Sun. July 9 - Byelection concludes controversial council chapter

TOGETHER WITH

Good morning !

Another local byelection is in the books, this time on the peninsula. While this campaign was relatively low-key, the circumstances that led to it were anything but. More on that below, plus the latest local sports, science, and events.

— Cam

🌤️ Today’s weather: Mainly sunny, wind in afternoon. High 22C/ low 12C. UV index 9 (very high).

🌫️ Air quality: Low risk today (3/10), light overhead smoke expected to dissipate.

NEWS

Kristine Marshall wins North Saanich byelection sparked by “Mr. Hitler” debacle

Marshall, a Deep Cove farm owner and VicPD executive assistant, was elected with 1,210 votes—almost exactly 70% of the 1,731 cast in Saturday’s byelection—per preliminary results. Lawyer Ryan Lay was second with 471 and Raymon Farmere, who ran in Oak Bay last fall, was a distant third with 50. The 16% turnout of eligible voters was just under half of the 35% who came out in last fall’s general election.

Byelection came after months of controversy

Second-term Councillor Brett Smyth resigned this March after having told Mayor Peter Jones “Thank you, Mr. Hitler” when Jones cut off criticism during discussion. Smyth had accused Jones of stacking the deck on the Mayor’s Official Community Plan Advisory Committee (MOCPAC) to overrepresent those who agreed with Jones, and of not providing the public with enough information about appointees.

The two had clashed before over the OCP issue, which has divided council and the community. Jones and the councillors who typically vote with him were elected partly on a wave of opposition to increasing density in the municipality. Smyth and others have said Jones is overreaching while pursuing this mandate and is driving away district staff. The latest staff departure, Chief Administrative Officer Tim Tanton, was given $300,000 to leave over the OCP split. Modus, the company contracted to do OCP consultations, also quit.

More on that background, and the infamous “Mr. Hitler” meeting, at Capital Daily.

Winner endorsed by movement against development

Marshall has not played up these issues in her campaign materials, but she was heavily endorsed by the group—Save North Saanich—that backed Jones and others last fall. Her bio says that “local agricultural viability and food sustainability” are key to the present and future, and that “local policies should carefully consider our forests, green spaces, farmland, marine areas, and appropriate housing.” Lay’s bio also named the rural nature of the community as one of his favourite things about it. Farmere’s bio promised to advocate for more provincial funding for first responders, affordable housing, and bus frequency.

Capital Bulletin

🚧 Paving begins on Downey tomorrow, starting at Madrona and moving east toward West Saanich Road over the next three days.

🚗 ICBC road tests drop from 45 to 35 min: ICBC, facing a backlog of tests, says it cut redundancy in the test in order to do more per day.

NEWS

Local marine & tech sectors get $8.1M

Victoria’s tech ecosystem recently saw its largest round of funding from PacifiCan, the federal government’s economic development agency for BC. The largest chunk, $3M, went to the economic development alliance the South Island Prosperity Partnership (SIPP) for the Centre for Ocean Applied Sustainable Technologies (COAST) and the Indigenous Prosperity centre.

Emilie de Rosenroll, group CEO of SIPP (above left), told Victoria Tech Journal that personnel is the biggest current issue for the industry and that SIPP is currently working on a “virtual training hub” that will create “opportunities for upskilling and reskilling in some key areas of the blue economy.”

Kelp farming, which has grown locally in recent years, is another area being looked at for Indigenous communities. But de Rosenroll also said that part of the focus there is to avoid being “overly extractive or too short-term in our thinking.”

Read Capital Daily’s feature here on SIPP, COAST, and the rest of Victoria’s burgeoning “blue economy.”

UVic gets $1.2M to buy Canada’s first flex mass spectrometer

The instrument, which helps researchers analyze tissues at the cellular level, will be used to develop drugs and advance cancer research. UVic will also get $658K to continue its research on replacing diesel generators with wave power on Haida Gwaii.

3 Victoria startups helped by Jobs & Growth Fund

– $250K to Origen Air to increase production of its genetically modified air-purifying plants for air purification

– $730K to Aluula Composites to scale up manufacturing and sales of its advanced textiles, used in sailing and elsewhere

– $1.5M to Peloton Technologies to help clients move from paper to digital payments.

More on the recent funding at Victoria Tech Journal.

NEWS

Pacific FC loses for just the second time this season

The team lost 1-2 to Cavalry FC in Langford on Saturday, ending a 10-week undefeated streak dating back to April. The teams combined for 8 yellow cards in this hard-fought match between PFC and the Calgary-based western rival it beat in the 2021 semifinals en route to its first championship.

PFC remains firmly atop the Canadian Premier League standings (7-4-2 record for 25 points, +11 in goals) while chasing a second championship in three seasons, but second-place Cavalry has now closed some distance (5-6-2, 21 points, +5).

Pacific recently extended head coach James Merriman of Nanaimo on a new three-year contract.

Watch Saturday’s game highlights below:

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Capital Picks

🏳️‍🌈 Victoria Pride Parade: The march celebrating the 2SLGBTQ+ community will start at Douglas and Pandora at 11am and will end at Menzies and Kingston.

🏳️‍🌈 Pride Festival in the Park: Following the parade, watch performances from artists including Henrietta Dubet, Vivian Vanderpuss, and Peaches N’ Screams at MacDonald Park. 12- 8pm. [Details]

🥞 Pride drag brunch at Friends of Dorothy: Have a delicious bite to eat and watch some drag performances today. 11am-2pm.

💃 Pride dance at The Vicious Poodle: Following the Pride parade, get your dance on tonight.

🏳️‍🌈 Pride after party at Paparazzi: Wrap up Victoria Pride Week with some amazing performances, including by Canada Drag Race star Stephanie Prince. 8pm-2am.

🎧 Tilt! at Phillips Backyard: The weekend-long festival wraps up today with performances from Bahamas, Sudan Archives, and Whitehorse.

🎉 Festival Mexicano: The celebration of Mexican culture at the Inner Harbour continues with live music and food.

🔔 Carillon recital at RBCM: Carillonneur Rosemary Laing will perform a live recital, 3- 3:45pm.

🤝 Now hiring: Tax Coordinator at Together Against Poverty Society.

In Other News

💐 Former Oak Bay councillor John Herbert dies
Herbert served 1999-2014 and was known for his level of care and preparation, and his work on the district’s centennial. Born in 1935, he died this past week after a brief illness just a few weeks before his 62nd anniversary with wife Ann. [Oak Bay News]

🤝 31 hectares in Cowichan Valley returned to Ts’uubaa-asatx
The culturally significant land worth $1.6M was transferred via an Incremental Treaty Agreement (ITA) that the province said Friday was the beginning of further negotiations. Ts’uubaa-asatx First Nation, previously Lake Cowichan First Nation, is distinct from its much larger neighbour Cowichan Tribes. Both are part of the Hul'qumi'num Treaty Group—named for the common language of the region—which is in the 5th and final stage of treaty negotiations with BC.

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In Case You Missed It

⚖️ Family sues RCMP over fatal shooting of Island man two years ago. The IIO found last winter that criminal charges against police may be warranted, but has not made official recommendations. [Sat. newsletter]

🍩 7 favourite summer dishes, from donuts and beers to tater tots and caviar. [Tasting Victoria]

🚔 Renewed search for Melissa McDevitt: Sooke RCMP confirmed the resumption following the discovery of new GPS data.

🛩️ BC Aviation Museum gets CF-104 Starfighter: A Canadian Cold War fighter-bomber—Canada’s fastest and highest-flying aircraft—will soon be on display on the peninsula.

🎮 Victoria game industry levels up: Growing numbers of game creators have led to advancements in the city’s video game industry. [Victoria Tech Journal]

📰 Friday headlines: One man dead after yacht sinks, five suspicious fires at Saanich elementary, and more. [July 7]