Capital Daily for Wednesday, June 17

Port Alberni reached 35 C on Sunday, nearly nine degrees past the record set on that day in 1949. It was the Island's hot spot, but it had company: seven communities broke temperature records as a heat wave settled over Vancouver Island, with Victoria itself clearing 30 C.

The province broke 26 records in total. Tofino, Qualicum Beach and Nanaimo each topped marks set on June 14, 1963, by more than two degrees, and Lytton hit 36.8 C for the provincial high. Two new wildfires turned up on the Island over the same stretch, one west of Lake Cowichan and one near Nanaimo River Road, the latter suspected to be human-caused.

The catch for anyone hoping to cool off: some of the obvious spots are off-limits. Island Health flagged Glen View Beach at Glen Lake in Langford on Monday after a June 10 sample recorded 827 E. coli per 100 millilitres, more than ten times the 77 measured a week earlier. Stelly's Cross Road Beach in Brentwood Bay carries an advisory too, joining Ross Bay, Beaver Lake and several others.

Greater Victoria gets a break from the worst of it this week, with highs in the low to mid-20s rather than the weekend's scorch. The beaches stay open for walking and picnics. It's the water you're meant to avoid until follow-up testing clears it.

The site was a gravel pit for decades. Now the first stretch of public waterfront at The Beachlands belongs to the City of Colwood, handed over Saturday at a ceremony with Mayor Doug Kobayashi, councillors and residents.

It's the opening move in a 47-acre park network that will eventually wrap the 1.4-kilometre shoreline and trace both sides of a pond system running from Metchosin Road to the ocean. When it's finished, it'll add about 20% to Colwood's existing parks, the largest private park dedication in the city's history.

The homes are moving fast. Waterfront lots in the first offering are about 75% sold, one of the two six-storey condo buildings is 60% sold, and buyers are downsizers from out of province, upsizers from Langford, and a couple from south of the border. "Everybody wants to get closer to the water and to nature," said Reliance CEO Jon Stovell.

What you won't get is a quick way across the water. The developers ruled out a commuter ferry to downtown and a marina, both of which would need a costly breakwater to handle the unsheltered, windy crossing.