Victoria’s skyline, long a collection of heritage buildings and low-rise commercial outlets, may start looking a bit more like Vancouver’s in the coming years.
An well-attended open house was held Wednesday at City Hall, where the city outlined proposed changes that could see towers up to 72 metres high built along busy corridors.
“Our interest is creating a vibrant and active downtown,” said mayor Dean Fortin at the event. “That’s what we want. How do we get people down here?”
The city hopes to attract 10,000 more residents to the downtown core in the next 30 years, while revitalizing the area for tourists.
To that end, the city wants new regulations for part of downtown, spanning 16 city blocks along Douglas and Blanchard streets. The proposed changes would allow mixed-used towers ranging from 45 to 72 metres to be built. The regulations would also allow increased density, and give incentives to developers for creating amenities for public use on the ground level.
The older part of Victoria’s downtown, closer to the water and full of 19th century buildings, are not under threat.
“I know people are worried about height and density,” said Fortin. “We can accomplish vibrancy in many ways, and we’re reaching out to people.”
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