604 replies to this topic

[Mike K.]

Mike, so where do you think the poorer areas of the city are if its not Vic West/Esquimalt?

Beats me, but you do realize that our metropolitan region extends far beyond the City of Victoria, Esquimalt and Oak Bay, right? Victoria in general is a very low crime region. And if you live here, chances are you're not "poor" by any stretch of the imagination. If you want to see "poor" go to a city like Edmonton, Winnipeg or Toronto and see what their low income neighbourhoods look like.

Crime in Esquimalt and Vic West is an issue of perception, not reality.
 
Have a look for yourself. For an area nearing a population of 25,000 people, Esquimalt and Vic West have a disproportionately low level of crime. Despite this many Victorians still choose to believe this is the "ghetto."
 
Overall crime over the past two weeks.
 

 
 
Assaults
 

 
 
Break and Enters
 

 
Robbery, theft, theft from vehicles and theft of vehicles.
 
 

 
 
I rest my case. Can we seriously put the notion that Vic West and Esquimalt are crime ridden to rest? Enough is enough. If you want to play around with crime statistics for yourself the VicPD has a mapping tool that maps all instances of crime.

[Mike K.]

Here's Oak Bay's crime map for April.

 

Lots of kids with time on their hands causing "mischief," I see

 

[sdwright.vic]

For me I would say the entire Quadra Village area to downtown is much worse.

[AllseeingEye]

Beats me, but you do realize that our metropolitan region extends far beyond the City of Victoria, Esquimalt and Oak Bay, right? Victoria in general is a very low crime region. And if you live here, chances are you're not "poor" by any stretch of the imagination. If you want to see "poor" go to a city like Edmonton, Winnipeg or Toronto and see what their low income neighbourhoods look like.

Crime in Esquimalt and Vic West is an issue of perception, not reality.
 
Have a look for yourself. For an area nearing a population of 25,000 people, Esquimalt and Vic West have a disproportionately low level of crime. Despite this many Victorians still choose to believe this is the "ghetto."
 
Overall crime over the past two weeks.
 
Crime---overall.jpg
 
 
Assaults
 
Assault.jpg
 
 
Break and Enters
 
Break-and-enter.jpg
 
Robbery, theft, theft from vehicles and theft of vehicles.
 
 
Robbery-theft.jpg
 
 
I rest my case. Can we seriously put the notion that Vic West and Esquimalt are crime ridden to rest? Enough is enough. If you want to play around with crime statistics for yourself the VicPD has a mapping tool that maps all instances of crime.

Great information and thanks for posting; I see our Gorge-area neighbourhood has virtually zero activity yet my old Fairfield-CSV haunts cannot say the same. This is completely a perception issue IMO. If you live in O-B for example and you persist in thinking and propagating some stereo-types re: Esquimalt-Vic West I respectfully suggest you get out more. And that comes from a "Gordon Head-Oak Bay" kid.....

 

You can start with the Selkirk neighbourhood a block from my place. Its gorgeous and very tranquil, with beautiful homes many re-mediated and renovated only in the last few years with a distinctly "Kitsilano" feeling; most are nicely landscaped and oh by the way they are all on the waterfront and have great views of the Gorge waterway-Selkirk Trestle. Saxe Point is certainly not "poor". Ditto for the Parklands neighbourhood off Admirals Rd, which more than one realtor has told me based purely on 'value for money' is one of the best SFH areas in the entire CRD. With regard to truly "poor" there is nothing remotely comparable anywhere in Victoria to some place like Whalley in Surrey or in Regina near their CFL football stadium. Those are economically depressed areas: that section of North Regina looks like the moon and last I checked has one of the highest per capita homicide rates in Canada. Places like that are about a million light years from Vic West-Esquimalt....

[Mike K.]

I suppose there's a natural tendency for people to find faults somewhere else with something else and a place like Vic West and Esquimalt are perfect for a dumping ground.

Bringing this back to the topic of the Railyards, if you're thinking of buying a home here, do it, but remember this is not a far flung suburb or a sleepy residential cul-de-sac, you're moving into the city, right into its centre. You need to be vigilant and practice some self-awareness but that's what life in the city is like. If you want to watch soccer moms come and go and walk around giant manicured front lawns then this lifestyle isn't for you.

[ZGsta]

Beats me, but you do realize that our metropolitan region extends far beyond the City of Victoria, Esquimalt and Oak Bay, right? Victoria in general is a very low crime region. And if you live here, chances are you're not "poor" by any stretch of the imagination. If you want to see "poor" go to a city like Edmonton, Winnipeg or Toronto and see what their low income neighbourhoods look like.

Crime in Esquimalt and Vic West is an issue of perception, not reality.
 
Have a look for yourself. For an area nearing a population of 25,000 people, Esquimalt and Vic West have a disproportionately low level of crime. Despite this many Victorians still choose to believe this is the "ghetto."
 
Overall crime over the past two weeks.
 
Crime---overall.jpg
 
 
Assaults
 
Assault.jpg
 
 
Break and Enters
 
Break-and-enter.jpg
 
Robbery, theft, theft from vehicles and theft of vehicles.
 
 
Robbery-theft.jpg
 
 
I rest my case. Can we seriously put the notion that Vic West and Esquimalt are crime ridden to rest? Enough is enough. If you want to play around with crime statistics for yourself the VicPD has a mapping tool that maps all instances of crime.

 

Wow, Great info.

Edited by ZGsta, 12 June 2014 - 10:14 AM.

[ZGsta]

Well I have never seen drug paraphernalia anywhere in Oak Bay.  Maybe the kids were taught to pick up after themselves, who knows.  I remember years ago there was a street beggar in the Oak Bay Village, 3 cop cars responded and picked him up and "escorted" him to the Oak Bay border.  I can't image what would happen if there was a needle found, the entire force might be called.  Even if you see someone in Oak Bay walking that looks like they don't belong there, if you call the police they will respond.

 

Compare that to Vic West and the poorer areas and yes it is a poorer area.  I am not trying to put it down or make Oak Bay sound superior, but it is a fact that Vic West and Esquimalt are poorer areas of the city

 

Also, where do you think these transients live?  They don't live in the wealthier areas of the city.  Maybe they are part of the boat community in the Gorge

 

I went to high school at OBH (in the 2000s) and trust me, tons of drug use among the local Oak Bay and Uplands kids. Tons.

 

And the Oak Bay "police" force responding to beggars in the overblown way they do isn't exactly a positive, more an indictment of an epic waste of tax money.

Edited by ZGsta, 12 June 2014 - 10:18 AM.

[Mike K.]

Ha, funny thing is, I knew guys in Esquimalt High who used to buy their drugs from kids who went to Oak Bay High. Some OBH kids would get so much money for "lunch" from their parents that they resorted to investing it in drugs and dealing them around the city. And one of the biggest drug markets among any high school back when I was in the system was, ironically, St. Mike's.

 

At the end of the day when it comes to neighbourhoods, schools, and perceived safety, people will believe what they want to believe. Meanwhile a neighbourhood like Vic West has transformed itself over the last 20 years into one of the most desirable places to live despite the negativity and criticism from those who perhaps don't like that so much positive change is happening in someone else's neighbourhood and not theirs. I dunno...

[Mike K.]

Since the issue of crime in neighbourhoods other than Oak Bay appears to be quire popular, I figured it would be a good thing to perhaps keep a track of crime behind the tweed curtain. So while residents may live in a world with perceived borders, the criminal element sure doesn't

[dasmo]

VicWest is actually one of the wealthier neighbourhoods...

http://www.victoria....us-resident.pdf

[Mike K.]

Low crime rate and there's some money here after all? This might be too much mythbusting for one day.

I suppose when looking out of the tweed curtain everyone on the other side is poor and destitute.

Sorry concorde, this is all tongue in cheek of course, but these weird and unfounded myths have prevailed for so long that it's time to set the record straight a bit

[KAS]

I hope I didn't come across as complaining about where I live!  I fully recognized that we were buying in an area that was close to town, and that many of the possibly less lovely aspects of urban life would find their way up the Goose.  Having lived in downtown Winnipeg (granted, years ago, but I don't think it's really improved), the Railyards and Vic West are stunning! Our parkade does get broken into once or twice a year - it's an easy target, and in my imagination it gets spotted when the theives are over inspecting the construction site for possible pickings.  There are occasionally people sleeping in the bushes.  Most of the 'police action' occurs when somebody trying to stage a getaway from down town stupidly turns down Tyee where it splits from Skinner, and find themselves trapped.  Stupid criminals.  But the area is great for all the reasons people have listed above.

 

As for fencing off the area - that was a joke.  There are people who get all twitchy when you start to talk about crime - particularly if they've had something stolen.  Or stolen more than once.   But fences only keep out the honest people.  If someone really wants to get in, they will.

[dasmo]

My car got broken into 5 times when I lived in Fairfield.  In Vicwest; my house robbed once (pre alarm system) and my bike stolen once (left it our front my house). I call it about even on the crime front... I like to call VicWest the nicest shitty neighbourhood in the world...

[ZGsta]

somebody trying to stage a getaway from down town stupidly turns down Tyee where it splits from Skinner, and find themselves trapped.  Stupid criminals. 

 

Hah, that is epic. Police should just hang out there and wait for people to trap themselves in.

[concorde]

Sorry concorde, this is all tongue in cheek of course, but these weird and unfounded myths have prevailed for so long that it's time to set the record straight a bit

Hey, I don't take it that seriously and perhaps I am looking at Vic West/Esquimalt in a bad way, however, the feel I get when in the area does justify my feelings somewhat.  Don't get me wrong, there are areas of Vic West that are ok like anywhere on the east side, but it gets worse the farther you drive towards Esquimalt

[Mike K.]

You know what would actually be a cool idea is a VV walking tour of Esquimalt/Vic West. I'm sure a lot of people have never really ventured into the heart of the "ghetto" before and this could be sort of fun.

[sdwright.vic]

You know... Esquimalt after Head and before Admirals is a perfectly fine area. You have Sax Point and the High Rock area.... 500k and over for houses

[concorde]

^True, but I knew someone who lived in Saxe Point and said it was a beautiful area but it was something "look at what I have to drive thru to get there"

[Mike K.]

20 years ago maybe? Concorde, all of this stuff about the ghetto and such is rubbish. Those who maintain the rhetoric don't live in the area or rely on tired old myths that refuse to die because we need a boogy man to help us feel better.

[dasmo]

 "look at what I have to drive thru to get there"... good lord...  ESQ has more pants hanging around the ass and big trucker hats for sure. The line up is long at Timmy's and the cars are a little older. Some more overgrown yards and a few more dilapidated buildings. But the worst I could call it is blue collar. What you describe is some sort of slum. Ever seen a real slum?