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move to Beechwood Village Estates
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| VILLAGE ESTATES
Xe, RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

2315 MILLS ROAD, SIDNEY po

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e 24 Hour Security © Weekly Housekeeping os
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ISHTAR

Peeves cosseattisa tat

3 Dont worry. We’ re not asking 3 you to 6 put.
“on your overalls and help. hammer nails.
_ Instead, you are invited to make a donation to: help
: build,. on “Sanscha Hall’s historic, site, a new.
community and cultural centre — destined to be at
‘the heart of community. events well into the future. To help reach. the
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* Buy a box of Nails .. ert Se > ib * Be a Contributor... $1000 - $4999:

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They generosity of all dumars will be permanently recorded dn our diay béuk of hana :
Gift of $1000 vr mare wall abe he ercognized on ove doucr walt.

ar onan sare

ret nnanmrmmnnnininsia nar we ramen ae tctetnahiaetbeanemamtieliaeneennshaenenrenaesienlacemnahensalh

Please Call 250. 656-0275 today
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Or visit our web site at wwwisanschd.com,

i

“

- Honousing the Dey Paling the ute 4

cetera,
 Sanscha ha

COMMUNITEE EULTORAL. 3 eA
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OWI
NEWS

News Review contributor

Statistics released last
week by Grant Thornton, a
Victoria consulting firm spe-
cializing in tourism, in its
July industry bulletin ran
the headline “A severe de-
cline in airline passenger
traffic!” ;

According to their num-
bers, in July the Victoria air-

port saw a drop of.9.7 per.

cent (10,000: people) pas-

‘sengers as compared to J uly ~

1999.

Also, 53,000 fewer pas-
sengers went through the
airport’s gates in the first

seven months of this year as -

did last year in that time.
The consulting firm attrib-

uted the drop to travel un-.
- certainty because of the tur-
“bulant situation with air
‘travel in Canada.
- As well, the number of
‘into. Victoria’ de-
‘creased after Air Canada
~~ >and. Canadian -
s merged. Victoria Airport
"|. Authority chief executive of
"|. © ficer Richard Paquette said
“= there were about 10 per
J cent fewer: seats. ‘between A a9:
the merged Air Canada and couldn’ t get on or off the Island,’
Canadian Airlines this Suite, “y :
ee Menge ee :
. Paquette said there were _ =

seats

other factors besides fewer

aS "seats with the main airlines :
and the pilots’ strike threat.

“In 1999 we had charter
carriers operating into Vic-

toria — we didn’t have that.
his year,” he said. Royal Air- ..

lines and Canada 3000 both

had summer programs. of .
flights: into Victoria last ~

summer and ‘didn't: this

summer, he said, but that’s »
.- by no-means.a permanent
_ retreat.

He said charter carriers
move their flights around to
where the most business .is
and with Canada 3000's pur-

chase of new planes. well

suited to the Victoria air-
port, he expects to see the
charters back soon,

“It's not a. catastrophe -

they weren't’ in here this
year,” he said, |

Grant Thornton's July
numbers also showed hotel
room occupancy to be down

|» 4.68 per cent this July (con ;
pared to July 1999) in the
- 3,700 rooms it tracks across

Greater Victoria. and. the
Saanich Peninsula, Sidney

~ and the Saanich Peninsula”
~ hotel room occupancy were
‘| reported to be down 2.39"
} percent,

Please do what yau can to belp now Berane } en dont dave 10 be bia with yey Ayinds in order ta fend one.)

The. consulting com
pany's' — statistics “onlso !

“showed a slight increase in
passengers (2.27 per cent),
vehicles (0.19 per cent) and:

buses (1,59 percent) onthe
-» Tsawwassen/Swartz . Bay.

ferry for July.

‘Airlines ©.

COOL Cf tenpuh veheo

The only ‘statistics kept
on tourists coming through
Sidney and the Saanich
Peninsula are those kept by
the Chamber of Commerce
about people who stop by
the Visitor Info Centres on

Wednesday, August 30, 2000

the Pat Bay Highway and

5th Street.. From March to
June 1999, a little more than
19,000 visitors went

tion offices. This year in the
same four-month period,
that number was down to

16,700 — a.13 per cent de-

crease.

The most noticable trend
is the increase in the num-
ber of people who come to
the area only for the day,

~and a decrease in the num-
ber. of tourists who stuck.
~ around for a few days or a:
-’- week or two. Even with the
“overall ‘drop -in . tourists’
-through the area, this year
2,162 (between March and:

through the two informa-—

shot

and he said they're not do-
ing nearly as well as last
year.

“Generally I feel fortu-

_ nate — we're doing pretty

good,” said Coates. .

Sidney Hotel manager
Roselyn Cherneff has a dif-
ferent view.

“June and July were prob-
ably 40 per cent lower than
last year,” she said.

“It was because of the
word ‘strike.’ We had people

cancelling because they —

were afraid they couldn't
get on or off the island,” she
said, referring to the threat-
ened Aug. 1 long weekend
strike by ferry workers.
Fortunately, she added,
both August and September
are looking better.

While she attributes the

drop in hotel guests to the.
_ threat. of a ferry strike ear-
lier this:summer, she said
“she doesn’t think the possi-

“ht was s because of the word eas
‘Strike.’ We had people canceling.
because they were afraid they

June) people ‘stayed for the

day only. Last: year-.that
number was at 2,085. The

only 4,816 people electing to

‘Chamber’s numbers show’

stay anywhere from. one

night to two weeks this year
so far, while last year by this
time that, number was at

6,726.

The increase in dayariv:

awhile. was most pro-

nounced during May and

June.
“That makes.‘ me® ner-
vous,” said. Lorraine

of the Saanich Peninsula
Chamber of Commerce.
She said high. gas prices
and uncertainty about being

Browne, executive director

able to get on and off the is-

land because of possible
strikes may be forcing visi-
tors: to pack more into
shorter (rips. .
Some hotel and campsite

managers say they're feel-
_ ing aslight pinch while oth-

ers say fewer tourists and
strike threats are. hurting

theme oo.

“Compared to last year

it's alittle bit down,” said”
Travelodge manager. Nick:
Coates. “It hasn't quite af-

fected us as much because |

“we're not a tourist destina-

tion as much as Victoria is,”

He's talked with his Trav-

“ticularly.

- Roselyn Chemeft, Sidney Hotel manager : :

: ble Air Canada pilots’ strike a8
is having much of. an im- ee

pact:

traffic altogether,” she said,

but she’s not. sure if that.

drop is because of a pilot

_ strike. Cherneff said she

doesn't think gas prices are
the. reason for: fewer

tourists.
pers over those who stayed -

Local campsites “don't

“seem to have been affected.
very much by. the tourist -

slump. >
“I've been pretty steady,”

said Darlene Thompson, |

manager of the. Beach-
comber RV Park. She said

‘that when a ferry strike was
threatened, afew ofhercus
‘tomers were worried about

getting stuck on the island
and had planned to leave be-
fore the strike was set to
happen. She added that she
doesn't think strike worries

-have: really hurt business -
pny

John. Clarke, an em:

ployee of the Island View

‘Beach RV Tent Camp, said
the number of people, par:
Europeans, :

through their campaite is a
‘little lower. this year. than

~ last, but said he couldn't at:

tribute the decrease to any-

thing in particular.
“It's starling to. slow

, down now. and ususally —
0 clodge counterparts in Vic."

~ toria and at the ‘pub they
own in the Empress Hotel,

we're quite full this time of
year," He said.'“We had a
‘very good July.”

“Ido believe w we have less ~