A discussion of One Planet Saanich and a One Planet Region

Are you and your family prepared for an emergency such as a power outage, winter storm, earthquake, or tsunami?

Your family needs to have enough food, water, and supplies to cope for at least seven days without outside assistance, depending on the emergency. Check out City's virtual Emergency Preparedness Workshop and sign up for Vic-Alert to receive emergency notifications. 

Head to VictoriaReady.ca to learn about hazards that can affect Victoria, what to include in your emergency kits, how to reunite with your loved ones following a disaster, and to sign up for Victoria.ca/VicAlert. As of February 1, 2021, the City will be exclusively using Alertable to send emergency notifications.

If you need calm and joy in your day call the new 1-877-2BE-CALM toll-free hotline to hear soothing sounds, songs and meditations. 

Callers can choose to listen to featured audio selections from local artists and storytellers including a story of the Salish wool dog by Dylan Thomas, the Indigenous Artist in Residence, and Kathryn Calder’s song, “Song in Cm” from her self-titled album. 

Sounds of children’s laughter are also a featured audio selection and parents are invited to their child’s laughter to be included in future phone line audio. You can send recordings along with the release form to her by February 7, 2021.

Auditory content will change periodically, and people are encouraged to check back to hear a variety of new sounds from local artists until the project ends in July 2021.

Victoria City Council seeks your input on the City’s 2021 Draft Budget and invites you to share your priorities for investment by participating in next week’s Virtual Budget Town Hall on Wednesday, January 13 at 6:30 p.m. 

Ways to participate:

• Submit your question or comment in the online form now or in real-time during the Virtual Budget Town Hall at engage.victoria.ca.

• Tweet your question with the hashtag #victownhall

• Submit a video of up to three minutes. Email engage@victoria.ca for instructions on how to upload your video. The deadline to submit your video is 2 p.m. on Monday, January 11. 

• Pre-register to speak live via phone for up to three minutes during the Virtual Budget Town Hall. To pre-register, email engage@victoria.caand put Budget 2021 Town Hall in the subject line. Include your first and last name and the phone number you will use to call in. You will receive confirmation and instructions on how to dial-in. The deadline to pre-register is 2 p.m. on Tuesday, January 12.

• You can watch the live event for an opportunity to call in. A phone number and access code will be provided during the Virtual Budget Town Hall. 

Youth between the ages of 14 and 24 who live, work or attend school in the City of Victoria are invited to pre-register to participate in Youth Speak: Budget 2021 on January 13 from 6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m

The proposed budget allocates $255.9 million to operate the City’s more than 200 programs and services and invests $52.9 million in capital infrastructure projects. The 2021 Draft Budget proposes to maintain current service levels and keep the tax increase to one per cent plus inflation. This investment will enable Council to continue to enhance the well-being of the community, invest in infrastructure upgrades and achieve the City’s Strategic Plan. 

Learn more about what’s proposed Budget Summary. 

Youth living in the municipality of Victoria can now apply for a free BC Transit Youth U-PASS valid from February 1 to December 31, 2021. 

The Youth U-PASS program allows youth 6 to 18 years of age to explore the city by transit and travel for free to school, work, shopping and recreation. Children under 6 already ride for free on the Victoria Regional Transit System. Youth can apply online for their U-PASS and the annual pass card with picture identification will be mailed to their home. The pass is valid for all the Victoria Regional Transit System.  

Victoria youth, their parents and/or guardians will be required to provide documentation and confirm their eligibility to participate in the City of Victoria’s free Youth U-PASS program. Youth that cannot apply online, can apply in-person at the City’s Public Service Centre. Questions about the program can be directed to the City’s Public Service Team by emailing upass@victoria.ca or by calling 250.385.5711. 

To apply for the youth U-PASS online, visit: upass.victoria.ca 

A list of approved documents and more information can be found at: victoria.ca/transit