Nov 18 - Victoria nearly halfway to its 2028 housing target

Good morning !

We’re over halfway through November, so, naturally, the argument about whether it’s too soon for Christmas and holiday decorations has begun.

I personally like to wait until Dec. 1 to get in the holiday spirit, but I’m starting to think I’m alone on this one—every shop I’ve gone into this week has had Christmas music playing.

— Robyn

Today’s approx. read time: 6 minutes

Empower single-parent families to thrive by DONATING TODAY

🌡️ Weather Forecast

Today: ⛅ 8 / 4

Tomorrow: ⛅ 8 /8

Day after: ⛅ 10 / 7

NEWS

UVic study: drift logs causing damage to
BC’s intertidal zones

They may seem like a key part of the beach scenery here on the Island—and make for a convenient bench or backrest while visiting sandy and rocky shores—but the familiar drift logs on BC’s coast are doing some serious damage.

New research from UVic biologist Tom Reimchen was published this week in Marine Ecology. Reimchen, along with two undergraduate students, Esteban Pérez Andresen and Melanie Marchant, found that BC’s rocky intertidal ecosystems are being decimated by logs crashing against them.

Reimchen's team used satellite imagery and archival photographs to track changes in the abundance of logs on BC’s shorelines. They found a 520% increase in drift logs since the late 19th century. Even remote shores had the number of logs seen in more developed areas.

These logs hurt the diversity of these intertidal zones—Reimchen found that barnacle populations were 20-80% lower on surfaces exposed to logs compared with protected spots. Barnacles are a key part of coastal ecosystems, providing a food source, water filtration, and shelter for small creatures. 

With the drop in barnacles, fewer shorebirds are visiting these regions to feed—and other levels of the food chain are in turn, affected by this. Since 1970, there has been a 50% drop in some shorebird species along coastal BC.  

“Drift logs cause persistent and cyclical damage to the intertidal environment along the BC coast,” says Reimchen. “And the problem has only gotten worse over the last century, as the number of drift logs along the BC coast has been steadily increasing.”  

Like many environmental issues, the bulk of this problem is related to human activity.

The study found that the logging industry has played a major role in the increase—more than 60% of logs analyzed showed signs of human origin related to logging.

“We need to recognize drift logs as a significant ecological disturbance, comparable to ice-scouring or heatwaves,” Reimchen says. 

“It’s critical that we begin reducing the number of drift logs added to the marine environment and begin introducing conservation measures to protect organisms in the intertidal zone.” 

⚠️ Capital Bulletin

BC emergency alert testing: A provincewide system test will happen at 1:55pm tomorrow. [BC Gov’t.]

Galloping Goose closure/detour: Viaduct Park in Burnside Gorge. [Weekdays until Dec. 19]

Cook closed between Johnson and Yates for underground utility servicing. 7am-5pm through Nov. 26. [City of Vic]  

Saanich road closure: Iona between Cedar Hill Cross and Broadmead, through Nov. 28, 24 hours

NEWS

Victoria is nearly halfway to 5-year
housing targets, says report

As of the end of September, 2,359 new units had been built—equal to 48% of the objective to build 4,902 new homes by fall 2028, the city said in its latest target update.

However, the report to the council’s committee of the whole warns the city will have to work with the housing sector to maintain that momentum and ensure the new housing suits all incomes and needs. 

“There is much more to do on the housing crisis, but Victoria is doing its part to add non-market housing, housing supply, and family-friendly housing,” Coun. Jeremy Caradonna said through social media. 

According to the city’s third housing progress report, for the period of Oct. 1, 2024, to Sept. 30 of this year, the city exceeded its second-year target of 766 new units by building 882. 

In 2023, the BC government began directing many municipal governments to build more housing and to provide progress reports. 

The city said it has already reached 79% of its goal for two-bedroom units and that 1,545 of 3,365 one-bedrooms have been built.

But the city is a little behind on three-bedroom and below-market (affordable housing) units. The three-bedroom target is 736, with 181 built. The below-market target over five years is 1,798, with 363 completed.

The report said the city’s new Official Community Plan (OCP), which streamlines the development process and encourages the building of diverse housing through its zoning bylaws, should help get those numbers up. 

Caradonna said Victoria’s housing market is beginning to improve for residents, and he pointed to vacancy rates of 2.5 to 3%, which he said are higher than they’ve been in years.

According to a Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation rental-market report in December 2024—the next purpose-built rental apartment vacancy rate is slated to come out in four weeks—the vacancy rate had risen to 2.5%, an increase from 1.6% the previous December.

It was pegged at 1% as recently as 2019 but more than doubled the following year, when the pandemic led to reduced demand and a temporary increase in supply.

SPONSORED BY BELFRY THEATRE

Little Dickens is a raucous, adults-only holiday treat.

Ronnie Burkett is a legend of Canadian Theatre and is the winner of the Governor General’s Award and the Siminovitch Prize in Theatre.

In Little Dickens, the cast of The Daisy Theatre take on the beloved holiday classic, A Christmas Carol, in the merriest marionette mash-up ever.

Faded diva Esmé Massengill plays the role of miserly, drunken, bitter Esmé Scrooge in this Burkett-esque retelling of the Dickens classic.

As always with an improvised Daisy show, there is no set script, and in keeping with the vaudeville show theme, popular Christmas songs will feature in a burlesque opening, sultry jazz solos, and the merriment of Fezziwig’s party.

Little Dickens holds true to the heart of A Christmas Carol. Pay-what-you-want tickets here.

⭐️ Capital Picks

🛍️ Think Local Week: Join the celebration—support local businesses and win prizes this week. [Details]

💎 When opportunity appears, be ready! Stay current in the job market and choose from 70+ programs with Continuing Studies at UVic.*

👕 UNIQLO opens at Mayfair Shopping Centre on Nov. 21.

🧑‍🧒 1Up Victoria Single Parent Resource Centre: Building Hope for Single Parents, One Family at a Time. Empower single parent families to thrive by donating today.*

🌉 Bridges over James Bay: See the first and second bridges built over the bay in the 1800s. [Facebook photos]

🏅 Hotel Zed / Accent Inns owner wins Canadian Queer Chamber of Commerce Business Leader of the Year Award.

🚀 Skip the Colwood Crawl. Discover fresh ideas without leaving your community at the new John Horgan Campus in Langford.*

^{*Sponsored Listing}

SPONSORED BY PHILOSOPHY MD

The "IT" gift for the 2025 holiday season is self-care.

Philosophy MD’s most anticipated celebration is back - the Holiday House Party will kick off on November 20th, 1 to 7 PM - 559 Superior Street. Enjoy some pampering, expert consultations, and a little celestial sparkle. Featuring favourite cosmetic treatments and skincare.

RSVP to attend.

🗞️ In Other News

Alto says she wishes council had focused on safety earlier in her term
Victoria Mayor Marianne Alto said the next 11 months—the final year of her first term as mayor—will be focused on the city’s community safety plan. She said she regrets that work on a safety plan was not started until the fall of 2023, and implementation and financial commitments only arrived this summer. She says the aggressive decision to launch the city’s $10M safety plan over the summer may not have been necessary had it been made a priority when the council took office in October 2022. [Times Colonist]

Measles no longer eliminated in Canada, but Island has had fewest cases in BC
More than 360 probable or confirmed cases of measles were reported to Island Health this year, but only four (1.1%) were on the Island. The rise in cases across Canada—last week, the country lost its measles elimination status—is tied to the countrywide drop in childhood vaccinations. However, vaccination rates remain high on the Island. When outbreaks occur here, they typically are isolated to small communities (all four cases this year occurred on the North Island). [Black Press]

Victoria kids’ musician Paul Hann dies at 77
The UK-born Hann moved to Canada when he was 18 and became a celebrated singer-songwriter and children’s entertainer in Edmonton. The “Cockney Cowboy” was nominated for a Juno Award in 1974. His CTV show, Paul Hann and Friends, aired in the 1980s and led to a generation of young Edmontonians seeing Hann as a second father. A licensed pilot, Hann would move to Victoria, where he retired and learned to sail. He died on Oct. 30 of Parkinson’s with Lewy body dementia. [Edmonton Journal]

SPONSORED BY HEATHER FERGUSON MUSIC

Christmas at the Coda

Celebrate the season with Heather Ferguson’s soulful sounds at The Coda! Join Heather and her stellar band—Attila Fias, Peter Dowse, Kelby MacNayr, Barrie Sorensen, and Miguelito Valdes—for an unforgettable evening of festive classics and heartfelt originals. Thursday, Dec 11 at 7pm. Let the holiday spirit shine!

🗓️ Things To Do

🤝 2025 Marketplace Mixer: Network at this tradeshow-style event, bringing together Greater Victoria's business community at Crystal Garden today. 4:30-7:30pm. [Info]

🌎 Fall 2025 Art Workshop Series: Young people ages 18-30 explore climate emotions through art making and dialogue at Print Hole today. 6-8pm. [Info]

🎵 14th Annual Victoria Conservatory of Music Chamber Competition: Watch young chamber groups compete in junior and senior categories at Alix Goolden Hall today. 6:30-9pm. [Info]

🔤 Rotary Spelling Bee Breakfast Fundraiser for Literacy: Test your spelling skills in this fun, fast-paced adult bee supporting Victoria Literacy Connection's vital reading, writing and learning programs at Victoria Marriott Hotel tomorrow. 7:30-8:30am. [Info]

🎷 Victoria Jazz Jam Session 5: Musicians can bring their instruments to play with the Tom Vickery Trio house band at The Coda tomorrow. 6:30-8:30pm. [Info]

👀 In Case You Missed It

CORRECTION: A story that appeared here last week said 70.2% of Island Health patients did not have a doctor. This stat was incorrect. An Island Health report said, “70.2% of Island Health residents (65% in BC) reported they were unable to access a family doctor when needed in the past year.” According to Island Health, 77.5% of people on the Island have a family doctor, but 70.2% said there were times they could not access an appointment.

Sunday’s headlines: Victoria actress in big Hollywood film; Weekly roundup; Vic councillors reject raise clawback motion. [Nov. 16]

Direct bus service to YYJ, Swartz Bay on regional transit commission’s radar. [CHEK]

Victoria Regional Transit Commission meeting open to the public [9:30am today]

The Giving Machines are now open at Tillicum Mall.

Salish Sea Idol 2025 fundraiser until Dec. 2. 

That’s it!

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