Matt Dell

The City of Victoria is ahead of our provincial housing targets! Victoria is one of the only municipalities in BC to beat the targets. New housing helps reduce rents, adds to the tax base, and helps create a vibrant city. Others need to step up now. #yyj #bcpoli

Ok I agree with you on that, I’m extremely nervous too! I’ll be fighting to keep things funded all the way until April.

I don’t think the city “needs” to make deep cuts. We showed that today by keeping youth bus passes, neighbourhood grants, arts funding, etc. Taxes will land around 10% which is very high historically, and I’m fine with that. Cutting down to 2-5% taxes would be devastating.

I love your opinions Jim, but disagree here. We are still pouring funds into bike lanes, cross walk, pedestrian infrastructure, arts and parks. So we get a pool/health center (critical!), and 95% of the other stuff you’ve mentioned. I don’t see any major cuts to this stuff. Need to keep it funded!

The Youth Bus Pass is saved! Thank you to council for voting 9-0 to keep this critical program funded. This will ensure Victoria youth (13-18) have free transit. This is climate action and accessibility policy. This program is technically funded from parking fees on Sundays ($630,000).

North Vancouver just approved an incredible new swim dock for their community! Check out these pictures. I love seeing local governments that invest in public infrastructure and recreation - this is proactive investment in mental health, community and affordability.

James Bay is a very different community (architecturally, and planning wise) than Oakland’s, for example, so I’m curious if a uniquely tailored heritage approach is warranted (or maybe not!)

I won’t be supporting anything that is intended to stop new housing construction, but I’m interested to know if there are ways to preserve some of the best elements of James Bay (quiet streets, funky designs, Victorias oldest homes, and early Indigenous cultural spots).

I’m simply interested to know if there is a way to retain some of the history/architecture in James Bay, and possibly ensure new developments fit in partially with that heritage. Maybe it’s not possible. For me, if staff are doing the review anyway, I’m
Opening to their thoughts on this. P3

Other non-colonial heritage, other era heritage (eg innovative designs from the 60s/70s), and other new concepts of heritage. This review, for me, will not stop developing/housing at all, but perhaps offer new ways of growing the city while protecting some architecture/culture we like. P/2

Hi Jim. Thanks to all these comments. I agree with some of them, so perhaps the motion is misunderstood. Staff will be conducting a city-wide heritage review next year, designed to modernize and expand our view of heritage. It will include things like protecting Indigenous heritage/culture, p1/

HUGE NEWS! Crystal Pool is moving to the old YMCA – this means we will have a pool open while the new Crystal Pool is constructed. This will speed up construction of the new pool, allow residents to swim and activate downtown. So thankful council and staff got this done! #yyj

This is an awesome local Halloween festival happening this Saturday in Market Square (Whistle Buoy). There will be DJs, local vendors, food and just a great party. Please stop by to support arts and the local economy :) And spread the word...

Another absolutely amazing Victoria Pride Parade today - this was a massive turnout, an incredible atmosphere, and a great way to celebrate our 2SLGBTQIA+ friends and community members. #yyj #Pride2025 #victoriabc

MOVIES! We have a motion at council this week asking staff to look into preserving downtown movies theatres, incentivizing new theatres, and supporting film. We're at risk of losing all our large downtown theatres in Victoria - bad for culture, vibrancy and the economy! #yyj

Victoria Urban Food Table

Council officially recognized the Victoria Urban Food Table today, including to increase their funding, and require that all City work on food systems is done in consultation with the UFT. If you are interested in local agriculture, please considering joining. www.victoriaurbanfoodtable.com

I hear you on this, it's really frustrating to see another critical cultural venue leaving the city. What would you like to see done? I'm going to talk to our staff and see if there are any options to keep this as a theatre. Maybe a new theatre company takes it over?

p/2 The application said "Our plans include hosting a variety of events, including DJs, live music, cultural events, fringe festivals, LGBTQ+ focused events, comedy nights, drag shows, meeting space, along with other community organizations accessing the space, and so much more."

The Design Victoria Festival is happening this weekend! This is a truly incredible local event that celebrates architecture, art, design, furniture making, trades, film and more. There are tons of free events across the city. Info at www.designvictoria.ca

This weekend is "Jane's Walk", celebrating the life and work of visionary urbanist Jane Jacobs. Jane’s Walks encourage people to share stories about their neighbourhoods, discover unseen aspects of their communities, and use walking as a way to connect with their neighbours. janeswalk.org #yyj

As part of the new Evergreen Terrace development, Council asked BC Housing to re-exploring daylighting "Rock Bay Creek" watershed, which runs from Fernwood to Rock Bay. There is lots of history on this watershed at: rockbaycreek.ca and rockbaycreek.baremetal.com/index.html

I'm very proud that Council supported the largest affordable housing project in Victoria's history today- the new Blanshard Courts. This site will have 900 non-market homes, including 175 low-income units, supportive housing, 15% three-bedroom units, and tons of green space and community space.

Huge news in Victoria - The Citizens’ Assembly on Amalgamation is recommending that Victoria and Saanich amalgamate. Their final report comes next month. It’s likely this will be on the ballot in 2026 for residents to decide yes/no. I’m very open minded on this. #yyj #bcpoli

Enjoying my first ever trip to the second best country in North America 🇲🇽. Thankfully everyone here agrees that the USA is far behind #1 and #2. Thankful for a short break with my family ❤️

Parking revenue is a key source of income for cities, and helps fund so many important services and infrastructure. This info surprised me!

#yyj #victoriabc

Crystal Pool referendum coming up Saturday February 8th - vote YES!!

I think that was my first ever reply on Bluesky, so thanks for the prompt :) still trying to make this my main platform, considering how the others are spiraling downhill.

Yes this is from an established grant called the “Major Community Events and Initiatives” grant, and a bunch of non-profits applied. This application was originally unanimously supported, but went sideways when council wanted assurance we wouldn’t lose the money. Agree: better process is needed.

Thank you to Council for supporting this important non-profit arts/theatre venue in downtown Victoria! This was a 1.5 year journey to get here. I wish we were providing much more support, but am also simply happy we found consensus to support the project. #yyj #victoriabc