Good morning {{First name}}!

I stopped by the Shell on Yates and Fort last night around 9:30, in urgent need of a Kit Kat or a bag of chips—I wasn’t sure, but I needed it—STAT.
I was surprised to see customers ahead of me making their junk food orders through a window and not allowed inside.
I was told that’s how things are done these days because of robbery worries.
I’m embarrassed to say I missed the memo on that one.

— Mark

Today’s approx. read time: 5 minutes

Today: 🌤️ 22 / 11

Tomorrow: 🌥️ 19 / 12

Saturday: 🌧️ 21 / 13

7-day forecast

The BC Human Rights Tribunal has ruled that the taxi company and a driver discriminated against a woman by denying her a cab ride after a disagreement about fitting her wheelchair into the trunk.

The tribunal instructed the company and driver Ehsan Khan to pay the woman $12K. Victoria Taxi must also implement mandatory training.

The woman, “Ms. T,” filed a human rights complaint after the Aug. 20, 2021, incident left her without a ride to a medical appointment. Ms. T has a chronic neurological condition stemming from Lyme disease and uses a wheelchair and cane.

On the day in question, Khan arrived at Ms. T’s residence in a sedan. He claimed the wheelchair wouldn’t fit in his trunk, though Ms. T and Ning Li, a healthcare worker helping her that day, said it folds to the size of a suitcase and always fits into a standard trunk.

The women said Khan told them to call an accessible taxi—and took off. Khan and the taxi company didn’t attend the hearing, submitting a written response instead.

Ms. T testified that when she called Victoria Taxi, a dispatcher told her “drivers don’t want to deal with wheelchairs.”

“I unequivocally accept Ms. T’s evidence that the comment reinforced to her that she did not deserve the same access to services as other passengers,” tribunal member Amber Prince ruled.

Prince ordered Khan and Victoria Taxi to pay Ms. T $12K as compensation “for injury to her dignity, feelings, and self-respect.”

“Within six months… I order Victoria Taxi to implement mandatory training, of no less than two hours, for all staff and managers about its human rights obligations to provide services to people who use wheelchairs—including wheelchairs designated as portable mobility aids,” Prince wrote.

Cook Construction: Possible traffic delays and pedestrian detours on Cook between Bay and Tolmie through Sept. 18.

Langford single-lane traffic: 
Latoria between Golden Spire and Desmond overnight tonight.
Goldstream between Shelby Pl. and Leigh through Sept. 30.
Goldstream between Leigh and Carlow through Sept. 30.

Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.
On the water today? Check the tide times for Victoria.

Winners of the City of Victoria Book Prize, Children’s Book Prize, and DC Reid Poetry Prize will be announced on Nov. 14, with each receiving $5K.

“Victoria is home to one of the highest concentrations of writers, poets, and illustrators in the country,” said Sybil Harrison, president of the Victoria Book Prize Society, which considered 50 books this year and narrowed it down to nine.

“Their stories, often inspired by this place, reflect our collective experience.”

City of Victoria Book Prize (for fiction or non-fiction):
• Dennis E. Bolen, Amaranthine Chevrolet (Dundurn Press)
• Tracey Lindberg, The Cree Word for Love: Sâkihitowin (HarperCollins)
• Terence Young, Give Us This Day (Signature Editions) 

City of Victoria Children’s Book Prize:
• Mike Deas (illustrator), This Plant Is Not Boring (Orca Book Publishers) 
• Mike Deas and Nancy Deas, Howler Reef (Orca Book Publishers)
• Uma Krishnaswami, The Sunshine Project (Groundwood Books)

DC Reid Poetry Prize:
• John Barton, Compulsory Figures (Caitlin Press) 
• Marilyn Bowering, Frayed Linens (Exile Editions)
• Arleen Paré, Encrypted (Caitlin Press) 

The Victoria Book Prize Society was founded in 2004 to promote public appreciation of books by authors living in Greater Victoria.
The City of Victoria has long sponsored the Victoria Book Prize and the Children's Book Prize. DC Reid, a Victoria-based poet and philanthropist, sponsors the cash prize for poetry. 

Find out more information on the City of Victoria Book Prizes here.

Women of the Fur Trade stars (clockwise, left to right): Kelsey Kanatan Wavey, Danica Charlie, Amanda Lisman, Jonathan Mason, and Aren Okemaysim.
Set in “eighteen hundred and something," three very different women with a preference for 21st-century slang sit in a fort on the banks of the Reddish River, sharing their views on life, love, and that hot nerd Louis Riel (“He is SO dreamy… the total package!").
In this lively historical satire of survival and cultural inheritance, playwright Frances Koncan shifts perspectives from the male gaze onto women’s power—in the past and present—through the lens of the rapidly changing world of the Canadian fur trade. 
The Belfry offers Pay-What-You-Want pricing on season packages and single tickets because theatre should never be outside your budget. For more information, visit belfry.bc.ca or call 250-385-6815.

🍞 BC Thanksgiving Food Drive is on today through Sept. 19.

🍖 Esquimalt Ribfest is happening Friday through Sunday.  

🧑‍🍳🎶 Canada’s Great Kitchen Party is at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel on Sept. 29.

🎵 Skerryvore: Scotland’s popular act performs at the McPherson Playhouse on Oct. 6.

🌿 New from Mateína: A zero-sugar, organic yerba mate that delivers clean energy—no crash, no weird ingredients. Just plant-powered fuel that works.*

*Sponsored Listing

Council set to consider 12-storey tower that would displace a downtown parkade
The privately owned Broughton Square Parkade is a four-storey structure at Broughton and Gordon, operated by Robbins Parking. It would be torn down—along with spots for 309 vehicles—if the council approves a proposed 12-storey mixed-use tower. The high-rise would include 242 rental units and 1,330 square metres of ground-level commercial space. While the proposal would add needed housing and replace lost streetside retail, the Downtown Victoria Business Association said hotels and other businesses are worried the loss of parking will affect downtown workers, customers and tourists. [Times Colonist]

Watch for owls and hawks on the roadside, BC SPCA warns drivers
The birds often hunt small rodents attracted to food waste strewn along roadways—and now that the sun sets earlier, they’re more apt to be in contact with drivers commuting in the dark. The BC SPCA says the transition into autumn typically results in more car-bird collisions. Last year, 18 owls and three red-tailed hawks were treated at the Wild Animal Rehabilitation Centre (Wild ARC) for fractures, broken wings, and head trauma after being hit by vehicles. [CHEK]

Canada-US relations: Buffalo Bills to play O Canada ahead of home opener
Victoria’s unofficial favourite NFL team opened their home season with a 13-10 victory over the New England Patriots last night. Like the Buffalo Bills, the Seahawks famously draw up to 15% of their home crowds from Canada. Yesterday, the Bills announced Toronto’s Barenaked Ladies will sing O Canada before they open the new Highmark Stadium on Sept. 17. There wasn’t a Canadian anthem ahead of the Super Bowl champion Seahawks game last night, but Seattle home son Mike McCready of the band Pearl Jam performed the Star-Spangled Banner a la Jimi Hendrix. [CBC]

Single tickets are now on sale for Dance Victoria's landmark 30th Anniversary Season. Experience world-class dance with Christos Papadopoulos / The Lion and the Wolf (Greece), Martha Graham Dance Company (New York), Kidd Pivot (Vancouver), Gauthier Dance (Germany), and Out Innerspace Dance Theatre (Vancouver). Tickets from $35!

🎵🎙️ Alan Cross: Uncharted. Crime and Mayhem in the Music Industry. Live podcast at Studio 919. Today. 7pm. [Info]

🪶 Free Outdoor Performance: Land, Language & Songs: Songs at the Spindle Whorls. Pacific Opera Victoria holds a free walking event to explore how language, music, and place connect us. Songhees Point. Saturday. 12:30pm. [Info]

🍂 Little Fernwood Harvest Fun Fair: Kick off the fall season with games, baking contests, and music in Fernwood Square. Saturday. 11am-4pm. [Info]

🏮Autumn Lantern Festival: Illuminated lantern displays, food trucks, and a lantern-making workshop. Come dressed in an illuminated costume. Gordon Head Recreation Centre and Lambrick Park. Saturday. 5-8:30pm. [Info] 

🎸 Highwaymen: Great Outlaws Tribute Show. Experience the music of the great American Outlaws of Country Music: Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson. McPherson Playhouse. Saturday. 7:30pm. [Info]

 📖 The Story of Madrika: A live reading performed by a fully costumed forest nymph, followed by a gentle meet-and-greet with children and families. Indigo Books at Mayfair. Sunday. 12-3pm. [Info] 

🦀 Sooke Crabfest 2026: Enjoy delicious Dungeness crab freshly cooked on-site and corn on the cob, a cash bar, a 50/50 draw, and live music. Sooke Region Museum. Sept. 19. 3-6pm. [Info] 

💼 Langford Job Fair: Network in person with some of Victoria, Langford, and Sooke's best employers. RRU Langford, John Horgan Campus. Sept. 25. 11am-3pm. [Info]

🍷 Victoria International Wine Festival: An all-inclusive wine experience held each fall, where guests can explore hundreds of wines from around the world. Victoria Conference Centre. Nov. 6 & 7. [Info]

Tuesday’s headlines: The city takes down rogue Trump sign over a Galloping Goose public washroom; New drop-off areas for recycling; City of Victoria council to formally oppose pipeline. [Sept. 9]

‘NEVER be the 51st state’: BC premier announces new border signs. [CHEK]

Police are still looking for tips in missing Indigenous artifacts case. [Black Press]

North Saanich-based Vancouver Island Helicopters is providing wildfire support across Canada. [Times Colonist]

Business Facade Grant Program applications are now open.

Brewery & the Beast is Sept. 27 at Starlight Stadium.

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