Victoria (city, British Columbia)

I

Introduction

Victoria (city, British Columbia), capital of the province of British Columbia, Canada, and part of the province’s urban core. Once an important trading and manufacturing center, it now functions as a government, educational, military, and tourist center. It is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, next to the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

Many older people choose to retire to Victoria, attracted by the dry, warm summers and wet, mild winters. The average daily temperature range in July is 11° C to 22° C (51° F to 71° F), and the average January range is 0° C to 7° C (33° F to 44° F). The annual precipitation is 858 mm (33.8 in), some of which occasionally falls as snow. On average, Victoria receives about 2,185 hours per year of bright sunshine, which comes to about six hours per day.

II

People

After losing population to expanding suburban municipalities, the city of Victoria grew from 64,379 residents in 1981 to 71,228 in 1991. The city’s growth continued in the 1990s, and according to the 2001 census its population was 74,125. The population of Victoria’s metropolitan area, which includes 12 municipalities, was 325,400 in 2001. Saanich was the largest municipality with 103,654. The other municipalities are Central Saanich, Colwood, Esquimalt, Highlands, Langford, Metchosin, North Saanich, Oak Bay, Sidney, and View Royal.

Of the major Canadian cities, Victoria has the highest proportion of residents aged 65 years and older (about 18 percent for the metropolitan area in 1996). Traditionally, most Victorians were of British origin; however, after World War II (1939-1945), some Dutch, Ukrainians, Germans, Italians, and Portuguese took up residence in the city, followed by refugees from Hungary, the Baltic states, and Vietnam. Victoria’s Chinese community grew considerably with the addition of former residents of Hong Kong as the 1997 deadline drew near for the British crown colony of Hong Kong to revert rule by the People’s Republic of China. The influx of Asian immigrants, while small compared to that in nearby Vancouver, is changing the ethnic and demographic makeup of Victoria and its metropolitan area.

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III

City Landscape

The city of Victoria covers a land area of 18.8 sq km (7.3 sq mi), forming the center of a metropolitan land area of 633 sq km (244 sq mi). The Victoria cityscape is set against the mountainous backdrop of mainland Washington State and British Columbia, as well as the local Sooke Hills. On the south, the city is flanked by the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The business core overlooks the Inner Harbour, where the renowned Parliament Buildings (1898), the Empress Hotel (1908), the Royal British Columbia Museum (renovated 1996), and the historic district known as Old Town greet ferry passengers and other visitors. A number of historic sites, including Helmcken House (1852), Beacon Hill Park (1872), Crystal Gardens (1925), and City Hall (1878), are within walking distance, as is the Chinatown district. Downtown Victoria also supports many cultural institutions, including historic churches; the Provincial Archives; the Maritime Museum; Thunderbird Park, with its towering totem poles; the Victoria Symphony; the Pacific Opera Victoria; and various live theater groups. Summer concerts are hosted on the grounds of the Parliament Buildings. The Victoria Jazz Festival and the theatrical Victoria Fringe Festival take place each year.

Across the harbor from Old Town, the Songhees redevelopment area, first an Indian Reserve and later an industrial district, now is occupied by expensive condominiums. North and south of downtown, historic 19th-century architecture is displayed in some of British Columbia’s oldest houses, now functioning as museums; these include the Point Ellice (1861) and Emily Carr (1863) houses. To the east, the Rockland neighborhood features Government House (the residence of the lieutenant governor, 1903), the Victoria Art Gallery, Craigdarroch Castle (1885), and other turn-of-the-century mansions. A significant element of metropolitan Victoria’s urban fabric is the Uplands area of Oak Bay, an elite neighborhood designed by the famous Olmsted landscaping firm of Boston, Massachusetts. Called the “City of Gardens,” Victoria has many gardens, including the world-famous Butchart Gardens on the Saanich Peninsula. In recent years, the provincial government has created a number of regional parks throughout the northwestern metropolitan area. Four institutions of higher learning serve Victoria: the University of Victoria (founded 1903, independent in 1963), Royal Roads University (1995), Lester B. Pearson College of the Pacific (1974), and Camosun College (1971).

IV

Economy

Service industries form the basis of Victoria’s economy. These include business, community, personal, educational, and professional services supporting the government, military, retirement, and university sectors, as well as seasonal tourism. Although some high-technology industries are thriving, older primary and secondary manufacturing industries—such as sawmills and shipbuilding—have virtually disappeared. So, too, have traditional transportation networks: The Esquimalt-Nanaimo Railway, which once served Vancouver Island, now runs only occasionally. The Canadian Pacific Railway’s steamship service has been eliminated. In its place are the multilane Island Highway, an expanded air terminal, and, since 1960, the British Columbia ferry service.

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