The project includes the creation of multiple rain gardens and extensive tree and vegetation planting at the following locations:
- The residential roads of Albina Street, Maddock Avenue and Orillia Street around Tillicum Elementary School.
- The plantings and rain gardens will be installed on the boulevard and integrated with road and sidewalk improvements.
- Construction began in early 2025 and is expected to be completed in the Fall of 2025.
- More information can be found on the Albina-Maddock-Orillia Road Improvements project webpage here.
- Tillicum Elementary School, in partnership with the Greater Victoria School District.
- The landscape design for the school site has been drafted with feedback incorporated from Tillicum Elementary administration, School District staff including the Facilities Department and the Indigenous Education Department, and the Elder’s Advisory Council.
- In-classroom learning about native planting and climate change is ongoing.
- Engagement with the school and wider community will begin in March 2025.
- Please check back here for future updates or see the Greater Victoria School District project webpage here.
This project is being generously supported by a $396,865 grant from the Disaster Risk Reduction-Climate Adaptation (DRR-CA) funding stream of the Provincial Community Emergency Preparedness Fund (CEPF). This is administered by the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM).
Community Engagement
- Open House: March 11, 2025 from 4pm to 6pm (drop-in format) in the gymnasium at Tillicum Elementary School
- Online Survey administered by the Greater Victoria School District opens March 11 and closes April 8: available here
Background – Climate Change and Green Infrastructure
As many of us have experienced, our summers are getting hotter and we are experiencing more extreme weather events, such as heat domes, wildfires, major storms and extreme rainfall or atmospheric rivers. Our latest regional climate projections show that these events will be more frequent and extreme in future.
Green infrastructure such as trees, rain gardens and natural areas, offer many benefits (or ecosystem services), that help us to be resilient to these climate changes. These benefits include shade, stormwater management, air purification, carbon sequestration, water quality and more.
The Tillicum-Burnside area has been identified in our Urban Forest Strategy as a neighbourhood with one of the lowest tree canopy covers in Saanich and highly vulnerable to extreme heat, as shown in the Capital Regional District’s Extreme Heat Information Portal. The site also lies near important natural ecosystems such as Portage Inlet and Cuthbert Holmes Park and is located in a Primary Growth Area of Saanich expected to see community growth in the coming years.
Project Goals
The project is intended to support multiple goals and targets within the Saanich Climate Plan, Official Community Plan, Active Transportation Plan, Urban Forest Strategy, and Biodiversity Conservation Strategy, including:
- Expand the urban forest and increase urban forest canopy cover.
- Increase native and site adaptive planting and connection of natural areas.
- Reduce impervious areas.
- Support the implementation of Indigenous knowledge of natural systems and sustainable practices.
- Capture and treat stormwater run-off from hardscape.
- Increase ecosystems services and support climate adaptation.
- Incorporate metrics to measure & evaluate project outcomes.
More Information
Please contact sustainability@saanich.ca with any questions or for more information. You can also visit the Greater Victoria School District project webpage here.