April 22 - The second-tallest tower

Good morning !

Yesterday Highway 19 was unexpectedly shut around noon and then only partially reopened, delaying up-Island travel on a busy spring weekend. It was resolved after a few hours, but served as a reminder of how easily travel between key parts of the Island can be stopped or at least thrown off.

— Cam

Today’s approx. read time: 4 minutes

🌡️ Weather Forecast

Today: ☀️ 15 / 4

Tomorrow: ⛅ 15 / 9

Day after: ⛅ 15 / 8

7-day forecast

NEWS

Esquimalt approves Island’s second-tallest residential building

A tower approved this month will miss the title of tallest by one metre (84m to Hudson Place One’s 85m). But it will be the tallest in Esquimalt by more than double. That has been both the calling card and the main hurdle for the polarizing “The 900s” project—the township’s usual max is 12 storeys.

Project is on the Carlton Club lands

The site currently hosts a rental-and-retail three-storey and the now-defunct club itself, which was reborn as an accessible arts space while awaiting this redevelopment. But that shut down early, in Feb. 2023, due to cracks in its walls. The new building would be a 156-condo tower and 96-rental eight-storey.

Public amenity contribution unusually high

Staff determined the $4.1M exceeded local norms and rivalled Vancouver projects. Developer GMC Projects promised a parklet, plazas, 280m² dog park, bike lane and bus stop work, some below-market rentals, and money to the Songhees and Esquimalt.

Council delayed its vote from March, to get the amenity report

When April 8 arrived, councillors had some concerns but voted 5-2 in favour while proposing to look at updates to the Official Community Plan. Mayor Barb Desjardins wrote an op-ed on council’s difficulty managing the divided public opinion and the proposal's unprecedented scale.

Second-tallest status won’t last long

Both the Bayview and Harris Green mega-developments are building 32-storey towers.

⚠️ Capital Bulletin

Missing kayakers near Sidney: RCMP seek public help finding Daniel MacAlpine, 36, and Nicholas West, 26, who were taking a teal kayak from D'Arcy Island to View Beach.

Victoria Book Prizes seek submissions.

Vancouver victorious as Canucks win first home playoff game in almost a decade. 

Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.

NEWS

Langford promises safer travel to schools with new infrastructure upgrades

The city announced eight significant infrastructure advancement projects last week in collaboration with Sooke School District (SD62). They will be working on six sidewalk infill projects, one multi-use path, and intersection upgrades at Veterans Memorial Parkway and Goldstream Avenue. Funding will come from the city’s General Amenity Fund, SD62, ICBC, and the Ministry of Transportation.

The projects support Langford’s first strategic plan, which prioritizes transportation safety, opportunity, and awareness. The city had already made one major transportation announcement this year, with a traffic calming policy unveiled in January.

Some projects are nearing construction, while others are still in the design phase, but all are expected to be completed in 2024 and 2025.

More on the upgrades, and where exactly they are located, in The Westshore.

FOOD

Culinaire food and drink expo returns for 13th year

On April 24, the Victoria Conference Centre will showcase the Island’s restaurants, craft makers, and specialty goods purveyors, with 80+ presenters from our region and around BC.

The event has seasoned professionals talking about their trade and what they produce, plus the chance to taste new flavours and creations—from handmade mustard and pie to Asian comfort food truck to craft cider and spirits to award-winning artisan cheeses. 

Read more about the show, and who will be there, at Tasting Victoria.

SPONSORED BY THE BELFRY THEATRE

Tony Award winner, The Lehman Trilogy, starts tomorrow

On a cold September morning in 1844, Heyam, a young man from Bavaria stands on a New York dockside dreaming of a new life in the new world. He is soon joined by Mendel and Mayer, and the Lehman brothers’ journey begins.

The growth of global capitalism exposes the fault lines of the American dream. The Lehman brothers rise from shopkeepers to bankers, from obscurity to prominence, navigating the Civil War, the Great Depression, and generations of ethical dilemmas.

It is an epic journey, an epic play, and a theatrical tour de force.

The Belfry offers pay-what-you-want tickets to all performances.

⭐️ Capital Picks

🌿 Scenes from a moody spring garden in these detailed, delicate snapshots by Work The Angle. 

📻 This week on the radio: The CFUV schedule includes local music, themed hours, podcasts, storytelling, and more.

🥐 The best bakery in town: Check out the finalists in this category and many more like best seafood, pizza, happy hour, the list goes on. You get to pick the winners here.

🤝 Now hiring: Horse-Drawn Carriage Driver at Tally-Ho Carriage Tours

🗞️ In Other News

Court recognizes Nuchatlaht title to part of Nootka Island coast, but not interior
In the multi-year land dispute vs. BC, the judge recognized a strip of the 201km² claim but remained unconvinced about traditional use of higher-elevation inland areas. The nation may appeal; it hopes to reduce current old-growth logging in the inland Crown forests, and argues its coastal villages interacted with entire watersheds. [Ha-Shilth-Sa]

Saanich Predators finish with bronze at Mowat Cup
The local junior A hockey team won the VIJHL two weeks ago, earning a place in the four-team BCHL cup tourney. The Preds lost their round-robin games, but beat the Kimberley Dynamiters in Sunday's consolation final. 

New art project visualizes 84,000 fish killed in Cowichan River
Youth and adults are making collagraph prints as a way to process the scale of losses of steelhead trout fry last summer due to heat, algae, and other environmental factors. The final piece will be presented this fall. [The Discourse]

SPONSORED BY TALL TREE HEALTH

A longer, healthier life is now within reach

Every hour, Canadians are dying of preventable diseases. What if you could take steps now to understand your risks and live longer in better health?

With a team of medical and behavioural experts and aggressive evidence-based metrics, Tall Tree’s longevity program helps you fight disease before it starts, when it’s easier to prevent. 

🗓️ Things to do

 🥁 Phil Collins tribute variety show hosted by drag king Chaz Avery at the VEC. Doors 7pm tonight. 

🎶 Katie Pruitt and Jack Van Cleaf perform tonight at Capital Ballroom. Doors 7pm. [Tickets]

⛷Anatomy of a Fall at Cinecenta: The Oscar-winning courtroom movie plays at UVic twice today. 

🎤 Ice Cube: The American rapper is bringing his tour to Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. Tomorrow. 7pm.

Want more events? Subscribe to This Week In Vic and get our weekly events newsletter every Tuesday.

👀 In Case You Missed It

Senior vs. shipbreaker in court case over drone. Also in Sunday newsletter: Conviction in 2020 Langford murder case.

Humpbacks become TV stars as Island researchers’ whale work features on Planet Earth III. [Capital Daily]

Hwy 19 was shut, then partly reopened, near Campbell River on Sunday afternoon due to an apparent tanker truck fire.

Victoria orders the most cannabis delivery of any BC city, per Uber Eats delivery stats.

It’s patio season, so check out Tasting Victoria’s ultimate patio guide.

Emerson pretends to be driftwood in this shot of the friendly seal.

That’s it!

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