As 2024 comes to a close, the Esquimalt's mayor says next year could be another monumental year for change in the township.

Now approaching the anniversary of her 20th year on the council, Mayor Barbara Desjardins said this past year has been a busy one with new housing legislation and a number of new infrastructure projects that either broke ground in 2024, or are currently in the planning process.

"This year has been huge," she said. "Probably the biggest [accomplishment] is continuing to move forward with our Esquimalt policing options. And so council made the determination to look at an Esquimalt Police Department with contracting services with other municipalities."

In May 2023, the provincial Housing Supply Act came into effect which issued housing target orders to municipalities across B.C. The township was given a five-year housing target of 754 units in June.

"We had to upgrade many of our policies to conform with the timeline that the province set out, and through that, other initiatives that we as a council had put forward had to sort of take a back seat and are still ongoing. We had our parking bylaw being updated and all of that work kind of slowed because of the other stuff," she said.

As a result of the provincial election in October, the township will also see a by-election for the empty council seat that was once taken by Darlene Rotchford, who was elected as the new MLA for the Esquimalt-Colwood riding. Desjardins said the by-election is exciting, and despite the fact that it could prove to be a learning curve for the new councillor, it would add a new perspective to council.

Those who drive down Esquimalt Road will notice the influx of construction as, over the past two years, the council has issued dozens of building permits for developments. Desjardins says almost 800 new housing units will be opened throughout 2025.

"Council is going to have to deal with all the positives of that, which is the vibrancy in the community, participation in our events. the great new residents utilizing our businesses," she explained. "But also we're looking at our infrastructure, our parks, our [recreation] facilities and their use. One of the things we did this year is initiate a development capacity assessment. That's going to speak to where we are at in terms of capacity, and how we will plan for the future."

Next year, the council has set its sights on several larger projects, including figuring out what to do with the temporary fire department space as the new public safety building is set to open in 2026. They will also be figuring out what to do with their property at Park Place, and have several infrastructure initiatives to keep up with the growing population, including sewer replacements and bike lane implementation along Esquimalt Road, which is expected to break ground in 2025.

The council also plans to explore potentially reviving the Esquimalt Police Department instead of sharing services and costs with the Victoria Police Department.

"Another one that's near and dear to my heart is that we are going to continue to roll out our economic development strategy in our place branding, and with that place branding is our tagline, 'Esquimalt is the place to be'. So watch for that because that's going to be exciting as we roll that out," she said.

All in all, Desjardins says she is excited to see what the coming year will bring for the township as they see more and more people looking to live in the municipality.

"I think the vibrancy of the community is only going to grow, and how we manage that will be important," she concluded.