The Township of Esquimalt is looking for feedback from the community on potential locations and uses for a public, multi-use dock.

A public dock is an opportunity to create community space along Esquimalt’s culturally significant shorelines. It is important that this amenity would serve all members of the Esquimalt community, and to align with the many on-going initiatives restoring the ecology of the region’s shorelines.

Project steps

In summer 2024, staff put forward a request for proposals for an Options and Analysis Study. The goal of the study is to guide Township staff on the next steps for installation of a public multi-use dock in the Township.

In fall/winter 2024, staff worked with a team of landscape architects including biologists to help analyze options and communicate the pros and cons of 18 potential sites in the township. These sites are along both the Gorge Waterway and the southern shoreline of Esquimalt. This study has been created to identify existing public land along the water, assess each potential site’s suitability for a community dock and gather community feedback.

Public survey

We asked residents to review the site options identified by the project team. To compare the suitability of each potential dock site, a scoring system using three priority levels has been used. Points are given to sites meeting the criteria, with more points assigned to items meeting the criteria in Priority Level 1 than to items meeting the criteria in Priority Level 3. If a site were to meet all the criteria it would receive a Site Score of 44.

Please note that detailed dock design was not part of this phase. We are currently wanting to narrow down potential sites that meet safety, infrastructure, environmental and public interest thresholds. There is no capital funding attached to a new dock at this time. This initial phase is to seek community input to determine if a dock (or multiple docks) are wanted by the community and where the best location would be.

Spring 2025 update

At the May 12 Committee of the Whole, council directed staff to:

a. create a network of docks and water access infrastructure with Gorge Esquimalt Park West being the initial location;

b. provide community educational outreach;

c. conduct a wave activity assessment; and

d. concurrently with the development of an option in Esquimalt Gorge Park West, explore the options for kayak access in West Bay as well as smaller interventions such as swim ladders in appropriate locations.

Community conversations

The Township of Esquimalt lies within the Traditional Territory of the Xwsepsum and Songhees People. Since time immemorial, these shorelines have been active places of connectivity, trade, food gathering, and village sites. The Xwsepsum and Songhees Nations continue to steward the region, and the shorelines are places of cultural significance. The Gorge is a culturally sensitive area and the township will ensure that local First Nations are included as partners in the process.

Staff are in active conversation with the Songhees Nation and Xwsepsum Nation about the study to hear any feedback, concerns or cultural considerations.

About the local ecology

Esquimalt’s southern shore faces the Strait of Juan de Fuca and its northern shore creates the southern bank of the inland Gorge Waterway. Comparatively, water associated with these shorelines vary greatly in levels of wave exposure, salinity, and temperature. Species utilization and fish habitat also differ dramatically between areas. Important habitats along outer shores contain kelps, surfgrass, and rocky substrates that promote species diversity, whereas the Gorge offers a decreased energy environment and protection for migratory fish and birds, and includes vast swaths of eelgrass, and large numbers of federally listed Olympia oysters. Any site selected for dock construction along either shore will require project-specific strategies to avoid and/or mitigate potential impacts to these and other sensitive ecosystems.