149 replies to this topic

[G-Man]

Apart from the Capital Iron building itself and the wharf space directly behind it, the rest of this project is outside of the Old Town boundaries and thus doesn't have to comply with them.

[mbjj]

All I care about is whether Capital Iron will still having parking? 

[Victoria Watcher]

All I care about is whether Capital Iron will still having parking?

I’m not really confident it will survive to operate in the new space.

[DavidSchell]

I’m not really confident it will survive to operate in the new space.

 

Given the vision for that area it is hard to see how a general store like Capital fits in.

[Victoria Watcher]

Given the vision for that area it is hard to see how a general store like Capital fits in.

 

i feel with the land sale that just might be sunset for the family-run company.   certainly the ownership there is at or near retirement age.  not sure if there is another generation there to keep it running.  mike black is 61 and i know his daughter has taken over some/most management but we will see.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 04 September 2021 - 05:32 PM.

[Matt R.]

I’m not really confident it will survive to operate in the new space.

We were in there yesterday, shelves are 1/2 empty, maybe 2/3. Kind of sad. We ended up at Walmart for the things they didn’t have.

Matt.

[Redd42]

We were in there yesterday, shelves are 1/2 empty, maybe 2/3. Kind of sad. We ended up at Walmart for the things they didn’t have.

Matt.

 

Was there in the last week or so. Wondering about the half empty shelves. Didn't find what I and my friend was looking for. We also ended up at Walmart.

[Mike K.]

You guys are surprised? There’s no store like it.

[laconic]

They seem to have become more of a seasonal store than a hardware store. Their kitchen section is surprisingly good.

They've always brought in a lot of container shipments. Perhaps their business is being more affected that way

[mbjj]

That's too bad about Capital Iron. I usually go there at Christmas for kitchen gifts and they also have a great supply of Christmas lights. Guess I haven't been the past few months. Used to get things like chicken wire etc. there too. But if there's no parking. The funny thing is, now I have money to spend on things and no place to spend it. 

 

I broke down and went into Walmart a month ago while waiting for my husband at the eye doctors. What a horrible place. They didn't have anything I was looking for either! It was mass chaos at the check-outs. Even if I'd had something I wanted to buy, there was no way I was going to wait in huge long line-ups or being crammed in with hundreds of others at close contact. I couldn't even tell where to get into the line. 

Edited by mbjj, 05 September 2021 - 08:06 AM.

[jstovell]

The first phase of the project is the large parking lot East of Capital Iron. If Capital Iron wants to stay through that phase, and we hope they do, their parking can be behind the store. The second phase had not been determined yet.

[Redd42]

I broke down and went into Walmart a month ago while waiting for my husband at the eye doctors. What a horrible place. They didn't have anything I was looking for either! It was mass chaos at the check-outs. Even if I'd had something I wanted to buy, there was no way I was going to wait in huge long line-ups or being crammed in with hundreds of others at close contact. I couldn't even tell where to get into the line. 

 

Getting off topic but I'm really looking forward to the Walmart opening at Hillside.

 

Also took a walk around the Uptown main street on my last visit to that Walmart. Good to see most of the stores rented. Once the housing is built, Uptown will be a much more vibrant place. And I hope they keep the main street car free. No reason to have cars there with all the parking below.

[qv]

Getting off topic but I'm really looking forward to the Walmart opening at Hillside.

Also took a walk around the Uptown main street on my last visit to that Walmart. Good to see most of the stores rented. Once the housing is built, Uptown will be a much more vibrant place. And I hope they keep the main street car free. No reason to have cars there with all the parking below.

It was obvious from the beginning that Uptown's street level should have been pedestrian only. I'm happy they made the change, but it could have been nicer looking if they designed it to be that way from the start.

[Spy Black]

Having visited both stores many times, I've always considered that Capital Iron's "flagship" operation was the store out in Langford.

Nicer store, more inventory, no stairs ... much nicer shopping experience.

 

They closed the decent little Capital Iron store they had out in Sidney a while back, and it wouldn't surprise me to see them close downtown Victoria in order to focus exclusively on the Langford location.

[Mike K.]

I can confirm the Langford store looked well stocked today. Maybe some items were low, but you wouldn’t really know it walking through.

[UDeMan]

The downtown Capital Iron store also deals with lots of shop lifters. In there a few times a month, and the staff are always dealing with or watching someone suspicious.

[spanky123]

^^ I don't think that the Langford store has more inventory than downtown, are you sure you have checked all of the floors?!

 

No doubt shipping is tricky at the moment and a lot of what CI has is from overseas, but I don't think that the downtown store is viable once the parking lot is closed. Sure you may be able to park a few cars behind CI but that space is always very busy. Not too many downtown apartment and condo dwellers buying hot tubs, outdoor patio equipment and bbq's!

 

I think that once the development permits have been approved then CI will announce it is shutting down. 

[LJ]

The Langford CI also owns the Buckerfield's space next door so when the time comes to enlarge, Buckerfield's will be moving.

[Victoria Watcher]

Does any portion of this land require substantial remediation?

[Mike K.]

I meant more in-stock inventory, as in the shelves were not empty. It’s hard to say if it’s just organized in a way that you can’t tell, but it did not leave me with an impression that there was an issue like what’s been mentioned regarding the downtown store.