Your weekly round up of BizNews from throughout Greater Victoria

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Camosun unveils new health and wellness centre

Camosun College held a special reception last night for everyone who donated to help build the new Alex and Jo Campbell Centre for Health and Wellness on the Interurban campus. The fundraising campaign was led by Samantha and John Wilson.

The centre officially opened earlier this year, featuring modern classroom designs and an improved approach to interdisciplinary teaching and learning. The facility will train nurses, health care assistants, technicians and early childhood educators.

Last night’s gathering underscores how business leaders, governments, religious leaders, educators and individuals can work together to improve our community.

Camosun College: Member since 1981

City open late to help youth collect free bus passes

In the first week of its new program, the City of Victoria handed out more than 600 free bus passes to residents under the age of 18. The city has agreed to pay the Victoria Regional Transit Commission $729,000 for 7,200 youth passes.

This week, the city will stay open until 7pm tomorrow for youth who aren’t able to pick up their passes during regular business hours.

Free bus passes are one of the demands being made by organizers of another climate strike set for Friday. Organizers of that protest say they want to focus on local solutions, including expanded transit service and electric vehicles.

City of Victoria: Member since 1962

Reducing speed cuts emissions, saves lives: Saanich

Saanich Mayor Fred Haynes is asking the provincial government to reduce the speed limit on all residential roads in BC. The move would reduce emissions and help fight climate change while saving lives and encouraging more active transportation.

"If we are truly interested in safe streets that have active transportation, this approach is very reasonable," Haynes told CBC, noting that a province-wide approach is better than having different speed limits in adjacent municipalities.

Saanich will send its request to the Ministry of Transportation, which has said it is committed to a review of the Motor Vehicle Act.

District of Saanich: Member since 2018

New cab company offers electric hospitality

Greater Victoria’s newest taxi service begins operations on Sunday, with a fleet of 15 Tesla vehicles.

Current Taxi prides itself on offering an all-electric option with a focus on “sustainable practices, luxury services and five-star people.”

The company was started in Kelowna by four people with experience in the high-end hospitality industry. They selected their drivers, or “ambassadors,” based on driving records as well as their customer service skills.

Current Taxi: Member since 2019

Plan for downtown hotel respects heritage value

The Chamber has lent its support to a plan to build a new hotel in downtown Victoria. Victoria City Council is expected to discuss tomorrow whether to send the proposal to public hearing.

The plan, by Chard Development, calls for a 139-room hotel to be built on the corner of Broad and Johnson streets. The University of Victoria owns the property and has agreed to a 99-year lease. Tourism numbers show high demand for hotel rooms downtown, with a steady increase in rates and near peak occupancy over the summer.

“Chard’s commitment to pursuing this redevelopment in a manner that is respectful of the site’s heritage — rehabilitating the existing Duck’s Building and the Duck’s Carriage Factory rubble wall — will make this a destination that truly reflects the city’s past while encouraging its future growth,” wrote Catherine Holt, Chamber CEO, in support of the project.

Chard Development: member since 1983

Chamber Member Tip of the Week

“Retain key staff by offering job sharing or other reduced hour positions. It increases opportunity for advancement for existing staff while retaining institutional knowledge."

Dave Cowen,

CEO of Butchart Gardens

Current Job Listings

Club Manager – Victoria Sport & Social Club

Senior Systems Administrator – University of Victoria

Sponsorship Officer – Victoria Symphony

Administrative Service Coordinator – WorkSafeBC

Painter Apprentice – Greater Victoria School District SD61

Mobile Mortgage Specialist – Coast Capital Savings

Assistant to the Chair – University of Victoria

Senior Business Analyst – The Corporation of the District of Saanich

View more online here.

The Chamber comes with numerous benefits , for your team including The Chamber’s Group Insurance Plans. Contact us for details.

Hosting a Holiday event? We want to hear from you!

Submit your event to [email protected] to have it added to our Community Events calendar. *Members Only*

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Proposed fix to police boards, good start to needed changes

An all-party committee of MLAs recommending changes to how police boards discipline police chiefs is a good first step to fixing a larger problem with police board governance.

On Monday, BC Attorney General Mike Farnworth said he will consider the committee’s recommendation to task a retired judge with meting out discipline to police chiefs or deputy chiefs. Currently, the responsibility falls to the chair of the police board, which, by law, is the mayor of the municipality served. The mayors of Victoria and Esquimalt were chastised for their handling of an investigation into a former police chief. The mayors were placed in an inherent conflict because they worked too closely together to be objective.

In a column that ran Jan. 31 in the Times Colonist, Chamber CEO Catherine Holt wrote about this concern, and the general conflict that stems from forcing mayors to chair their local police board.

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