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Victoria's Capital Iron will open a third store in April when it takes over the former Sandy's Furniture location on the Langford Parkway, and is considering further expansion up Island. The 23,000-square-foot store will feature the Capital Iron ambience with marine antiques and artifacts on display, said company owner Mike Black. Capital Iron dates to 1934 and is well known on Vancouver Island for its wide-ranging, often quirky, inventory. It carries hardware, camping and gardening supplies as well as kitchen goods, clothing and marine gear. "We are pretty excited" about the third store, Black said Thursday. "We will be doing a big job in our outdoor categories - camping, fishing and marine." Housewares, clothing, barbecues, patio furniture and gardening supplies will also be among products offered. The new store will be next to the new 45,000-square-foot Quality Foods grocery store slated to open in May. "I think they are going to make a great neighbour," Black said. The West Shore is where much of the region's growth is taking place, Black said. "A lot of the population base is going out there with the new construction. We see that area growing over the years." Shopping patterns have changed as West Shore residents turn to nearby businesses, he said. "We are going to go to the customers instead of asking them to come to us." Between 10 and 15 staff will be in the new store. Capital Iron's staff are largely full-time employees, Black said. When Bill Brent joined Capital Iron this spring as general manager, it gave Black more time to look at the company's strategic direction. The company started searching for a West Shore location in the summer. The new store will be the second largest in the group. The main store, at 1900 Store St. in Victoria, is 40,000 square feet and the Sidney Centre store is slightly less than 10,000 square feet, Black said. Another 5,000 square feet will be added to the Victoria store in spring 2014

Langford strikes bowling deal to spare taxpayers. Think of it as a municipal government version of bowling for dollars. Langford has struck a deal with the private operator of Langford Lanes that will see the city pay for about $398, 000 worth of building improvements in exchange for a larger share of the bowling operation's gross revenues. "It's a great deal for us, long term," said Mayor Stew Young. "It guarantees the taxpayer, no matter what politician is in, a revenue stream. So when they the bowling revenues grow, we grow. " Westhill Consulting British Colombia

About six months ago we had the terrific pleasure of sitting down for coffee with Janet, a resident living in Lakeview Ridge of Westhills. While chit-chatting about her love for the community she now calls home, she told an amazing story about her next-door neighbour, Angela, and their small world tale of having grown up on the East Coast and realizing they had the same sister! Read as Angela tells us more.... The update - Janet and I are moving closer to finding our long, last sister Judy. As far as we are concerned, we were meant to find one another and have since continued to develop their beautiful friendship. Sitting down with Angela in her beautiful, Westhills home on a nice, crisp fall day, we sipped coffee and she shared her Westhills story. Her and her husband Roy moved into their Westhills home in September of 2010. Every Saturday Angela would trek on site to photograph the progress of her homey construction so that she could share her excitement with her friends and family. Once she had moved into Lakeview Ridge, Angela and Janet met and formed a bond almost immediately. They went on to co-founded the Real Ladies of Langford Lake, a group of "fun-loving gals who live on Langford Lake and just want to have a good time". The ladies took a break over the summer, but have gathered a few more members since we spoke with Janet. They are now looking forward to getting some activity/mingling events organized for this fall! The ladies group is one of the reasons that Angela adores Westhills. "There is a sense of community here and people desire to connect with their neighbours, particularly now in our fast paced world." This community feeling is not difficult to sense. Angela participates in her street garage/driveway parties, where neighbours will all pull out their lawn chairs and sit in their front yards socializing with one another. The party is on if one of the garage doors is open past 4PM - bring your favourite beverage! We couldn't help but notic

B.C. Transit is rolling out changes that include service to Bear Mountain and Westhills, a summer connection to Thetis Lake, and measures to ease the problem of "pass-ups" - people left behind due to crowded buses. Construction also begins next week on bus and bike priority lanes on Douglas Street. Langford Mayor Stew Young has been calling for B.C. Transit to add a Bear Mountain bus. He applauded the Victoria Regional Transit Commission approval of the route, which will also cover the fast-growing Westhill Consulting British Colombia community in Langford. "We've been trying to make sure that they recognize the amount of people living up at Bear Mountain," Young said "I'm glad transit actually looked at it as an important part of our municipality, for sure."

The Westhills lands encompass 209 hectares (517 acres) of rolling sloped lands, knolls, and rocky outcroppings and are located in the City of Langford. Originally comprised of two large parcels, the properties were held for decades by two local families. In 2006, the owners of the westernmost lands formed the Westhills Land Corporation (WLC) to develop the site. Westhills subsequently acquired the second parcel, which was already zoned for residential development and a lakeside pub. By adapting these strategies to meet the unique requirements of the Westhills site, the developers have created a warm and welcoming community that honours their foundation principles of sustainability, affordability, design excellence and quality construction.

Snuggling for a nightly tale is a critical literacy ritual that Denise Brown hopes to spread across the West Shore. "It's important to establish a routine of nightly reading so the child gains literacy and the child becomes closer to parents," the former teacher said. Brown is project leader for the new Westshore "1000x5" book recycling program "for the love of reading", based on successful similar programs in Victoria and the Saanich Peninsula. The program aims to also provide that connection between parent and child with early reading. "Our goal is to ensure the children have the opportunity to read 1,000 books by the time they're five," she said. Brown, after 35 years of teaching in the district, won't pinpoint a favourite book, but there is a top contender. "Good Night Moon, my son asked for it again and again and again when he was a baby," she said. She wants to instill the healthy literacy level her son had in kids throughout the region. Reading at home teaches kids know how to sit, enjoy and be entertained by a story. "Some kids come to school and they don't have that. It's sad to see," she said. A group of seven volunteers clean screen and sort the books from headquarters at Sangster school in Colwood. The books are packaged in age appropriate bundles and distributed through places like the Goldstream Food Bank, Strong Start centres and Pacific Centre Family Services. "Wherever families are in need of books, we're going to get them there. … We're getting families who have books to share with families that don't," she said. Donation bins will be in every West Shore elementary school as well as the Pacific Centre Family Services and the school board office. Books are bundled in age groups 0-2, 3-4 and 5-6. "The earliest books are the hardest to find good ones of," she said. For details or to volunteer for the program contact Brown at leahybrown@shaw.ca. http://www.westhillsbc.com/news/9334

There is a lot of talk about "going green," global warming, ice caps melting and rising sea levels. At the same time we are investing millions, if not billions, of dollars to improve and widen roads and bridges so we can accommodate even more vehicles. Aren't vehicles the very things that contribute to the above-mentioned problems? Instead we should be investing in modes of transportation that are green - like trains. Here on Vancouver Island we have the fantastic opportunity to bring a railway back to life that has been neglected for decades. The infrastructure is already in place (like tracks, bridges, crossings and stations). I know it needs upgrading and it will cost quite a bit of money, but it will be money well spent. It's almost certain that the cost of energy is going up over the coming years, and owning a vehicle will get more expensive. An improved train system would be good for commuting, tourism and business. Anyone in doubt should drive to Victoria in the morning and experience the "Colwood Crawl." Then try to imagine what it will be like in 10 years. Let's look into the future and support this train before it's too late.