Backgrounders

Monday, March 01, 1999

CANADIAN FORCES BASE ESQUIMALT - SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT

CFB Esquimalt is not only one of Victoria's oldest corporate citizens, with a history that dates back to the late 1700s, it is also one of its largest--in more ways than one.

With some 6,000 personnel (4,000 service members and 2,000 civilians) the base is more populous than many municipalities. It supports more than 40 integral* and lodger** units. Integral units are those that fall within the Navy chain of command, as does the base. Lodger units fall under a separate chain of command, but are supported administratively by the base. Navy units form the largest component of the military presence in Greater Victoria, totalling 3,500 military and 1,800 civilian personnel.

Including families, the base population exceeds 10,000 people. Over the course of a year, this can swell by 1,000 to 2,000 personnel as members of the Regular and Reserve forces come for a wide range of specialized training. This sizeable military community represents one of Victoria's, and the province's, largest employers and economic engines.

Annually, the Navy and Base inject nearly $330 million into the local community. The payroll alone exceeds $170 million, which is a powerful boost to all aspects of the local economy, from corner stores to real estate. Another $50 million is spent on such things as goods and services, and construction. And to compensate for base property holdings in Victoria's Capital Regional District, local communities are paid close to $9 million in "grants in lieu of taxes" by the federal government. Finally, official visitors here for training or other defence business, including visits by foreign warships, spend an estimated $3.5 million in the Greater Victoria area.

CFB Esquimalt's impact extends far beyond Greater Victoria. The base is caretaker for land in the Queen Charlotte Islands, and the lower mainland at Aldergrove, B.C. It comprises about 8,000 acres, including approximately 45 kilometres of shoreline, and more than 1,500 buildings, 723 of which are houses rented to military families at market rates. Notably, the greater part of these sizeable property holdings are undeveloped training areas and include large patches of old-growth forest, as well as an array of rare plants and animals.

* Integral units include:all Canadian warships stationed on the West Coast; one of the Navy's three Fleet Schools, where sailors learn about everything from Morse code to high-tech weapon systems; the Naval Officer Training Centre, known as "Venture," where all naval officers receive their initial training; and the west coast Fleet Diving Unit, which, along with a range of services to the Fleet, provides explosives disposal and diving services to local police forces.

** Lodger units include: 443 Maritime Helicopter Squadron, which provides the Navy with its ship borne Sea King helicopters; CF Ammunition Depot Rocky Point, at the southern tip of Vancouver Island; and CF Maritime Experimental and Test Range, just north of Nanaimo, where the U.S. and Canada jointly test sub-surface weapon systems.

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Last Updated: 3/1/1999		Important Notices