Community Energy Association CEO Dale Littlejohn presented the award to District of Saanich Councillor Ned Taylor (left) and City of Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps (right).
Saanich and Victoria, BC – The District of Saanich and the City of Victoria have received the Community Energy Association’s 2022 Climate & Energy Action Award in the Community Planning & Development category at the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) Convention in Whistler on September 14, 2022.
The award is in recognition of the contribution Victoria and Saanich have made to the Greater Victoria 2030 District initiative in partnership with the Building Owners and Managers Association of BC (BOMA BC) and the University of Victoria. The 2030 District was launched in 2021 to unite the private and public sector, creating a hub of thriving high performance buildings that are reducing GHG emissions and increasing their resilience.
“On behalf of our residents and staff, it is an honour to receive the Climate & Energy Action Award in the Community Planning & Development category for the Greater Victoria 2030 District initiative. This award is a testament to the great collaborative work of all the partners involved who helped in the design and implementation planning of this initiative,” said Councillor Ned Taylor of the District of Saanich.
The Climate & Energy Action Awards showcase climate action in communities across British Columbia. The Community Planning & Development category recognizes projects and programs that have the biggest community-wide impact and that include planning or implementation of GHG-reducing solutions.
Joining 22 other leading communities across North America, the Greater Victoria region is the second district in Canada – along with Toronto – that has been invited to be an Established District as part of the North America-wide 2030 Districts Network. Building owners must commit to achieving a 50 per cent reduction in energy, water and transportation-related emissions, and the network facilitates peer-learning and support in achieving these targets in addition to improving resilience.
“Our collective efforts in the Greater Victoria 2030 District are future-proofing commercial real estate. This unique public-private partnership in decarbonization shows by example what is possible and we are pleased to be recognized by the Community Energy Association. We encourage more commercial property owners and managers to join the 2030 District and take advantage of the peer network and supports we’ve created,” said Damian Stathonikos, President of BOMA BC.
Hosted by BOMA BC, the Greater Victoria 2030 District has 38 buildings, with 3.7 million square feet of space, represented by major property managers in the region including: Anthem Properties, Colliers International, Cushman & Wakefield, Central Walk, Jawl Properties, Richmond Property Group, Shape Properties, City of Victoria, District of Saanich, Capital Regional District and Province of BC.
Property managers of participating buildings benefit from access to group and peer learning and information sharing opportunities and technical support. They also have access to pooled procurement opportunities, funded energy studies, etc., all designed to overcome market barriers to green and resilient building innovation.
As a core partner in the District, the University of Victoria acts as a research hub for the Greater Victoria 2030 District. A research team from UVic’s Department of Civil Engineering provides expert advice to property managers, calculating energy and emission baselines and reduction targets and recommending optimal ways to reach the targets. The team is also developing a “Resiliency Tool”, with funding from the Real Estate Foundation of British Columbia, to help members identify retrofit opportunities and prepare for growing climate impacts.
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