It’s been damaged by a recent history of extreme high tides that have led to flooding of the shops and restaurants on their wharf, the road and adjacent properties in the village.
Ben Smith, the chairman of the Victoria village council, says it was fortunate it wasn’t made worse by ice being slammed into the shore by strong southerly winds this winter.
“It makes the village look run down and falling in on itself.”
But, the council has a plan to fix it. Victoria has $1.2 million to spend on a three-part upgrade for the picturesque tourist destination. The money is a combination of the village’s gas tax allotment and funding from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency.
A big part of the grant from is to promote tourism, but it’s also a disaster mitigation measure.
Smith says they want to replace the entire seawall on the west side of the wharf and make it a little higher — and not just the part that’s broken.
“Besides protecting the wharf, it will protect the road and houses on both sides of Water Street.”
The seawall will have a walkway on top of it and feed into a lane with a canopy of trees. It will keep residents and tourists off the busy streets and give the village the parking space it desperately needs.
The village council also plans to put solar panels on the south-facing slope of the roof of its 100-year-old school. The panels would generate enough power to heat the building with heat pumps, rather than burn oil, and would save council about $500 a month.
They could also use some of the surplus electricity to offset some of the cost to operate the village water system, Smith said.
“To our knowledge, this solar energy system is unique for P.E.I at this time. We’re breaking new ground here.”
The project will also upgrade the existing school structure with a new foundation and a new addition that will house a village office that will be wheelchair accessible, Smith said.
“It will also have a second office space to rent out for yearly income. They plan to advertise a rental space for weddings, conferences and they’ll offer free rental for village associated entertainment.”
Another part of council’s plan is to turn a roughly 2.3-acre green space behind the fire hall into a large grassy field for sports and a playground for children. They also want to plant trees to define the space, Smith said.
“It will also contain a basketball court, which we can flood in the winter and turn into a hockey rink.”
Smith said it’s important to Victoria to serve the tourism industry, but they’re committed to making the village attractive to young families with children and give residents employment opportunities.
“We want people to realize Victoria is a wonderful place to live.”
Smith says the project is already out to tender. Council expects work to start by June.
