Report dated May 26, 2026 from the Deputy Director of Engineering and the Deputy Director of Finance re: Asset Management Policy
Report recommending the formal adoption of an updated Asset Management Policy for the Town.
Glossary
Accessibility The ability to access goods, services, places, people, or housing. In the context of transportation, accessibility is the ability to access transportation choices and easily get around without prohibitive mental, physical, or financial barriers.
Active Transportation A means of transport in which one uses their own power to travel from one place to another. This includes walking, cycling, and rolling.
Adaptive Ecosystem Management Involves a continuously evolving method of natural resource management that plans, implements, monitors, researches, evaluates, and incorporates new approaches to respond to the changing conditions of the environment to best protect its long-term integrity.
Affordable Housing Means housing that costs less than 30% of a household’s gross before-tax income.
Age-Friendly Housing Housing designs and typologies that allow residents to age-in-place and enable residents to live and remain in their community through changes in lifestyle and income.
Aging In Place Refers to the ability for individuals or groups of people to grow older without having to change their place of residence and/or community.
Agricultural Land Reserve Lands that are classified, protected, and regulated under the Agricultural Land Commission Act.
Apartment Refers to a residential building containing three or more self-contained dwelling units. Dwelling units within the building share a common entry access and may be separated from one another vertically and/or horizontally.
Asset Management An integrated approach to planning, operating, and maintaining physical infrastructure and amenities, such as roads, sewer systems, and treatment facilities, amongst others.
Attached Dwellings A building used or designed with a minimum of two self-contained dwelling units with at-grade access. Common examples include a single detached dwelling with a secondary suite, duplexes, and triplexes.
Attainable Housing Housing types that suit the need of a household in terms of size and type of housing, as well as subsequent housing costs that are community-specific.
Below-Market Housing Homes offered at rates set below the market rate. These homes are typically intended to serve households with low-to-moderate incomes who do not qualify for subsidized housing.
BC Energy and Zero Carbon Step Codes The BC Energy Step Code establishes the performance requirements for energy efficiency in new buildings. The BC Zero Carbon Step Code complements the BC Energy Step Code by setting the emission reduction targets for new buildings.
Bike facility A bike facility is a broad term for any physical infrastructure, pavement marking, or street provision designated to accommodate or encourage bicycling. These facilities range from protected lanes to secure parking, and their primary goals are to improve cyclist safety and comfort.
Blue Space Refers to areas where watercourses are the predominant features. These spaces are key areas to support recreation, economic development, civic uses, environmental protection, and overall community health and well-being.
Calls to Action The 94 actionable recommended steps that resulted from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission research into the impact of the Indian Residential School system on Indigenous Peoples. The 94 Calls to Action are policy recommendations that speak to all sectors of Canadian society.
Civic Relates to the Town of View Royal, its administration, areas of influence, and public entities (i.e. schools).
Climate Change The long-term change in the average weather patterns that a given region experiences, including average temperature, precipitation and wind patterns. It involves changes in the variability or average state of the atmosphere over durations ranging from decades to millions of years. These changes can be caused by dynamic processes on Earth (ocean processes, volcanoes), external forces including variations in sunlight intensity, and, more recently, by human activities.
Climate Change Adaptation Adjustments to processes, practices, and structures to moderate damages associated with climate change.
Climate Change Mitigation Avoiding and reducing emissions and stabilizing the levels of heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere to slow the effects of climate change.
Colonization The process by which European settlers and the Canadian Government sought to establish control, seize land, and impose European language, religion, and legal systems in place of Indigenous ways of life.
Core Housing Need Households that are required to spend at least 30% of their gross before-tax income on adequate housing, with no alternative options.
Corridors Major transportation routes where increased development density is generally encouraged to maximize accessibility for vehicles, public transit, and pedestrians. In View Royal, key corridors include Admirals Road, Helmcken Road, Island Highway, and the Western Gateway Employment District Corridor.
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) / Declaration Act An act passed in 2019 in British Columbia that mandates the provincial government to bring provincial laws into alignment with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and establishes the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as the province’s framework for reconciliation.
Decolonization / Decolonizing The process of examining the colonial assumptions, narratives, and beliefs, deconstructing and dismantling the colonial ideology, and reshaping structures to reflect other worldviews.
Density Refers to the number of residential units allowed within one legal parcel based on its land area.
Detached Dwelling / Detached House A building consisting of one dwelling unit, or two dwelling units if one of them is a Secondary Suite.
Development Cost Charges Means a levy applied by a municipality to new development to offset the long-term cost of providing new or extended infrastructure services to the community.
Drinking Water Protection Act Provincial legislation that covers all water systems other than single-family dwellings (and systems excluded through the regulation) in the province that sets out the requirements for drinking water operators and suppliers to ensure the provision of safe drinking water to communities.
Duplexes Refers to two attached, ground-oriented dwelling units.
Dwelling Unit Refers to one or more rooms which constitute a self-contained residential unit that is used or intended to be used by one household for living and sleeping purposes and includes only one room equipped for the preparation of food and at least one bathroom.
Environmentally Sensitive Area Ecosystems and/or habitats that provide high value to the natural environment through their ability to support biodiversity, animal and plant species, and natural systems such as purifying the air and water. These areas may also house rare ecosystems, habitats for species at risk, or areas easily disturbed by human activity.
Equity Equity involves creating a fair distribution of opportunities, power, and resources regardless of age, ability, gender, culture or background. This takes into account an understanding of the historically different social, political and environmental conditions that have shaped power structures and created barriers for individuals and communities to cultivate an environment that places everyone on the same level.
Equity-Deserving People Refers to those who often face discrimination or other forms of systemic disadvantage. They include, but are not necessarily limited to, persons of colour, persons with disabilities, people with low incomes, youth, Indigenous peoples, 2SLGBTQIA+individuals, and women.
Extreme Core Housing Need A household is said to be in extreme core housing need if its housing falls below at least one of the adequacy, affordability, or suitability standards and it would have to spend 50% or more of its total before-tax income to pay the median rent of alternative local housing that is acceptable.
FireSmart A provincial initiative aimed at reducing the risk of wildfire damage to homes, communities, and forests. This may involve embedding FireSmart principles into home and area management or participating in the FireSmart program.
Floor Space Ratio Floor Space Ratio is the maximum allowable density expressed as the ratio of built (or buildable) area to land area.
Food Security Means that all community members, regardless of age, ability, gender, culture or background, have equitable access to food that is affordable, culturally preferable, nutritious and safe.
Frequent Transit Routes Transit routes that provide high-density areas with a convenient, reliable and frequent 15-minute or better service, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, as defined by BC Transit.
Garden Suite A legal, detached, ground-oriented rental suite located in the backyard of a property with a single-family home as its primary use.
Green Infrastructure Natural and semi-natural engineered systems that support with managing drainage. Examples include green roofs, permeable pavements, and rain gardens, amongst others.
Green Space Any area that should be maintained in perpetuity because of its environmental, educational, scientific, recreational, or aesthetic qualities and may include trails, parks, reserves, natural forests, wetlands, and any other land set aside for such a purpose through agreement between the Town of View Royal and the property owner.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) Refers to gases present in the atmosphere, which reduce the Earth’s loss of heat into space and therefore contribute to global temperatures through the greenhouse effect. Greenhouse gases are essential to maintaining the temperature of the Earth, however, an excess of greenhouse gases can raise the temperature of a planet to uninhabitable levels.
Greenways Linear green spaces that connect natural areas and communities, associated with watercourses, trails, and transportation routes, which provide wildlife habitat and increase recreational opportunities.
Ground-Oriented Housing A residential unit with direct access to ground level outdoor space, such as a townhouse or duplex.
Heritage A broad concept that touches on a wide range of places and experiences, including tangible, physical remnants of the past as well as society’s intangible values, beliefs, customs, and traditions. Heritage is flexible and responds to diversity and accessibility to ensure that all forms of heritage are celebrated in the community.
Heritage Conservation Act Provincial legislation that encourages and enables the protection and conservation of sites with historical, cultural and/or archaeological value in British Columbia. Most of the archeological sites in British Columbia are of Indigenous origin. Altering these protected sites without a permit is prohibited under the Heritage Conservation Act.
Heritage Register A list of properties in a local government that have heritage value due to their historical, cultural, or architectural significance.
High-Tech Uses Industries in the North American Industry Classification System that BC Stats classifies as being high technology. These uses are generally less-polluting industrial production and industrial service industries that rely on advanced technology like aerospace, computing, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, and medical manufacturing.
Home-Based Business Businesses for gain or support clearly secondary to the principal residential use of a property, but do not include occupations that may be permitted as principal uses of a property, or which are secondary to principal non-residential uses of a property (e.g., agricultural use on land zoned to allow agriculture as a principal use is not a home occupation).
House-plex Attached housing with four or more dwelling units in one building.
Housing Needs Report Municipal reports, required by provincial legislation, that support a community in better comprehending the current and future housing needs. Housing needs are identified by identifying existing and projected gaps in housing supply by collecting and analyzing quantitative and qualitative information about local demographics, household incomes, housing stock, and other factors.
Housing Needs Report Method The methodology that local governments use to calculate the total number of housing units needed over 5 and 20 years. The six components of the method include:
- Supply of units to reduce extreme core housing need (those paying more than 50% of income for housing);
- Supply of units to reduce homelessness;
- Supply of units to address suppressed household formation;
- Supply of units needed to meet household growth over the next 5 or 20 years;
- Supply of units needed to meet at least a 3% vacancy rate; and
- Supply of units needed to meet local demand. This component is only included for municipalities.
Housing Statutes (Transit-Oriented Areas) Amendment Act Provincial legislation adopted in 2023 that mandates municipalities to designate areas within 800 metres of a rapid transit station and 400 metres of a bus exchange as transit-oriented development areas where local governments are required to ensure minimum levels of density, remove restrictive parking minimums, and consider guidance and details in the Provincial Policy Manual.
Infill A land use planning concept that involves the redevelopment of existing developed sites, generally to increase the density of the lot by revitalizing underused lands. The type of infill will depend on the lot location, but may include typologies such as Small Scale Multi Unit Housing developments, larger scale residential developments, mixed-use buildings, and office buildings.
Inflow and Infiltration Rainwater and groundwater that gets into sanitary sewer pipes through holes, cracks, leaks, or improper connections. Inflow and infiltration impact sewer performance and increase treatment costs.
International Association of Public Participation Commonly referred to as IAP2, a global standard for how organizations and governments can meaningfully engage and include all people and groups in the decision-making process.
Land Use Designation Policies that reflect spatially defined areas established through the Official Community Plan and include permitted uses and development densities.
Land Use Transition Refers to the gradual change of land use from one use to another over time in support of an intended outcome, such as ecological and hazard resilience.
Local Government Act Legislation enacted by the province to establish, give powers to and regulate local governments; this includes regulation and guidance on Official Community Plans.
Lot Means any parcel, block or other area in which land is held or the extent to which it is subdivided whether under the Land Title Act or the Bare Land Strata Regulations under the Strata Property Act and includes a water lot, but does not include a phase subdivision boundary.
Lived and Living Experience The experiences of people on whom a social issue or combination of issues has had a direct impact, such as people who have experienced or are experiencing mental illness, substance use and addiction.
Managed Retreat The strategic relocation of people and structures, often accompanied by ecological restoration and a permanent change in land use in support of decreasing the vulnerability to natural hazards and flooding in light of climatic shifts due to climate change.
Memorandum Of Understanding A formal yet non-binding agreement that outlines the intention between two or more parties to create a roadmap for collaboration and future legally binding agreements.
Micro-Mobility Refers to transportation via a small, typically electric, lightweight device that allows for individual human transport, such as scooters, hoverboards, bicycles, and skateboards.
Mixed-Use A development typology that accommodates a variety of uses with clear and convenient connections to the public realm. Mixed-use developments typically have retail, commercial, civic, or industrial uses located on the ground level and lower floors, and residential or office units occupying the upper floors. Mixed-use developments provide conveniently located amenities and services accessed by multi-modal transit within a neighbourhood.
Mobility Hub A strategic location offering access or connections to multiple modes of transport, including transit, cycling, walking, rolling, and private vehicles. These hubs are usually central to concentrations of medium- to high-density development.
Mode Share The proportion of travellers using a particular type of transportation to get around, such as walking, cycling, transit, rolling, ride share, or private vehicles.
Multi-Model Transportation / Multi-Modal Network The provision and accommodation of a variety of transportation modes, including, but not limited to, walking, rolling, cycling, transit, and vehicle usage in moving about the community.
Natural Amenities Place-based attributes created by the environment that provide local benefits, such as forests and watercourses.
Natural Area Areas within the urban and rural landscapes that contain native species, ecological areas, or habitat features to support biodiversity.
Natural Asset Natural resources, ecosystems and their services that support the health and well-being of the community. May include trees that prevent erosion and provide shade, or a wetland that provides important habitat for species at risk.
Natural Hazards Atmospheric, hydrologic, seismic, volcanic and wildfire phenomena that, because of their location, severity, and frequency, have the potential to seriously affect society.
Net Zero The objective to emit no greenhouse gas emissions or to offset emissions, such as through carbon capture, to prevent further increase GHG levels in the atmosphere.
Nodes Refers to community focal points, such as intersections or transit hubs, that act as key centers of activity. They typically include higher-density, mixed-use areas that are community-focused, provide services and amenities, and enhance transit service.
Non-Market Housing Housing designed for independent living by single persons or families who cannot afford to pay the prevailing market rent or who have needs that are not being met by the market, and where the housing units are owned and operated by a government agency or a not-for-profit society.