VICTORIA, B.C. — Canada Day Victoria, presented by Coast Capital Savings, will showcase an impressive line-up of local and multicultural performances and family-friendly celebrations. The City of Victoria expects close to 50,000 attendees downtown on Sunday, July 1 at the festivities at Victoria’s Inner Harbour.
Celebrations will begin at noon, culminating in the magnificent display of fireworks over Victoria’s Inner Harbour at 10:20 p.m., accompanied by an all Canadian music mix produced by The Zone at 91.3’s DJ Boitano.
Headlining this year’s Main Stage performances on the iconic Legislature Lawn will be Victoria’s very own Carmanah. Their hit single “Roots” reached No. 1 on CBC music, and they recently opened for KD Lang and completed a cross-country tour.
An eclectic mix of local acts will form the Main Stage showcase, including Band of Rascals, a Victoria-based, hard-hitting rock band with hints of vintage southern blues and soaring vocals; Batuque Axé, a multi-piece Brazilian band with captivating performances of traditional Brazilian dances and the Afro-Brazilian martial-art Capoeira; Paint the Town Red, a local Indigenous hip-hop group made up of artists YellowWolf and Barndawg; vocal artist Addie Elliott; and DJ Goadman of the One’s and Two’s.
Quebec-based francophone singer Olivier Couture will also take the stage. Couture is a multi-faceted artist whose influences are drawn from many different eras of pop music. French programming on the Canada Day Victoria Main Stage is made possible thanks to the support of the Canada-British Columbia Official Languages Agreement on French-Language Services. The City of Victoria acknowledges the financial support received from the Quebec Secretariat for Canadian Relations under the Canadian Francophone Financial Support Programs.
Greater Victoria’s budding singer/songwriter Jaimey Hamilton, who has been selected as the Coast Capital Savings inaugural Youth Band, will have an opportunity to perform a set in front of an audience of thousands on the Canada Day Victoria Main Stage.
Cultural highlights will include the Lekwungen Dancers; Wong Sheung Kung-Fu Club’s traditional Lion Dance; Uminari Taiko, the high-energy Japanese Taiko drumming ensemble; Victoria’s Youth Poet Laureate Agartu Ali; and the Sooke Community Choir.
The ever-popular Kids Zone featuring an array of sponsor activity tents will include face-painting, balloon
twisters, a bouncy castle and more. The delicious international food village will also return to Belleville Street.
The community will have the opportunity to demonstrate its national pride and celebrate being Canadian by participating in the Coast Capital Savings “Living Flag”. Two thousand red and white T-shirts will be available courtesy of Coast Capital Savings for pick up starting at 12:30 p.m., or participants can bring their own red or white T-shirt to guarantee a spot. Participants are asked to assemble for the “Living Flag” photo between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. on the Legislature Lawns.
“Last year’s Living Flag was the largest in Canada with 5,000 participants and we hope to set this record again this year,” said Charlayne Thornton-Joe, City of Victoria Councillor and Canada Day organizer. “Thank you to our sponsors who enable us to give back to the community with festivities that celebrate a sense of belonging and pride.”
This year’s sustainability initiatives include vendors only offering reusable bags or paper bags, in accordance with the City’s new Checkout Bag Regulation Bylaw which comes into effect July 1. Event goers are encouraged to “BYO Bag.” Returning this year will be the free bicycle parking lock-up adjacent to the Legislature Buildings, the use of biodegradable and recyclable food containers, a waste system that differentiates between compost, recycling and garbage, and paper-based mâché fireworks.
Transit will run on a regular Sunday schedule on July 1. Additional buses will be added as required on Canada Day, which includes buses standing by along the Douglas Street corridor to depart from downtown after the fireworks. Some buses will run later; the last buses will leave downtown Victoria between 1:15 a.m. and 1:30 a.m. For details on service adjustments, visit bctransit.com/Victoria.
Customers are reminded they can ride all day by purchasing a $5 DayPASS, which is available on buses. Adults using any prepaid pass may bring up to four children under the age of 12 on the Family Pass program.
As in previous years, no alcohol will be permitted on board BC Transit buses in the Capital Region, including alcohol in closed containers. Victoria Police will assist transit personnel enforce this one-day regulation to ensure public safety.
“BC Transit is pleased to work with our local government partners and local police forces to support Canada Day celebrations in Greater Victoria,” said Erinn Pinkerton, BC Transit Interim President and Chief Executive Officer. “For our customers using transit, please remember to thank your driver as they work hard to get you safely to your destination on this busy day.”
VicPD officers and Reserves will be greeting the public and ensuring Canada’s 151st celebration is a familyfriendly event.
“Our officers will be out early and in large numbers in support of a safe, family-friendly celebration of our nation,” Chief Constable Del Manak said. “We’ll also be taking non-emergency calls for service on Twitter again this year using #vicpdhelps.”
VicPD will deploy temporarily-placed motion cameras in open, public spaces in support of operations to enhance public safety. The cameras will be taken down following the event.
Canada Day Victoria takes place at Victoria’s Inner Harbour, the traditional territory of the Lekwungen-speaking People, known today as the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations.
The public is encouraged to head downtown early as road closures around the Inner Harbour will begin at 4 p.m. to provide a safe space for the community to celebrate Canada’s birthday. City parkades and on-street parking downtown will be free on Sunday, July 1 and Monday, July 2
For regular updates during Canada Day, follow @CanadaDayVic and @CityofVictoria on Twitter.
For non-emergency calls for service, follow @vicpdcanada on Twitter and use the hashtag #vicpdhelps.
For a detailed schedule of events, performer bios and sponsors, visit: www.CanadaDayVictoria.ca
For More Information:
Charlayne Thornton-Joe
City Councillor and Canada Day Organizer
250.217.0776
Constable Matt Rutherford, VicPD Media Spokesperson
250.995.7294
Jonathon Dyck, Communications Manager, BC Transit – 250.995.5720
