to accommodate new bus stops and expanded trails in the area.

An information session is scheduled for May 1, from 3-7 pm at Cedar Hill Golf Course, to review design concepts, get feedback and discuss how to improve the area for people travelling by bus, foot, bicycle, wheelchair or scooter.

Have your say on Victoria’s official community plan

April 24, 2024/in Government Local/by Jim Zeeben

The City of Victoria is updating its Official Community Plan this year. The province requires all BC municipalities to update their OCP every five years with a vision for the next 20 years. Victoria — facing a changing climate, growing population and a profound shortage of housing — is looking for input from the public and business community to help shape the next plan.

“Decisions on where housing, businesses and parks should go, how we move around the city and ways Victoria can respond to the climate crisis are all determined by the OCP,” states the city’s website. “If the City was a train, the OCP would be its conductor leading the way.”

Community engagement will continue until September and plans currently include an open house, a survey, pop-up events in the city and an online information session.

Learn more at engage.victoria.ca/ocp.

Saanich moving forward on plans for Uptown ‘downtown’

April 24, 2024/in Government Local, Immigration And Integration, Streamlined Regional Regulations/by Jim Zeeben

A new hub close to the “heart of Saanich” was given a key stamp of approval on Monday.

The District of Saanich has an extensive plan for the Uptown-Douglas area, which is at the crossroads of Greater Victoria’s core municipalities.

The area will be zoned to shape new development designed to grow the neighbourhood as a major hub north of downtown Victoria and between the West Shore and Saanich Peninsula.

The plan includes turning Oak Street into a vibrant commercial district that creates a walkable boulevard between Uptown Mall and Mayfair Shopping Centre.
Read the Uptown-Douglas Plan

Amalgamation committee taking shape this spring

April 24, 2024/in Fair Rules, Government Local, Streamlined Regional Regulations/by Jim Zeeben

Talk is turning to action on the latest attempt to pursue municipal amalgamation. Invitations to serve on the Victoria-Saanich Citizens’ Assembly have been sent to 10,000 residents in the two communities. They have until May 30 to confirm whether they will participate.

From there, 48 people will be selected through a randomized lottery process that fairly represents the population of both municipalities. Finally, the committee will come together over eight Saturdays starting in September and wrapping up in April. At that point, they will produce a report outlining the pros and cons of merging Greater Victoria’s two largest municipalities.

More local municipalities must meet housing targets

April 24, 2024/in Government Local, Government Provincial, Housing/by Jim Zeeben

On Tuesday, the provincial government released the next round of municipalities facing scrutiny to ensure they are helping increase BC’s housing supply.

The next 20 priority municipalities include the following in Greater Victoria:

Central Saanich
Colwood
Esquimalt
North Saanich
Sidney
and View Royal.

The first list, released last spring, included the City of Victoria, the District of Saanich and the District of Oak Bay. Each community receives a target number of total units that are expected to be built within a specific time-frame. The targets for the latest communities will be made public this summer.

“The Chamber supports efforts to increase housing supply and we continue to advocate for all levels of government to smooth the process for builders so the construction work needed can be done,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams said. “I’m looking forward to speaking with Premier Eby next week at the Chamber breakfast to hear firsthand how the province is advocating for support from the federal government.”

The Chamber hosts Premier Eby on April 30. Register now to reserve your seat at the table.

CRD seeks debt increase to aid housing crunch

June 14, 2023/in Government Local/by caorda