Good morning! All my life I’ve been a voracious reader—like, spent entire summers between elementary school grades hibernating under quilts with a pile of books. I know I did active outdoor things, but somehow reading is the core memory from those long unstructured weeks. But in the last few years, I’ve read a lot less.
Even though the pandemic forced a lot of life to slow down a little, it also made it harder to focus. Have you found that, too? The Greater Victoria Public Library and Vancouver Island Regional Library both released their top borrowed books from last year, and there are so many good titles on those lists_that I have on my bookshelves, unread._ Maybe that should change this year. I’d love to hear what you’re reading! Reply here to let me know.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Evaluating Colwood
(📸 Zoë Ducklow)
What does it take to run a city? What does “corporate services” even mean? How expensive is it to have 50 parks in Colwood? Are the sewers working like they should?
These are the kinds of things Colwood council will know after four “service review” meetings this month where each department will give a report to council. Mayor Doug Kobayashi knows the process might be tedious, but is determined to make sure the city is run efficiently.
Over four meetings this month, council will hear reports about the state of the city covering everything from roads to policing, from parks and recreation to storm sewers. They’ll hear from the IT department, engineering, planning, and the fire crew, and corporate services.
Through it all, council will refine the direction and priority for each department and service. Following this review, deciding the annual budget should be a smoother process, since the mostly new council will be more familiar with the needs, purpose, and challenges for each budget line item.
The 6:30pm meetings are open to the public. The first meeting tonight will cover public works, parks, trails & recreation, boulevards, roads, storm sewers, and sewer utility. January 12 has fire, building and bylaw, administration and corporate services, HR, and communications and engagement. January 17, council will focus on finance, IT, geographic information system, and engineering, and the last meeting, on Jan. 19, will cover policing, development, and planning.
Park improvements on the docket
Havenwood Park’s trails need some work. Half of them are informal paths that pass through sensitive ecosystems, like riparian areas and delicate meadows. Not all the trails are accessible for people with physical limitations, and there is barely any signage to inform visitors how accessible or difficult trials are. Some trails are prone to seasonal flooding, and some of the stairs have irregular spacing.
Landscape architect consultants, who wrote a park management plan after a few rounds of public consultation, recommend the main trails be made accessible with standard widths and reasonable slopes and grades.
The high areas of Havenwood are rocky bluff outcroppings covered in the familiar, yellow grassy meadows endemic to the coast. That ecosystem is sensitive, and in Havenwood, the area is criss-crossed with informal trails. So the plan is to add fencing, designate paths, and use signage to help protect the area while still giving access to park visitors.
The landscape architects also want to designate certain areas as on-leash to keep dogs from interfering with wild habitat. Their wish list for the first two years comes to $112,000 at a minimum, plus a fair amount of staff time and a few ideas that haven’t been priced out yet. Medium and long-term plans for park improvement add another $388,000.
The Latoria Park plan’s budget is smaller—about $250,000 over five years—but has a similar overall goal of improving the trail network, signage, and environmental protection for areas in the park. Consultants also recommended establishing a Friends of Latoria Park group to facilitate community involvement. Council’s endorsement will allow those plans to go to the final step: public consultation.
Parks Canada is working on a national urban park strategy, and Colwood’s Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse is one of the six national candidates. A Parks Canada representative is working with Colwood staff and the Esquimalt and Songhees First Nations to draft a proposal for Parks Canada, due in a few months. Their plan so far centers around restoring the natural ecosystem on those sites, and building active transportation (planner-speak for walking, cycling, rolling, etc.). An interim report was submitted to Colwood council last night.
LIBRARIES
Well read Westshore
Three of the top books both VIRL and GVPL had in common.
Both regional libraries in the Westshore have released their most popular books of 2022. There are some riveting tales in this list! I’m curious to know which of these you’ve read. Most of the Westshore is part of the Greater Victoria Public Library system, but Sooke is a member of the Vancouver Island Regional Library.
Five Little Indians by Michelle Good—a Cree author whose first book has topped awards list and bestselling lists, including CBC’s Canada Reads competition—follows five characters, each of whom were taken at young ages to remote residential schools, and as adults find their way to Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Good won the 2022 Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction, was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and her book is among the top read library books for Vancouver Island in both library systems.
Another top read in Victoria and the rest of the Island was State of Terror, a collaboration between celebrated crime writer Louise Penny and Hillary Rodham Clinton. That book is a political thriller featuring a fictional Secretary of State thrust into the midst of a carefully planned campaign of terrorist attacks.
_Braiding Sweetgrass_was released in 2003, and is still a popular title, landing on both library top-read lists for the second year in a row. Robin Wall Kimmerer weaves together the way of knowing plants through academic science she learned in her studies as a microbiologist—she has a PhD in plant ecology and teaches at a New York university’s Environmental Science and Forestry department—and the way of knowing she learned from her Potawatomi family to see plants as our oldest teachers, and to see humans as “the younger brothers of creation.” At its core, she says, being ecologically aware demands that humans recognize the reciprocal relationship we have with the world. She also recently launched a version of the book for young adults.
The best part about borrowing a book from the Vancouver Island Regional Library? No more late fees! The Island library system has been toying with eliminating fees since the beginning of the pandemic, and on Jan. 5 they decided to permanently eliminate late fees on all items.
The Greater Victoria Public Library still charges late fees, though the CEO has been tasked with exploring reducing or removing fines as a way to improve equitable access, according to library board agenda documents.
See Greater Victoria Public Library’s top reads here, and Vancouver Island Regional Library’s here.
Around the 'Shore
🏈 The BC Lions might play a game in Langford in 2025, if enough seats are added to Starlight Stadium. After moving a utility pole that’s in the way, a third grandstand will be added, but the number of seats it will have hasn’t been decided. The stadium can seat 6,000 spectators now, and would have to have at least 10,000 seats for the CFL to consider an Island game viable. [Times Colonist]
🕊️ When you’re sick and tired of living with anxiety, stress, anger, and depression, Emotionally Aligned Counselling will help you get your life back. Find convenient online counselling solutions.*
🇺🇦 Learning Canadian currency: A Sooke man whose grandparents immigrated from Ukraine has created a booklet to teach Ukrainian refugees about Canada’s money. The booklet includes real money as examples of each each Canadian bill and coin—it adds up to $188. [CTV]
🎶 Capital Daily Insiders are invited to join us on Wed., Jan. 18 at UVic to celebrate Victoria’s year ahead in ideas, talks, and local music. Find out more, become an Insider, and kick off 2023 like the enlightened local you are!
🏕 A protestor at Fairy Creek had his sentence reduced because his camping gear was unjustifiably destroyed after his arrest. [Times Colonist]
🏠 **Inspired seaside living...*The Coral at Royal Bay offers two- and three-bedroom townhomes designed for flexibility with quality features and finishes, plus curated options and upgrades.
🚔 Westshore RCMP are asking for the public’s help in two recent incidents. On Jan. 3 someone set fire to a Mercedes-Benz C300 in View Royal.The fire engulfed the first car and damaged two nearby vehicles. No one was injured. The suspect is described as male, wearing a black hoodie, jacket and face mask. At Royal Roads on Dec. 26 someone spray painted hateful words on signs and a totem pole. The graffiti has been cleaned, and RCMP are looking for witnesses.
🔗 United Way: Applications are now open for the Community Services Recovery Fund / Présentez dès maintenant votre demande au Fonds de relance des services communautaires.*
*Sponsored Listing
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TOGETHER WITH DINE AROUND 2023
Indulge in local cuisine this January
Calling all foodies - Dine Around and Stay in Town Victoria returns this January. This foodie festival features multi-course menus at your favourite Victoria eateries, and special hotel rates so you can enjoy a true night out!
Brought to you by Destination Greater Victoria and the BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association, this 17-day culinary adventure features over 40 local restaurants, pubs, and bars, each serving up delicious multi-course, prix-fixe menus ranging from $25 to $65 per person.
Treat yourself to a Victoria staycation and take advantage of special rates at ten local hotels. Soak up some luxury at a great price - hotel rooms start at $139 a night!
Start planning your Dine Around and Stay in Town experience****here.
Community Events
💃🏻 Salsa dancing lessons on the count of four(rather, for four weeks): Monday nights at Edward Milne Community School. The class is $50 for all four weeks, or $20 for drop in. Runs Jan. 16, 23, 30, and Feb. 6 from 8-9pm.Come early for the line dancing class just before.
🤠 Get in line — line dancing lessons start on Jan. 16 at Edward Milne Community School. Four weeks from 7 to 8pm; cost is $50 for all four, or $20 for a drop in. (Stick around after for a one hour salsa lesson.)
🎸🎻 (can you believe there is no ukulele emoji?) Ukulele gathering at the Metchosin Community Hall, 5–6:30pm on the third Friday of each month. Tell all your ukulele-playing students, friends, and relatives! Open to community members of all ages and levels of talent. Contact Margaretha.
🧊🥶🧤 The coldest night of the year fundraising walk**:**Join walkers in Langford, or Sooke on Feb. 25. The Langford walk will jointly benefit Our Place’s New Roads recovery home in View Royal and Pacific Centre Family Services Association. The evening walk starts at the Eagle Ridge Community Centre. In Sooke donations go to the Sooke Shelter Society. Meet at the Evergreen Centre Mall’s gazebo at 4pm. There is a 2.5km and 5km route at both locations. “Team up, fundraise, walk, and gather for good... because it's cold out there.”
🎸 Chilliwack is coming to Sooke! No it’s not a geographical phenomenon, Chilliwack the band is performing at the Sooke Community Theatre on March 30. Tickets are $50.
What’s Offshore?
Screengrab from VesselFinder.com
🚢 #1 The Golden Magnum is a bulk carrier built in 2009 and is sailing under the flag of Hong Kong. It is sailing from 🇨🇳 Jiangyin, China ➡ 🇨🇦 Vancouver, BC and was scheduled to arrive on Jan. 1.
⛴ #2 The Shoyoh is a bulk carrier built in 2013 sailing under the flag of Japan. It is sailing from 🇯🇵 Soma, Japan ➡ 🇨🇦 Tsawwassen and was scheduled to arrive on Dec. 26, 2022, but has been moored of the coast of the Esquimalt Lagoon since just after Christmas.
🛳 #3 The Hon. Henry Jackmanis a self-discharging bulk carrier built in 1981 sailing under the flag of the Bahamas. It is sailing from 🇺🇸 San Francisco, CA ➡ 🇨🇦 Victoria, BC, and was scheduled to arrive Jan. 9.
🚢 #4 TheFrederico II is a bulk carrier built in 2009 sailing under the flag of Panama. It sailed from 🇯🇵 Tomakomai, Japan ➡ 🇨🇦 Tsawwassen and was scheduled to arrive Dec. 23, 2022, but has been moored offshore from the Esquimalt Lagoon for more than a week.
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IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MP ALISTAIR MACGREGOR
Proudly representing the Cowichan-Malahat-Langford riding since 2015
As your Member of Parliament, Alistair MacGregor understands that life for Canada’s workers should be getting easier; not harder. If you need assistance with federal agencies, contact him.
Westshore Snaps
“An incredible sunrise taken at my waterfront home at Otter Point on Jan. 6.” —****Eric Stepura, Sooke
📸 Snapped a photo you’d like to share? Send it with a caption and don’t forget to add where you live.