Letter to the Editor

The secret is out. Saanich is a great place to live. More people want to call it home. With growth comes the need to plan for housing, transportation, services and spaces that work better for you and your family.

The draft Quadra McKenzie Plan is one of the ways we’re preparing for Saanich’s future. This planning effort will result in a vision that guides our growth and sees more individuals and families settle in our neighbourhoods and around our centres, while maintaining the things that make our community special.

Your feedback has been central to this process from the start, and it will continue to shape the final version of the plan. Your mayor and council take that feedback seriously and we will ensure revisions to the draft plan appropriately reflect what we’ve heard before finalizing this important vision for Quadra and McKenzie. Ultimately, this is a plan that belongs to all of us. What we’re creating isn’t set in stone; it’s a long-term vision that allows us to adapt and respond to your needs as they arise.

The draft plan is about ensuring that your daily life improves over time. It’s about safer streets for your kids, better transit options for your commute, and more housing so your friends and family can live nearby. It’s about enhancing your community while preserving what you love most about it.

The draft envisions ways to make it easier, faster and safer for you to get where you need to go—whether you drive, bus, bike, or walk. McKenzie needs to work better for everyone who depends on it.

The draft looks ahead to the need for more housing, because everyone deserves a place they can call home. Without thoughtful planning, housing becomes less affordable, traffic worsens, and essential services become harder to access. Doing nothing isn’t a neutral choice—it’s a decision with real consequences. That’s not the future I want for Saanich, and I don’t think it’s the future you want either.

Claims that the plan will displace entire neighbourhoods are false. Instead, the draft plan balances thoughtful growth with improvements that make life better for you and your neighbours, protecting what you value while preparing for the future. It will make it easier for your family, friends, and future generations to find homes in the community they love.

By anticipating our community’s needs many years down the road, and working together to create an exciting vision for the future, we can ensure Saanich remains a welcoming, vibrant community for everyone.