One of the things I value and enjoy about James Bay is its diversity, and the stimulating environment which results. The community is a rich potpourri of sights, sounds, smells and taste -- even touch, every time I visit an ocean beach.
There are always people walking on the street in James Bay, and I think one of the reasons is its diversity. Its walkability means that it's a great example of sustainability.
Demographically, there are people in all stages of their lives -- many seniors, but also enough children for two elementary schools. And there are people of all incomes, from those wealthy enough to own and maintain a home in the community, to those with few possessions and who live on the streets, in their vehicles, or rough on the beaches. Nothing about James Bay feels sterile or sanitized. Being part of this diversity connects me to my human-ness.
James Bay is definitely not like the monotonous housing-only suburbs that were popular when I cut my teeth as a city planner in the 1970s. It has a range of housing types, from high rise apartments to single family houses. But it also has a mix of other land uses -- including industry, a great variety of small retail and service businesses, a library, churches and parks, as well as services catering to tourists such as hotels.
Industry
I'll start this brief overview of diversity with James Bay's industrial roots. Industry bumps up against commercial and residential, all in a small area at the northwest tip of James Bay -- Fisherman's Wharf.
As its name implies, Fisherman's Wharf was built to accommodate fishing vessels -- up to 60 large fish-packing vessels -- when it was opened after World War II. At the time, Victoria's waterfront was largely industrial.
 |
| Fisherman's Wharf combines industrial, commercial, and residential use in one corner of James Bay. In this photo you can see both tourist commercial operations, and floating homes. And, given its historical roots, Fisherman's Wharf is still a place of fishing industry activity. |
The next photo gives an example of industry and residential development side by side on a quiet street, just a block from Fisherman's Wharf. Many planners might say this isn't a desirable way to build a community, but it seems to work in James Bay.
 |
| A posh residential development in the background, with a seafood processor and distributor in the foreground. |
While the scale of Fisherman's Wharf might have been dramatic in the heyday of fishing, Ogden Point, south of Fisherman's Wharf, is the most significant part of Victoria's industrial waterfront.
From 1883 to 1914 the area to the north (where DFO and the Coast Guard now have extensive facilities) was known as Rithet's Piers, and established Victoria as Canada's largest seaport on the Pacific. After World War I, and with the opening of the Panama Canal, a new breakwater and wharf facility was built at Ogden Point. The breakwater was necessary to protect the wharves from winter storms. Constructing the Ogden Point facility was BC's first "mega project", according to the Victoria Harbour History website.
 |
| Ogden Point Wharves after the construction of the breakwater in 1916. Source: https://www.victoriaharbourhistory.com/locations/outer-harbour/ogden-point/ |
The breakwater is one of those engineering projects which has stood the test of time, withstanding nature's forces for over a hundred years. I wonder how it will fare with the extreme weather of climate change. The photo below gives some detail showing how the outside edge, facing the waves, was constructed. (Note -- just after writing about how impressed I was that the pier has stood for over a hundred years, I talked with someone who is studying the engineering marvels of the pyramids... over 3,000 years old.)
 |
| The curvature of the construction allows the breakwater to protect from winds from both the east (the dominant winter wind) and the south-west (the more dominant summer wind). The water looks innocuous enough now, but I've seen waves breaking right over the surface. |
Fast forward to 2019, and the Ogden Point docks were again refurbished, this time to accommodate large cruise ships. Now, with the terminal which can take up to three cruise ships at a time, Ogden Point is less industrial, and more tourism oriented. It's even rebranded itself as "The Breakwater District". But its industrial roots remain, with ships being serviced in dock.
The relationship between the surrounding neighbourhood and Ogden Point is an uneasy one, with concerns about noise and pollution from ship exhaust, and from the busses and trucks which service the ships. Nonetheless, the development at Ogden Point is part of the character of James Bay.
 |
| This cargo ship was moored at Ogden Point for about three weeks while its propellors were repaired. The view is through a "photo frame" used by cruise ship passengers to prove that they were in Victoria. |
 |
| A different type of boat from cargo vessels... two of the hundreds of cruise ships that stop at Victoria, many for just a few hours. |
Servicing the cruise ships is an industry in itself. In the photo below a cruise ship is offloading garbage and recyclables.
 |
| A Tymac vehicle picking up garbage from a cruise ship; from here it will be hauled from Ogden Point to Victoria's landfill 20 km away. In 2019, waste from cruise ships accounted for 1.3% of all waste landfilled in the Regional District (Source: https://www.vicnews.com/news/as-cruise-ships-return-to-greater-victoria-so-does-their-garbage-100481) |
Some of the cruise ship passengers go for tours in the shuttle busses, pedicabs and rickshaws which line up to greet the ships.
 |
| Tour busses at Ogden Point. The residential neighbourhood can be seen across the street. |
 |
| Waiting for passengers |
 |
| Popular with tourists, horse-drawn carriages share the streets of James Bay |
Surrounded by water on three sides, James Bay is at the "end of the road". This means no through traffic, making for relatively quiet streets -- despite the density and mix of activities.
The presence of water is a core element of life in James Bay -- from the offshore wind which makes the neighbourhood cooler than other parts of Victoria in summer, to the salt spray which affects vegetation near the ocean. Water also accounts for two other semi-industrial essential services provided at Ogden Point: operations involving pilot boats, and search and rescue operations.
Pilot boats head out at any time of day or night to pick up pilots from cargo ships. I watched with binoculars the precise manoevering of the pilot boat as it comes alongside the much larger freighter and drops its speed to parallel the big boat. Then the pilot being picked up climbs down a ladder, and drops into the pilot boat. It's a risky operation, but one the pilots repeat frequently..
 |
| Pilot boats (yellow) with a red Search and Rescue zodiac in the foreground. |
I'll continue my exploration of James Bay's diversity in the next post, when I'll focus on the diversity of housing and commercial mix.
