News Releases
Chamber Supports Borrowing for Replacing Blue Bridge
August 05, 2010
The Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce is stating its support to replace the Johnson Street Bridge and further, supports the borrowing of the funds that will be proposed to the public through a referendum this fall.
“The immediate decision for the City is whether to replace or refurbish the bridge, and for business replacing the bridge is clearly the best option,” says Bruce Carter, CEO of the Chamber. “The prospect of closing the bridge for up to a year to do the work of refurbishment is untenable at best. There will be significant business loss on both sides of the bridge as well as to businesses west of the Bay Street Bridge whose access will be blocked with a year of traffic congestion. Potentially those losses will never be recouped and indeed they could lead to business closure. That of course means tax loss to the city, and increased taxes to residents.”
The Chamber also notes that, given the state of the City’s reserves, it is imperative to support the funding referendum for the amount needed to replace the bridge. “That figure is $56 million, though the City may bring the required amount down between now and the fall through pursuing more grants and finding internal savings,” continues Carter. “However, let’s be clear. The bridge has to be replaced one way or the other. If not through borrowing, it will happen through tax increases which have currently been cited in the neighborhood of 14%. That size of increase is absolutely unacceptable and will be a great financial burden to both residents and businesses.”
The Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce has approximately 1500 members and is the voice of business for the Greater Victoria region. The Greater Victoria Chamber has received Accreditation with Distinction from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.
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For more information contact:
Shannon Renault
Manager Policy Development & Communications
Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce
Cell: (250 )812-0510
Email: srenault@gvcc.rg
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Bruce Carter
Cheif Executive Officer
Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce
Tel: (250) 383-7191 Ext 201
Email: bcarter@gvcc.org
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News Releases - 2010
Chamber Supports Borrowing for Replacing Blue Bridge (August 05, 2010)
Have Your Say on Municipal Taxes (July 06, 2010)
Past Chair of Local Chamber Moves up to Provincial Role (June 02, 2010)
Annual Report Shows Why We're A Natural Place for Innovation (June 02, 2010)
Business Vote a Part of Democratic Process (May 26, 2010)
$23 Million Cost to Victoria if Marina Prevented (May 12, 2010)
Chamber Celebrates Outstanding Performance at Chamber Awards (April 29, 2010)
City's Pace on Tax Reduction too Slow (April 08, 2010)
Greater Victoria Medals for Cost of Doing Business (March 30, 2010)
21 Billion Blooms in 2010 (March 05, 2010)
Budget 2010 Brings Few Surprises (March 02, 2010)
Asia Pacific and Digital Investments Good for Victoria (March 02, 2010)
Flower Count Takes Flight at the Airport on Thursday (February 24, 2010)
Prodigy Group Launches New Website to Engage Members (February 09, 2010)
Conference Board Sees Growth in Greater Victoria (January 27, 2010)
Report Confirms Victoria Needs to Focus on Crime Reduction (January 14, 2010)
News Releases - 2009 
New Publcation Showcases Greater Victoria to the World (December 03, 2009)
Win for the Region on HST Mitigation (November 19, 2009)
Letter of Support for Bill C-304 (November 16, 2009)
Olympians, Kids, and Prodigy members raise funds for The Y Partners with Youth Campaign (October 27, 2009)
Victoria Chamber Calls on Government to Mitigate HST Impacts in 2010 Budget (October 07, 2009)
Victoria Chamber Priorities Win National Support at Canadian Chamber (October 05, 2009)
Victoria Chamber Employee Wins National Recognition! (October 03, 2009)
GVDA Gets More Lift with Airport Authority Funding (September 30, 2009)
Consumer HST Mitigation Good for Small Business (September 01, 2009)
Chamber Focuses on HST Mitigation for Victoria’s Economy (August 25, 2009)
New Publication Showcases Greater Victoria to the World (July 14, 2009)
Greater Victoria Named Top Micro City of the Future (July 08, 2009)
Chamber Calls for City to Provide Business Certainty (June 29, 2009)
Annual Report Shows Why We’re A Natural Place to do Business (May 05, 2009)
Parties State Positions on Local Issues (April 27, 2009)
Chamber Celebrates Outstanding Performance at Chamber Awards (April 21, 2009)
Regional Economic Summit Brings Call to Action (April 07, 2009)
Sasha Angus leads Vancouver Island Economic Alliance (April 06, 2009)
Mooring Dolphins a Good Investment of Government Dollars (March 30, 2009)
Infrastructure Announcement for Ogden Point a Win for the Region (March 30, 2009)
Victoria Leads 2009 Flower Count (March 23, 2009)
Alex Campbell Wins Lifetime Achievement Award (February 24, 2009)
Greater Victoria Highlighted in Island Economic Study (February 23, 2009)
Provincial Budget Brings Mixed Blessings to Capital (February 17, 2009)
Budget Supports Competitiveness and Clean Technology (February 17, 2009)
Heritage Designation costs up to $1 Million (February 13, 2009)
New Partnership to Lead Victoria Flower Count (February 10, 2009)
Infrastructure Projects Should Build Future Capacity (February 04, 2009)
Chamber Assesses Federal Budget Impacts to the CRD (January 27, 2009)
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