CBRA Neighbourhood News

CBRA occasionally receives requests from members to publish letters that may interest Cadboro Bay residents. We are happy to share letters with the understanding that the information does not necessarily reflect the views of the Board and is the personal opinion of the writer.

 My View of Cadboro Bay Has Changed 

By Franke James 

I’m a relative newcomer to Cadboro Bay, having lived here for just over a year, but in that short time, my view has changed. 

I see that the community is growing and rebuilding itself. This is good—good for our families and for the economy. New homes are popping up, and some of the old ones are being demolished to take better advantage of the great locale. 

Fortunately, we have rules—specifically Saanich Zoning Bylaw 8200—designed to guide that growth and preserve the natural beauty of our community. In Cadboro Bay, these bylaws are administered by the Saanich Planning Department, which — as anyone who has ever applied for a building permit knows — is usually a stickler for details. 

From our home on Ten Mile Point, we are now looking at a three-storey house that reaches a height of 10.66 metres (34.97 ft.). The peak is more than four metres over Saanich’s flat-roof limit and more than two metres over the sloped-roof limit. 

More than two years ago, the builder’s request for a relaxation of the height limits was denied by the Board of Variance. A week later, the building permit was issued. 

We all expected the new home would comply with the same height bylaws we all faced. However, as construction progressed and the steel framing was erected last summer, we began to see that it was going to be much taller than we had thought. 

We contacted the Saanich Planning Department, but they said that the structure was compliant. According to their calculations, the height of the building is 6.99 meters, well below the 7.5-meter sloped roof limit. 

A quick reading of the bylaws suggests this might be possible. The house has a shed roof with a long, narrow tail that stretches down to the first floor. The average roof height, stretching from the peak to the first floor eaves, is 6.99 meters. Exactly as noted by the Planning Department. 

However, Saanich Zoning Bylaw 8200 states that height should be measured using the “highest midpoint” between the peak and the eaves. The building department’s measurements start from the lowest eave on the first floor. According to our reading of the bylaw, measuring from the third-floor eaves, the average roof height is 9.83 metres — a full 2.33 metres over the limit. 

We shared this information with the Saanich Planning Department. But they said that there was an exception, a “continuous slope” rule, which applied in this case. 

We searched through the bylaws looking for this “continuous slope” rule. We emailed the Planning Department, asking them to point it out. We went all the way up the chain, through the director of planning, the CAO, and ultimately the mayor, asking the same question. 

Show me the bylaw. 

But the city did not provide a bylaw reference to support their interpretation. This was very confusing. 

It doesn’t matter if it’s a backyard shed, a single-family home, a small-scale multi-unit housing (SSMUH), or a condominium multiplex; it helps when rules—and any exceptions—are clearly documented. 

Otherwise, it creates a fog of uncertainty about what’s allowed and what’s not. 

We’ve asked the BC Ombudsperson to review our concerns, in the hope of gaining some clarity about the future of our community. 

If you’re interested in learning more, please see: Demand Accountability in Saanich’s Planning Department (Google will direct you to the website)

Clear, transparent, and consistently enforced bylaws will protect our community and all our views of Cadboro Bay. 

Franke James is an award-winning activist, artist, and author. She received the BCCLA Liberty Award and the PEN Canada Ken Filkow Prize for her work on free expression and government transparency. She lives in Cadboro Bay with her husband and her sister. 

The Pacific FC, Vancouver Island’s professional soccer team, is bringing two matches to Royal Athletic Park on April 26th and May 3rd, a short trip from the Cadboro Bay community. With professional soccer returning to downtown Victoria, we’d love to extend an offer to the Cadboro Bay Residents Association to come out and be part of it.

Here is a discounted ticket link for you to share with your family and the wider community. [https://www.gofevo.com/group/Cadborobay]

It’s a great opportunity for families, friends, and local residents to get together, enjoy a fun matchday experience, and support the local team in the heart of the city.