The Victoria Foundation released its annual report card on Tuesday, highlighting a greater need for social housing and daycare in the Capital Region, as well as inflated wait times for children needing surgery.
The Vital Signs report provides a sweeping overview of the Capital RegionB次元官网网址檚 economy, environmental health, arts, safety, transportation and seven other indicators.
It combines a range of provincial and national statistics with citizen perception to highlight community successes and shortcomings.
B次元官网网址淭here are tremendous drives being made in homelessness (and) thereB次元官网网址檚 an increase in daycare spaces,B次元官网网址� said foundation executive director Sandra Richardson.
Although 300 more daycare spots were added in Greater Victoria last year, itB次元官网网址檚 still not nearly enough to meet demand, Richardson said.
B次元官网网址淲ith 19,000 children needing daycare and just over 5,000 daycare spaces ... itB次元官网网址檚 still perceived as not enough,B次元官网网址� she said.
Another red flag is the provinceB次元官网网址檚 social housing waitlist.
The number of people in Greater Victoria in line for subsidized housing increased by 15 per cent in the past year to 1,681.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a reflection of the increase in rent. We still have very high rents for a community with our income level,B次元官网网址� said Andrew Wynn-Williams, executive director of the Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness.
But there has been success tackling both homelessness and low-income housing in recent years, he said. Last year, 152 new units were completed and another five projects are planned throughout the Capital Region.
B次元官网网址淩ight now, the objective is to just get more built.B次元官网网址�
Richardson hopes the report will create public awareness of the need to support non-profit services accessed by the regionB次元官网网址檚 most vulnerable citizens. B次元官网网址淚f the public is aware of that, it perhaps causes them to be more mindful of places like the food bank and what they can do to give back,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淣ot everybody has the same opportunities.B次元官网网址�
The Capital Region bodes better than the average Canadian city in both median family income ($77,000) and unemployment (5.3 per cent).
Other indicators include the Canadian Creativity Index, which ranks cities based on technology, talent and tolerance for creative industries.
Victoria ranks second, alongside Vancouver, as one of the best places in the country for creative industries. Toronto ranks seventh while Ottawa takes top spot.
Greater Victoria still lags in entrepreneurs, however, sitting 71st out of 100 Canadian cities on an index that measures the presence, growth and policy environment for small business ownership.
To view the report, visit victoriafoundation.com.
dpalmer@vicnews.com
