I sometimes get the feeling that certain members of City Council never actually take the time to walk the streets of Victoria.
We can assume this isn't the case, and yet I've wondered the same thing many times myself. We've talked about this before, but who the heck notices whether the building they're walking past is three stories or six stories or nine stories or twelve stories? What you notice are the storefronts and the windows and the finishing and the entrances and the way the building meets the sidewalk.
I'm going to say the heights of the various buildings in the Old Town contribute a maximum of 5% to the overall charm of the Old Town. Height issues are relevant, but they're soooo minor compared to so many other issues that we CONSTANTLY look past. Drives me crazy.
Worry about the quality of the design and the materials, worry about the way the ground floor engages the sidewalk, worry about the vehicle entrances, worry about creating a dynamic streetscape...and then worry about the height.