News impacting Southern Vancouver Island business
VICTORIA – Help spread kindness across Greater Victoria for Random Acts of Kindness Week (RAK Week) from Monday, February 12 to Saturday, February 17. The Victoria Foundation first marked RAK Day in 2015, and since then has encouraged Vancouver Island businesses, non-profits, governments, families and community members to take part.
James Legh a partner of the Victoria-based Stevenson, Luchies & Legh, has been named the newest Continuing Legal Education Society of BC board member.
James Legh
Scott Sommerville has been chosen to serve as the Town of View Royal‘s new Chief Administrative Officer (CAO).
Dr. Kevin Hall has been elected to Pacific Opera Victoria’s board of directors
Lourdes Gant, Co-Owner of Manatee Holdings, Country Partner of EdTech company GeniusU and Pitch in the Sky Canada, will be hosting the Blue Ocean Revolution Conference on February 28th and 29th virtually all from your preferred spot. More details available here https://app.geniusu.com/events/5020.
The PGA of BC is pleased to present the results of the Association’s 2024 Board of Directors election. The members who were elected to two-year, non-renewable terms are: Callum Ashby, Head Professional of Highland Pacific Golf, Courtney Campbell-Leveck, Head Professional of Gleneagles Golf Course, Drew Scollon, Class “A” Professional of Point Grey Golf & Country Club and Ryan Tofani, Head Professional, of Chilliwack Golf Club, while Steve Liddicoat, Head Professional, Northview Golf & Country Club was elected to a one-year, non-renewable term.
Scott Sommerville
The CEO of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association, Kevin Lee, discusses recommendations from the recently released strategy of the CHBA, designed to increase the housing supply in Canada. The government is mandated to fund the construction of factory-built homes, develop Canada’s workforce in the skilled trades, and extend mortgage schedules for newly constructed homes as part of the strategy.
The Victoria Real Estate Board recognized RE/MAX Camosun REALTORS® for their outstanding sales performance. A total of 43 realtors were honoured with MLS GOLD award, 25 realtors got MLS SILVER award and 28 realtors were presented with MLS BRONZE award. Read on here http://tinyurl.com/y6j2spvs.
The Building Owners and Managers Association of BC will host the Greater Victoria 2030 District open house, which is supported by the City of Victoria, the District of Saanich, UVic, and VanCity. The event will be held in the antechamber of City Hall on February 21.
The Inter-Cultural Association of Greater Victoria is hosting an Employment Summit on February 22 at Four Points by Sheraton, 829 McCallum Road, Victoria.
STR-SpeechTech Ltd. (STR) has successfully delivered, installed, and received site acceptance for a D-VOLMET solution for AirNav Ireland (AirNav). The project has successfully upgraded the existing StarCaster D-VOLMET infrastructure at AirNav’s North Atlantic Communications Centre, also known as Shannon Aeradio or Shanwick Radio.
Starting April 1, passengers leaving Victoria International Airport will see an increase in the airport improvement fee. The fee will rise to $25 for tickets purchased, with the changes taking effect for travel after May 1. The increased fee will contribute to important projects such as refurbishing taxiways and upgrading lighting.
Plans to construct a massive film studio complex on the Malahat Nation‘s Mill Bay land were unveiled on Friday by Alpha Select Production Services, a Victoria-based production company, and the First Nation. Maple Reinders Constructors Ltd. is developing the site for the Malahat, the same company building the new Royal BC Museum Collections Building in Colwood.
The Victoria council has allowed Reliance Properties to switch gears and build strata units at the Northern Junk buildings location near Victoria’s Johnson Street Bridge. Prior to rising costs the development was for a six storey mixed use residential building.
A plan to borrow $85 million is moving forward in the Capital Regional District in order to acquire land, form housing partnerships and increase the supply of affordable housing.
The Vancouver Island Crisis Society, a crisis call centre in Canada, is seeking additional volunteers to address the increasing demand for their services.
On February 20, Ocean Gate Developments will present its proposal for a 198-room hotel at the location formerly occupied by the Plaza Hotel, located at the intersection of Pandora Avenue and Government Street. Downtown residents and the land-use committee of the Victoria Downtown Residents Association will be extended invitations to attend the meeting.
Marketa’s Bed and Breakfast and Cora Breakfast and Lunch have been Biosphere Certified.
The Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce welcomes its newest members, the Lighthouse Labs, Community Savings Credit Union, SaskTel, and Edison College Canada.
The Awards Gala evening of the 2024 BC Tourism Industry Conference, scheduled for March 7, 2024, at the Victoria Conference Centre, will present the 2024 BC Tourism Industry Awards upon the finalists. See here for the complete list: https://bctourismconference.ca/2024-award-finalists
The Secondary Suites Incentive Program has been launched to assist homeowners in creating additional living spaces on their properties. Approximately 3,000 homeowners will have the opportunity to receive forgivable loans of up to $40,000 to build a secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit.
Langford’s City Centre Park will play host to the first-ever Island FanCon, a two-day celebration honouring all things pop culture and entertainment on April 13th and 14th.
This spring, the BC Bird Trail is hosting an event to celebrate the return of millions of migratory birds. Birdwatchers of all ages are invited to bring their binoculars and enjoy the peak birdwatching season in British Columbia. Read on for more details https://bcbirdtrail.ca/.
Central Saanich was just named BC’s most economically resilient city by BC Business Magazine and was also recently ranked as having BC’s lowest rate of serious crime (according to the Crime Severity Index for 2021 and 2022).
Central Saanich has launched new online services to simplify and streamline the municipality’s permit process including: Building permit applications, Plumbing permit applications, Tree permit applications, Scheduling inspections, and a tracker of Current Developments (Planning Permits) in Central Saanich.
An increase of 11.7per cent will be imposed on the taxes of Langford residents in order to finance a range of capital projects. Completion of the Jordie Lunn Clubhouse, improvements to Porcher and Centennial parks, Irwin Road enhancements, and the installation of bike lanes and sidewalks are among these initiatives.
The Sandown Park shopping centre cannabis store proposal is currently scheduled for a reconsideration by the North Saanich council.
In an effort to meet the escalating expenses, Saanich Council reached a consensus to forward the application for temporary vehicle storage from farmers Gordon Galey of Galey Morning Fresh Eggs and Ernie Koettl to the Agricultural Land Commission.
Oughtred Coffee & Tea has sold B – 723 Vanalman Avenue in Saanich as announced by Matt Pettinger, Senior Vice President at Avison Young Victoria and Sean McLintock of MAC Real Estate Group, RE/MAX of Nanaimo.
The Saanich Peninsula Chamber of Commerce Social is on February 22, 2024 at the Beacon Brewing, 9829 Third Street, Sidney.
The BC Employer Training Grant offers financial assistance to businesses of all sizes, enabling them to invest in skills training for their employees, including those who are new to the company. Employers have the flexibility to apply for 80 per cent reimbursement of the training costs, up to $10,000 per employee. The maximum annual amount per employer is set at $300,000.
The Sooke Food Bank’s Executive Director Kim Matzger accepted the donation of $2,000.00 from Sooke Legion President Ted Davies at the volunteer appreciation dinner held on February 3.
The Sooke School District (SD62) received $24 million from the province, and Exo Construction Group was awarded the contract to build eight new classrooms at David Cameron Elementary and Ruth King Elementary, adding 380 seats to the district.
A second $8,000 donation has been made to the Sooke Gathering Place by the Sooke Rotary Club.
Recipients of the BC Maritime Industries Infrastructure Modernization and Expansion Grant Program, sponsored by the Province of British Columbia, have been announced by the Association of British Columbia Marine Industries (ABCMI). Among the recipients are: Titan Boats, Campbell River Marine Terminal, Liquid Metal Marine Ltd., KingFisher Boats Inc., EagleCraft Boats Inc., Jr Marine Manufacturing Ltd, Cota Aviation Ltd., Zodiac Hurricane Technologies, Inc., Jastram Engineering Ltd., Tyee Pacific Marine Operations Ltd., Open Ocean Robotics Inc., Platinum Marine Group Ltd, Ideal Welders Ltd., Ocean Pacific Marine Store & Boatyard, Canadian Maritime Engineering Ltd. (CME), Meridian Marine Industries Inc., Seaspan ULC.
Sidney’s town council and BC Hydro have teamed up to install 16 EV parking spots at the Mary Winspear Centre. This collaboration is in line with the Clean BC Plan and highlights BC Hydro‘s impressive scale in EV charging, reflecting a significant shift in the industry.
Sidney ranks number 2 among B.C.’s Most Resilient Cities in 2024.
A tax increase of 8.4 per cent is proposed in Sidney’s draft budget for 2024-2028, which equates to an approximate annual increase of $142 in taxes for the average residence.
The Sidney Museum will host the Family Day Weekend 2024 from February 17 to February 19. Pick up your Beacon Avenue Scavenger Hunt and view hundreds of LEGO® models at the Sidney Museum. There will be LEGO® sets on display in storefront windows and business windows throughout the town by various organizations and businesses.
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Business Examiner Staff
