Category: Leadership
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Statement on Homophobic Threats and Cancelling of Family-Friendly Drag Show
In June, Canadians from coast to coast to coast come together to celebrate Pride month. Here in Victoria we do the same. After two years of not being able to gather in person for Pride events and the annual parade, Victorians are keen to come together again to celebrate. On Friday at City Hall we…
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More Affordable Housing, More Quickly – Victoria Makes First of Three Big Housing Moves
At a public hearing on Thursday evening, speaking in favour of Victoria’s proposal to allow affordable housing and co-ops to be built more quickly, Irene from Vic West said when she thinks about the character of her neighbourhood, its the people in her neighbourhood thinks of. Irene wasn’t alone. She and others talked about the…
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The Mayor Helps – New Podcast Created by Victoria Business Owner
It was the middle of pandemic, and Dave Hatt, owner of the WetCleaner – Victoria’s only non-toxic dry cleaner – saw a steady drop in business. As people began to work from home, they were more likely to be wearing sweats than suits. He saw his fellow small business owners also struggling. Rather than just sit…
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City to Ask Supreme Court of Canada to Rule on Municipal Power to Regulate Business Use of Plastic Bags
Earlier this week at the Union of BC Municipalities conference, the City held a press conference attended by local elected officials from across the province. We announced our intention to ask the Supreme Court of Canada to hear the City’s appeal with respect to plastic bags and the authority of local governments to regulate businesses…
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Open Letter to Victorians: Let’s Choose the Future Together
An Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) camera like this one (left) allows for real time monitoring of the seabed (right). ONC has cameras like this one deployed all over the west coast, sometimes in partnership with First Nations communities. See more of their incredible photos here. As I’ve been reading the headlines and letters to the…
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No Social License for Single-Use Plastics in Our Communities
Photo complements of Karebags, a local company that sells bags wholesale to businesses in Victoria and donates a portion of profits each month to a local charity. A lot has happened since the B.C. Court of Appeal ruled against the City of Victoria’s plastic bag business regulation bylaw. What’s been thrilling in the weeks following…
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Victoria’s First Woman Mayor, Gretchen Mann Brewin, Honoured with Planting of Garry Oak In Mayors Grove
Two women hard at work! Victoria’s first female mayor, Gretchen Brewin and I planting a Garry Oak tree in Gretchen’s honour. More photos below. Most photos by Derek Ford. The Mayors Grove was established in what is now called Beacon Hill Park in the Heywood meadow area east of Arbutus Way, during a 1927 convention…
