Greater Victoria (also known as the Greater Victoria Region ) is located in British Columbia, Canada, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. It is a cultural rather than political entity, usually defined as the thirteen easternmost municipalities on Vancouver Island of the Capital Regional District (CRD) but also included adjoining areas and islands adjacent.
The 2010 Olympic Torch Relay starting point is in Greater Victoria and will then proceed to other communities across Canada. The torch relay conclusion begins the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver BC.
Many places, buildings, and institutions associated with Victoria (the University of Victoria, Victoria International Airport, or the Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal, for example), actually exist outside the City of Victoria. The confusion is enhanced by the fact that Victoria is the locality indicated in the mailing addresses of places in several CRD municipalities and localities outside Victoria. This is probably reflective of many people's changing views of the whole region being Victoria, not just the central city, and indeed there have been recurrent debates on amalgamating at least some of the municipalities.
Municipalities
- The City of Victoria and the District Municipalities of Saanich, Esquimalt, and Oak Bay, which are adjacent to it
- The cities of Colwood and Langford, the town of View Royal, and the District Municipalities of Highlands, Metchosin, and Sooke, which lie generally west of Esquimalt Harbour and Portage Inlet
- The District Municipalities of Central Saanich, North Saanich, Saanich and the town of Sidney, which lie to the north of Victoria.
This breakdown is roughly mirrored by the three school districts in Greater Victoria.
- Greater Victoria School District #61 - (the core municipalities)
- Sooke School District #62 - (the Western Communities)
- Saanich School District #63 - (the Saanich Peninsula)
Greater Victoria is the southernmost urban area in Western Canada; it is located south of the 49th parallel.
Neighbourhoods
This list is similar to, but not identical with, that used by the Greater Victoria real estate sales industry. Neighbourhoods with official status are italicized. Others may have no official definition, hence other lists of neighbourhoods in the Victoria area may differ. Other sources may give different boundaries as well.
Demographics
The Greater Victoria region has a combined population of 330,088, according to the 2006 Canadian census . The region comprises two of the fifteen most populous municipalities in British Columbia (Saanich, at number seven, and Victoria at number thirteen). The Canadian Census ranks Greater Victoria as the 15th largest metropolitan area in Canada, by population. The combined population of the municipalities, unincorporated areas and Indian Reserves in the region are as follows:
- Saanich 108,265
- Victoria 78,057
- Langford 22,489
- Oak Bay 17,908
- Esquimalt 16,840
- Central Saanich 15,745
- Colwood 14,687
- Sidney 11,315
- North Saanich 10,823
- Sooke 9,704
- View Royal 8,768
- Metchosin 4,795
- Indian Reserves (part) 4,562
- Juan de Fuca Electoral Area (part) of the CRD 3,801
- Highlands 1,674
Ethnicity
In comparison to the Lower Mainland (Vancouver and environs), the region does not have a great deal of ethnic diversity. Most of the population is of European descent. A substantial community of those of Chinese descent has existed in Greater Victoria since the Fraser Gold Rush of 1858-60, which saw the first significant influx, arriving first via San Francisco then directly from China. There is also a substantial First Nations (indigenous) population whose ancestors have lived in the area for thousands of years. Numerous First Nations reserves, forming distinct communities, exist in the region — primarily on the Saanich Peninsula, in Esquimalt, and in the Western Communities — although the majority of the First Nations population live off-reserve.
The largest ethnic groups in Greater Victoria, according to the 2001 census, are:
- English - 131,670
- Scottish - 79,275
- Irish - 56,655
- German - 34,345
- French - 29,440
- Dutch - 13,805
- Ukrainian - 12,770
- Chinese - 11,720
- Aboriginal - 10,230
Culture
Many Victoria Region municipalities have their own fairs: Western Communities' Luxton Rodeo, Oak Bay's Tea Party, Esquimalt's Buccaneer Days, Sidney's Sidney Days, Sooke's Sooke Days, and Central Saanich's Saanich Fair. The Saanich Fair is the oldest and largest of all the Greater Victoria local fair venues; it is considered a de facto regional fair because of its greater size, content, and famous reputation. The Saanich Fair has the largest number of attendees of all the Victoria area fairs.
There is a wide variety of entertainment and recreational facilities and activities. The mild coastal climate ensures less extreme weather changes. Outdoor and indoor recreational areas are abundant throughout the region. The Luminara Lantern Festival is a regionally popular cultural/artistic outdoor activity that draws thousands of visitors to Beacon Hill Park. The Victoria Tall Ships Festival showcase sailing vessels and the sailing life.The Victoria Symphony performs over 100 concerts a year, including the renowned Symphony Splash, an annual free concert in the Inner Harbour on the August Sunday preceding B.C Day. The orchestra is on a barge playing to an audience of over 40,000.
These regional positive qualities, along with new transportation links, international high profile events (2007 NATO meeting, 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, 1994 Commonwealth Games), could have helped produce a socio-economic effect in terms of: attractiveness as a place of residency, low unemployment, high real estate development potential for profit, increasing immigration of new people(s), and expanding opportunities for business or economic development. High profile international attention performs its duty as a marketing, public relations, and sales catalyst for further activity. Boaters from around the world gather annually in the waters off of Vancouver Island for the Swiftsure International Yacht Race.
An example of this economic opportunity also lies in Victoria's geography. The April 19 , 2008 "Victoria Times Colonist" newspaper printed a section, sponsored by the Downtown Victoria Business Association/DVBA, focusing on the area's downtown selection of goods and service providers. As it was in the early days with merchants supplying and outfitting gold rush prospectors, today's modern merchants supply outdoor recreation seekers before they head to other parts of Vancouver Island for surfing, kayaking, hiking, camping, swimming, cycling or whatever activities they seek.
Notable places
Educational institutions
- Pacific Rim College (Victoria)
- Camosun College (Saanich, Oak Bay and Victoria)
- Lester B. Pearson College (Metchosin)
- Royal Roads University (Colwood)
- University of Victoria (Saanich and Oak Bay)
- University Canada West (Victoria)
Hospitals
- Royal Jubilee Hospital (Victoria and Saanich)
- Saanich Peninsula Hospital (Central Saanich/Saanich Peninsula)
- Victoria General Hospital (View Royal)
Military installations
(Department of National Defence)
- Bay Street Armoury (Victoria)
- CFB Esquimalt Dockyard (Esquimalt)
- CFB Esquimalt Naden (Esquimalt)
- Victoria International Airport Air Force Squadron detachment, (North Saanich)
Parks and natural features
- Elk/Beaver Lake Regional Park (Saanich)
- East Sooke Regional Park (Juan de Fuca EA)
- Goldstream Provincial Park (Langford)
- Beacon Hill Park (Victoria)
- Francis/King Regional Park (Saanich)
- Galloping Goose Regional Trail (from Victoria west through Sooke)
- John Dean Provincial Park (North Saanich and Central Saanich)
- Gowlland Tod Provincial Park (Highlands, and Juan de Fuca EA)
- Mount Douglas Park (Saanich)
- Mount Work Regional Park (Saanich, Highlands, and Juan de Fuca EA)
- Sooke Potholes Regional Park, Sooke Potholes Provincial Park and Sooke River Provincial Park (Sooke)
- Swan Lake/Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary (Saanich)
- Thetis Lake Regional Park (View Royal, Langford, and Highlands)
- Uplands Park (Oak Bay)
- Saxe Point Park/Fleming Beach, former military defence gun bunkers/observation (Esquimalt)
- Hartland landfill, (mountain biking, tours & hiking) (Saanich)
Scientific facilities
- Dominion Astrophysical Observatory/National Research Council of Canada (Saanich)
- Gonzales Observatory for Atmospheric Biogeochemistry Research (Oak Bay)
- Institute of Ocean Sciences/Fisheries and Oceans Canada (North Saanich)
- Geological Survey of Canada, GSC Pacific/Natural Resources Canada (Sidney)
Sites of interest
(http://www.victoriabc.ca/victoria/top10.htm)
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