Sunday December 31, 2023 | LANGFORD, BC [Updated January 1, 2024]
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
The year 2023 has seen continued grinding inflation exacerbating two economic crises — housing and cost of living, world-impact wars in two international locations, and the obvious impact of climate change on the economy and everyday lives of people and communities. There has been political shift and drama.
Island Social Trends readers are local (west shore), regional (Greater Victoria and Vancouver Island) and national.
Presented below are the top news stories published here at IslandSocialTrends.ca in 2023, based on total page visits and by topic. Again this year, the continued socioeconomic news insights included aspects of politics, education, economy and food security.
More regular coverage of politics at the BC Legislature as well as about the Bank of Canada has joined the long-standing local and regional coverage of communities and the region.
Articles listed below show the rank as to most number of readers in 2023.
Overall top stories of 2023 by page-visit tally:
The top 10 most-read articles of 2023 show an interesting range of environment, community events, social media, public education, local business, and BC health-care politics:
- 1 – CRD not increasing summer water restrictions past Stage 1 (July 11, 2023)
- 2 – Beach Food Days are on for summer 2023 in Colwood (May 27, 2023)
- 3 – Spoutible ready to launch against Twitter (January 31, 2023)
- 4 – New Brunswick premier going to bat for including parents (June 18, 2023)
- 5 – BC Conservatives want Dr Henry booted out (November 8, 2023)
- 6 – Four new food outlets at Westshore Town Centre (February 22, 2023)
- 7 – Fundraiser for Colwood family who have lost their breadwinner (July 21, 2023)
- 8 – Sequoia Coffee moving on from Colwood (May 26, 2023)
- 9 – Former Danbrook One sees second occupancy permit crisis (April 24, 2023)
- 10 – Colwood Traffic: Delays through Colwood Corners March 21 (March 20, 2023)
- Newsmakers of 2023 (and directions for 2024)
Other top 2023 articles by category:
Top public education stories:
- 4 – New Brunswick premier going to bat for including parents (June 18, 2023)
- 16 – Gender identity in schools needs room for parental involvement (September 20, 2023)
- 35 – Seeking SOGI right-balance between schools and parents (June 24, 2023)
- Articles about Sooke School District SD62 (through the year)
Top local business stories:
- 6 – Four new food outlets at Westshore Town Centre (February 22, 2023)
- 8 – Sequoia Coffee moving on from Colwood (May 26, 2023)
- 12 – Save Our Streets has launched in Vancouver (October 30, 2023)
- 13 – Grand Opening of Quality Foods and Cascadia Liquor in Colwood May 25 (May 22, 2023)
- 22 – WIN Westshore resale store is open in Colwood (July 8, 2023)
- 23 – Monk Office CEO about the little company that could (March 12, 2023)
- 24 – New Tacofino comes to Westshore Town Centre in Langford (August 10, 2023)
- 31 – Hundreds show up for Quality Foods & Cascadia Liquor grand opening (May 25, 2023)
- Articles about Business & Economy (through the year)
Top stories about groceries & food:
- 14 – Feeding Futures funding expands school food programs in BC (April 5, 2023)
- Food prices remain high, consumers hear more about grocery sector (March 11, 2023)
- Articles about Agriculture and Food Security (through the year)
Top stories about the economy and cost of living:
- Bank of Canada holds interest rate at 5% (December 6, 2023)
- Bank of Canada aims to rebuild public trust with better communications (December 15, 2023)
- Articles about Business & Economy (through the year)
Top stories about housing:
- 9 – Former Danbrook One sees second occupancy permit crisis (April 24, 2023)
- 29 – View Royal town hall: housing shortage, societal change, government overreach (November 24, 2023)
- Six Vancouver Island municipalities must designate Transit Oriented Areas (December 7, 2023)
- High-density transit-oriented housing development will have exceptions & municipal input (December 4, 2023)
- BC takes transformative action on housing in fall session (November 30, 2023)
- Saanich is up to the task of building more homes quickly, says Mayor (November 13, 2023)
- Articles about Housing (through the year)
Traffic & transportation:
- 10 – Colwood Traffic: Delays through Colwood Corners March 21 (March 20, 2023)
- 32 – Hwy 1 two-car crash caused by prohibited driver (January 10, 2023)
- 40 – Coming soon: BC Transit ‘Umo’ electronic fare collection system (March 13, 2023) | BC Transit rolls out Umo electronic fare collection system in Victoria (August 23, 2023)
- 48 – Hwy 1 traffic congestion on Canada Day weekend (June 29, 2023)
- Langford Traffic: slow-going Hwy 14 left-turn lane at Happy Valley Rd (July 13, 2023)
BC lifestyle:
11 – Daylight Savings Time in BC for another year (March 12, 2023)
22 – First baby of 2024 to be announced on X (December 31, 2023)
West Shore Local:
- 15 – Halloween Events 2023 in the west shore (October 24, 2023)
- 17 – Metchosin Community Day 2023 coming up Sept 10 (September 8, 2023)
- 18 – SD62 and City of Langford launch North Langford all-weather field (July 6, 2023)
- 19 – Langford Fire Rescue Assistant Chief being remembered (March 20, 2023)
- 28 – Colwood town hall: big ideas, engaged crowd (February 12, 2023)
- 30 – Historical west shore moment: moving the hydro pole (March 15, 2023)
- 36 – Craigflower Community Centre celebrated for broad reach and collaboration (January 19, 2023)
- 43 – The Beachlands: rebranding the Colwood oceanfront (July 29, 2023)
- Horgan keeps one foot in the west shore (November 23, 2023)
Sooke Local:
- 27 – Sooke Fine Arts Show 2023: artist’s call (March 15, 2023)
- 44 – Sooke community shows up for Hannah Day Playground sign unveiling (March 31, 2023)
- 47 – Sooke Mayor Maja Tait turning from local to federal (August 15, 2023)
- National news & politics:
- 20 – Poilievre bashes carbon tax while appealing to Conservative base on Vancouver Island (November 13, 2023)
- 42 – Surveillance over Canada by high flying Chinese balloon (February 5, 2023)
- Articles about federal politics and national news (through the year)
Provincial politics:
- 26 – Down to the wire in Langford-Juan de Fuca by-election (June 23, 2023) | By-election results (June 24, 2023)
- 34 – Camille Currie responds to Weaver endorsing BC NDP candidate (June 14, 2023)
- 37 – Order of BC awarded to 14 recipients in 2023 (August 7, 2023)
- 39 – BC Greens launch their Langford-Juan de Fuca candidate (April 6, 2023)
- 41 – Three provincial electoral areas for west shore (April 18, 2023)
- 45 – Three days later: RidgeView Place occupancy permit crisis update (April 27, 2023)
- 46 – Langford-Juan de Fuca by-election candidates at Luxton Spring Fair (May 20, 2023)
- 49 – Child care educators get wage boost & bonuses (October 30, 2023)
- 50 – Dr Bonnie Henry marks 3 years into the COVID pandemic (March 10, 2023)
Sports:
25 – Christine Sinclair’s final CanWNT match to air on TSN & OneSoccer (Dec 1, 2023)
TV & Entertainment:
- 21 – TELUS introduces the next generation of Optik TV (March 13, 2023)
- 38 – Matthew Perry dead at 54 (October 28, 2023)
===== ABOUT ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS:
Island Social Trends founder and Editor Mary P Brooke has been covering news of the west shore and south Vancouver Island (with an eye to provincial and federal news) since 2008 through a series of publications: MapleLine Magazine (quarterly 2008-2010), Sooke Voice News (weekly print 2011-2013), West Shore Voice News (weekly print/PDF 2014-2020), and Island Social Trends (online since mid-2020).
Island Social Trends posts news daily at IslandSocialTrends.ca and will launch a biweekly print edition in 2024 (advertisers and subscribers welcome).
News is covered through a socioeconomic lens, always with an eye to the influence of politics on the daily and longer-term impacts on individuals, households, businesses and community.
Ms Brooke now reports with the BC Legislative Press Gallery. She was nominated for a Jack Webster Foundation journalism award in 2023 for serving her community through journalism.
The delivery of real journalism to Canadian readers has been under siege by social media for over a decade. Newspapers, online news outlets and others are closing down as the business model crumbles. A big part of the solution is business, community and governments at all levels putting their ads where their news is. Advertising keeps the lights on.