Oak Bay will soon boast a new street – one that could hold an Indigenous name.
Council directed staff at a meeting on July 7 to present possible names for a stretch of road overlooking McNeill Bay and the Trial Islands.
“There is a cul-de-sac off King George Terrace that will soon have too many lots on it to reasonably assign civic addresses to,” said Steve Rennick, the district’s director of engineering and public works. "We’ve deemed that now is the time for this cul-de-sac to get a new name."
Currently, a sign at the entrance to the cul-de-sac lets passersby know that its three homes don't front onto King George Terrace, which connects Beach Drive to Crescent Road. However, three new homes are on their way to the oceanfront stretch, thanks to a subdivision that morphed one of its current lots into three.
“Given that additional homes will be built, new addresses are required ... to make it more clear to visitors and emergency service personnel that these houses do not front onto King George Terrace,” reads a July 7 staff report.
This move means the addresses of the cul-de-sac's current homes will change.
Coun. Carrie Smart asked staff if any consultation had been done with the cul-de-sac's existing homeowners.
"The only homeowners are the ones who are currently living at 287 and 289 King George Terrace," said Rennick. "Staff felt that, because there are so few affected residents, that essentially we could provide the information after the fact and help them navigate the address change.”
Smart then asked if the district could provide a grant to assist the homeowners with costs related to the address change.
“The cost of redirecting mail for a short period of time is a nominal fee,” said Rennick, adding that the district could redirect funds from its operating budget to cover the cost of briefly forwarding the mail.
As for what to call the new street, Coun. Lesley Watson tabled a motion directing staff to engage with Esquimalt and Songhees Nations to find an Indigenous name. The move passed unanimously.
“It’s up to the Nation to say whether they think that would be an honour, given that it's a small, little crescent, but it’s a pretty significant piece of land in terms of view-shed and outlook, so I thought that this might be a nice opportunity to reach out,” said Watson. "If that's not something the Nations feel is appropriate or they're interested in, that's fine, but I would like to see that as a first step before we do anything else."
According to Rennick, this process is "relatively time sensitive" and should be finished in the next eight or nine months.
