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The More Victoria Changes, the More It Stays the Same...


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#341 Rob Randall

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Posted 10 June 2020 - 07:47 PM

Mike's vehicles have their own postal code.


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#342 aastra

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Posted 10 June 2020 - 07:48 PM

Oak Bay was charming but also all wrong:

 

 

Daily Colonist
September 6, 1967

 

Build Up Personality, Oak Bay Told

 

Village Project

The report suggests a $335,000 revitalization of Oak Bay village, the largest shopping area in the municipality.

It would involve moving Oak Bay Avenue North, turning the present Oak Bay Avenue into a pedestrian mall between Yale and Monterey. There would be an apartment cluster to the north and a home improvement area to the south.

Features of the new Oak Bay Village would be shops with distinctively-designed entrances, small greens and "conversation corners," underground wiring and free crossing at all points for pedestrians.

However, this will need better access to the north -- possibly extension of Cadboro Bay Road to link with Hampshire -- and a new loop road to the north.

 

****

 

Victoria's emergency rooms weren't such sleepy places back in the good ol' days:

 

 

Daily Colonist
September 6, 1967

Hospitals Treat 153 Victims

St. Joseph's and Royal Jubilee Hospitals last month treated 153 victims of traffic accidents.

They were among 4,834 people who were seen at the emergency wards of both hospitals...


Edited by aastra, 10 June 2020 - 07:54 PM.


#343 Rob Randall

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Posted 10 June 2020 - 07:52 PM

Interesting concept; it might have been a good plan. But there isn't really any street north of the Avenue, I assume they would have bulldozed a new street.



#344 aastra

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Posted 10 June 2020 - 08:06 PM

I assume they were wanting to widen the back lane and make it a full blown street. Pretty crazy. Back then they were inventing arbitrary major roadwork projects just 'cuz. Like that idea for an overpass at Blanshard and Collinson from earlier in this thread.

 

 

Daily Colonist
February 17, 1970

 

Overpass Vs. Belleville St.
$2,000,000 Solution

A $2,000,000 overpass at Blanshard and Collinson will be necessary if the provincial government insists on routing Belleville Street traffic north of St. Joseph's Hospital, says Victoria city hall.

The overpass proposal is the latest complication in the city's efforts to clear the clogged funnel of the Belleville-Blanshard area.

The city wants to extend Belleville Street east through St. Joseph's property to connect with Fairfield Road. The project would create an artery carrying much of the civil service traffic which originates in easterly Victoria and Oak Bay.

The possible overpass would run north-south on Blanshard, spanning the five-way intersection at Blanshard, McClure and Collinson.

City hall officials say that traffic will become a hopeless mess at the intersection in a few years. That is, unless the overpass is built, or Belleville can run through to Fairfield.

"Without an overpass, that intersection will become a maelstrom."

Part of the city's long-range traffic plan involves making Quadra a one-way street running south, and Vancouver one way running north.

 


Edited by aastra, 11 June 2020 - 02:54 PM.


#345 Rob Randall

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Posted 10 June 2020 - 08:13 PM

Recall that Collinson overpass would have continued on through Beacon Hill Park, through James Bay and over a bridge leading to Songhees. A U-shaped highway from Blanshard to Vic West.



#346 aastra

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Posted 10 June 2020 - 08:23 PM

Mike K. would have made good use of it.



#347 aastra

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Posted 10 June 2020 - 08:28 PM

Here's something that's changed. Once upon a time Oak Bay was being promoted as if it were the model for the tidy and well-planned new Victoria, rather than something old fashioned.

 

 

Daily Colonist
March 18, 1950

Oak Bay: A Model Municipality

From comparative obscurity before the turn of the century, Oak Bay has earned itself the reputation of being one of the most-envied municipalities in British Columbia.

Oak Bay has attained this valued position because of much expert guidance since its incorporation in 1906. Careful management and sound investment have made Oak Bay a financially healthy municipality which stands high in the bond dealers' register.

Good municipal government has kept taxes low in comparison with other municipalities. Services are considered good. The municipality's bonded indebtedness is low...

Like other municipalities, Oak Bay is in the midst of a building boom with attractive subdivisions springing up throughout. In order to maintain a high standard, municipal building restrictions are strict...

From a population of about 300 in 1906, the area has grown into a thriving municipality of 12,500 residents and 3,600 homes. Homeowners are well protected by well-planned zoning regulations.

Oak Bay has great natural beauties with its winding seashore, sandy beaches and bountiful park areas. There are two world-famous golf courses within its bounds. Boating, yachting and fishing enthusiasts find Oak Bay ideal.

EFFICIENT MUNICIPAL SERVICES are a keynote in Oak Bay. Councils have avoided amalgamation like the plague. Police and fire departments give the taxpayer the protection he deserves.

ON THIS STREET note absence of telephone and electrical poles and lines... Street pictured above is in new subdivision and has been developed along more modern town-planning ideas. Street is gracefully curved and all poles are erected on back of lot lines instead of front. Note neater appearance.



#348 Mike K.

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Posted 10 June 2020 - 08:45 PM

Mike's vehicles have their own postal code.


...codes
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#349 aastra

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Posted 12 June 2020 - 09:36 AM

Casino stuff:

 

 

Daily Colonist
August 28, 1974

Crystal as casino city coffer-stuffer?

A gambling casino? In Victoria? In the Crystal Garden?

He's got to be kidding.

But kidding's the last thing on Ald. Sam Bawlf's mind. Victoria, he says, could and probably should have a high-class gambling casino to subsidize city coffers.

And the vacant Crystal Garden, Victoria's former swimming pool, says Bawlf, would be the perfect spot for such a casino.

Bawlf told the committee that a casino could probably be operated under the new provincial lotteries regulations.

The committee had some reservations about the idea, but didn't reject it out of hand.

It was included in the list of possible alternatives for the development of the vacant building.

 

--

 

 

Times-Colonist
September 24, 2016

 

Crystal Garden ruled out as potential casino site

Victoria’s Crystal Garden is no longer on the table as a potential casino site, say Victoria officials.

The B.C. Lottery Corp. has told the city that remodelling the Crystal for a casino would be too challenging, deputy city manager Jocelyn Jenkyns said.

 "The other thing that was a bit of an issue was parking, not withstanding that we have the underground parking at the conference centre."

Asked for comment, a spokesperson for the lottery corporation said no decisions about locations have been made.


Edited by aastra, 12 June 2020 - 09:38 AM.

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#350 aastra

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Posted 12 June 2020 - 10:30 AM

Countless times we've seen private property being acquired by the government, and countless times we've seen government property being sold off. There's nothing unusual about it. Why is it suddenly such a sticking point with regard to the bit of land beside Northern Junk? And was that particular property also privately owned at one point? No idea, but I sure wouldn't be surprised if it was.

 

 

Daily Colonist
June 26, 1973

40 Lots in City Placed on Block

About $600,000 is expected to flow into Victoria city coffers from the sale of 40 fully-serviced lots in the northeast corner of the city, right at the Saanich boundary.

The 40-lot subdivision, the last big chunk of land owned by the city within city limits, is considered a prime location.

...lots on nearby streets, without a view, were sold by the city for about $9,000 more than a year ago.

The subdivision is bounded by Cook, Tolmie and Finlayson. There are no through roads, only quiet cul-de-sacs.

It is estimated that the average price will be $15,000 a lot.

 

Win-win. The city makes some money and ordinary people benefit.

 

--

 

Edit: Not sure when Mr. Gowen wrote the following memoir, but I'm assuming somewhere around ~1890, since he seems to have died in December, 1892:

 

 

Charles Gowen's Story

 

In 1865, I (Charles Gowen) was elected a member of the City Council and two or three times again up to 1884. I was in the City Council when the first piece of property was ever bought for the city. It was for a city pound. It was bought from F. Goenenberg for $500.

...In fact, I was in the Council when every piece of property the city owns was bought, up to the present time.


Edited by aastra, 12 June 2020 - 04:12 PM.


#351 Nparker

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Posted 12 June 2020 - 10:49 AM

 

...countless times we've seen government property being sold off. There's nothing unusual about it. Why is it suddenly such a sticking point with regard to the bit of land beside Northern Junk...

One word: ideology. I am sure there are at least a few people on council who hope the developer will walk away from this project and the city can buy the NJ land for some nice public housing.



#352 aastra

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Posted 12 June 2020 - 02:39 PM

Maybe bowling alleys have never not been disappearing?
 

 

Daily Colonist
October 31, 1976

Island lanes dwindle again as Sidney operation closes

The loss of the Sidney lanes leaves only three houses south of Duncan, with a total of 44 fivepin lanes. Town and Country has 24, Mayfair has 12, and Wilson's Bowladrome in Esquimalt has eight lanes.

The Sidney house was built in 1972 by Harry Welch...

Welch ran Capital City Lanes on Yates St. for many years but it was turned into an auction mart when Welch moved to Sidney.

 

--



#353 aastra

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Posted 13 June 2020 - 07:09 PM

Multi-page ad for Regent Towers in James Bay back in May, 1963:



#354 aastra

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Posted 16 July 2020 - 11:00 AM

Looking back from the 1950s to the housing crisis of the late 1940s. Note the straightforward acknowledgement that building a ton of new homes will mitigate the situation:

 

 

Daily Colonist
April 13, 1956

The year 1946 is fresh in many Victorians' minds as a year of housing shortage, but a year in which many empty spaces were filled with new homes.

Each year since has seen several hundred homes added. By 1966, if town planners' estimates prove correct, Victoria's urban area will extend far into Saanich. Victoria city will have 62,000 people; Saanich, 50,000, and soon far more; Oak Bay, 18,000, and Esquimalt, about 13,000.

 

 

 

Daily Colonist
April 13, 1956

 

Colonist Housing Supplement Surveys Island's Progress

The Daily Colonist today includes a 28-page Parade of Homes supplement -- a survey of the tremendous progress Greater Victoria and other parts of Vancouver Island have made and are making in overcoming the post-war housing shortage.

 

 

 

Daily Colonist
April 13, 1956

 

$60,000,000 Worth of New Homes Answer to Grim Post-War Shortage

To the grim housing problem of the immediate post-war years, new houses worth $60,000,000, in Greater Victoria alone have provided an answer in the past decade. This figure does not take into account more millions spent on construction of new apartment blocks -- a much larger proportion of the population is living in apartments than before the war -- nor the money spent on building new homes in View Royal, Colwood, Langford, Central Saanich, and Sidney.

9,511 NEW HOMES
...were built between the beginning of 1946 and the end of 1955.

 

 

It's interesting, ordinary people were buying housing lots for ~$1,500 and finished houses for an average of ~$8,000 (with pricier houses running well north of $20,000), but they were also buying washing machines, televisions and record players for $300 to $500 a pop.


Edited by aastra, 25 November 2020 - 06:10 PM.

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#355 aastra

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Posted 18 July 2020 - 09:14 AM

In 2020 people are complaining about street closures being handled poorly. In 1973 people were complaining about street closures being handled poorly.

 

 

Daily Colonist
May 29, 1973

Merchants Knock, Praise Concept of Broad Mall

The carnival-like activity on Broad Street during last week's Victorian Days has aroused some controversy among the merchants along the temporary mall.

One merchant says the week-long partial closure of Broad and the complete elimination of parking on the street during that time has been bad for his business. He views the possibility that Broad may someday become a permanent pedestrian mall with some misgivings.

Another merchant, however, says his business may have picked up last week as a result of increased pedestrian traffic. He would like to see Broad Street converted to a permanent mall.

A third merchant says the partial closure last week could have been a success, had it not been botched by poor planning and poor administration.

The merchant who never wants to see a repetition of this year's "debacle" is Donald MacDonald of MacDonald's Furniture Mart... at the corner of Pandora.

What he objected to most of all was the "shoddy arrangement" of cheap stalls, barricades and food stands doing business out of trailers.

"It was a bloody mess. Why didn't they use planters with flowers to block off the street? That's what we were told would be done. Instead there were dozens of cheap barricades from Farmer's Construction..."

"If this is an indication of what a permanently closed Broad Street would look like, they can keep it," he said, referring to Mayor Peter Pollen's statement last week that he hoped Broad would eventually be a pedestrian mall all the way from Fort to city hall.

MacDonald added, "I admit that, probably with the proper planning and preparation, a permanent mall on Broad might be a success, but this brief debacle hasn't helped strengthen my belief."


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#356 Victoria Watcher

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Posted 18 July 2020 - 09:24 AM

at least we know there is no danger of “Victorian Days” ever returning.

#357 aastra

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Posted 18 July 2020 - 09:57 AM

The CoV loves downtown and wants downtown to be pedestrian-friendly and prosperous... as long as too many people aren't shopping, working, and living downtown. Residential development in particular would be terrible for downtown. All of those... people.

 

 

Daily Colonist
March 13, 1973

Storeowner Hits Building Limits

Developers are being driven away, construction is being discouraged, and Victoria's economy is being hurt by city council's restrictions on the height and density of buildings in the downtown area, it was charged Monday.

Tom Denny, owner of a large downtown furniture store, told the Central Business Advisory Committee that density requirements should be relaxed to allow a greater utilization of land in the downtown area.

Denny drew a sharp response from Alderman Mike Young, who told the committee that there would be no justification for relaxing the city's density restrictions on buildings.

...enough office space has been built to adversely affect many older downtown office buildings whose tenants have moved into the newer buildings.

The result has been that too many older, structurally sound buildings have a high vacancy rate. In time, they will be torn down and the sites used for parking lots.

One of the aims of the density restrictions, Young said, is to make sure that one huge new office building won't leave four old ones empty and derelict.

Denny then said higher densities should be permitted to accommodate residential space in new downtown office buildings, but Young replied that the high density factor would create an undesirable environment for any resident in the downtown area.

But Denny insisted that Victoria is discouraging potential developers.

 

This guy Denny was such a fearmonger. He thought CoV policies might eventually drive Victorians away from downtown to do business and shop and work in other parts of the city? Come on, it could never happen.

 

In Denny's wacky alternative future I suppose far-flung Langford ends up turning into a major commercial area? And there will be large shopping malls and office buildings scattered all over town? Ridiculous. Downtown is king and it always will be.

 

The CoV isn't strangling downtown, don't be silly. Try thinking of it as more of a two-handed throat hug.

 

Note the blind spot they had (and that many people still have) re: facilitating & re-purposing older buildings rather than encouraging their replacement.


Edited by aastra, 18 July 2020 - 09:58 AM.


#358 aastra

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Posted 18 July 2020 - 10:11 AM

 

Note the blind spot they had (and that many people still have) re: facilitating & re-purposing older buildings...

 

If offices don't want to go into the old buildings, and if commercial operations don't want to go into the old buildings, then what other use could those old buildings possibly have? (don't say residential use, because we've ruled that out as a matter of policy) Thus, we might as well tear the old buildings down. What else could we have done? (don't say we could have facilitated and encouraged residential use, because we've ruled that out as a matter of policy)


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#359 aastra

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Posted 18 July 2020 - 10:18 AM

I feel like there's less emphasis nowadays re: the energizing benefits of street dances and outdoor fashion shows:

 

 

Daily Colonist
April 21, 1979

Stop-go test for mall traffic

A proposal to close three blocks of the Government Street mall for a total of three weeks this summer will be placed before the city council next Thursday.

The plan, worked out by traffic committee chairman Ald. William McElroy, calls for the closure of Government Street to car traffic between Humboldt and Fort...

Delivery vehicles would be allowed to use the mall between 9am and noon.

In his submission to council, McElroy says that closing the mall to vehicle traffic "could provide a focal point for pedestrian activities, such as outdoor fashion shows and street dances."

He says barriers would be erected by city crews at Broughton, Courtney and Humboldt.

...McElroy says he hopes the three-week experiment will prove that merchants won't suffer if the mall is closed to car traffic.



#360 aastra

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Posted 18 July 2020 - 10:35 AM

Broad Street carries little in the way of through traffic, and thus it's very dangerous to both pedestrians and motorists alike. I feel like we've dropped this angle over the years as well.

Remind me, did the city ever take care of the various other uncontrolled intersections in the downtown area? Safety was such a priority, after all. How's it going at Government and Herald? Uncontrolled intersections are a major concern except when they aren't.

 

 

Daily Colonist
November 30, 1963

Broad Street Seen As Pedestrian Mall

Hopes for establishment of a pedestrian shopping mall in Victoria were boosted yesterday by the disclosure that traffic experts feel Broad Street is a hazard to both motorist and pedestrian.

In its five-block length, Broad Street goes nowhere, running into Centennial Square at Pandora on the north and on the south finishing at Broughton Street, carrying little through traffic.

City Manager Dennis Young was asked to make a full report, starting with a detailed review of traffic considerations and covering the other factors bearing upon the mall development.

FIRST CHOICE
Planners have already earmarked Broad Street as the first choice site for a pedestrian shopping mall. The development would probably be gradual, starting at the south where the two blocks between Broughton and View would be developed...

Chief concern of police and traffic officials is the fact that Broad Street, particularly in the single block between Fort and View, is a happy hunting ground for jaywalkers.

DRIVING HAZARD
There is also a hazard to motorists at the several uncontrolled intersections.

SOLVE PROBLEMS
"It could solve some of our traffic problems, and at the same time create an increasing attractive downtown atmosphere. In the long-range view a mall running the length of Broad Street would tie in with the city's Centennial Square development, which will be taking shape rapidly in the next few months..."


Edited by aastra, 25 November 2020 - 06:12 PM.


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