Bob Evans, the dynamic developer behind Songhees and the Victoria International Marina, has died at age 80.
Evans worked with the City of Victoria and the province to develop the former industrial site at Songhees, transforming it into a high-end residential enclave with a hotel, waterfront walkway, commercial buildings and a marina. The development brought a new look and new uses to the Vic West side of Victoria Harbour.
He died on Aug. 23 in Victoria General Hospital.
“His passion and work always intertwined creativity, planning and management,” his family said in a statement.
They remember his quick wit, love of writing and extensive volunteer time at various organizations.
Evans, who had spent years in advertising, promoted Songhees and pointed out it attracted buyers from elsewhere to live in its condominiums.
When residents balked at the initial plans for the marina, saying it was too large and would impeded paddlers, Evans, argued it would be an international attraction for mega yachts and predicted visitors’ expenditures would benefit the local economy. The marina was eventually scaled down by the city.
Evans’ vision for the several acres he owned at Songhees included a hotel, condominiums, a marina and an arts complex. Construction took off as he put in infrastructure and condominiums. Other developers built on the site as well.
Evans was an imposing figure — tall, with a deep voice that rang with conviction and passion.
He brought showmanship to Songhees. In 1990, then-premier Bill Vander Zalm turned out to unveil a commissioned sculpture of a woman swimming with dolphins. An audience of 200 was there to see sculpture, which sits in a crescent-shaped amphitheatre between the two Royal Quays condominium buildings.
Evans hit a setback in mid-1990 when construction stopped at the two Royal Quays buildings due to overruns of $1 million. He attributed the problem to rising construction costs. A receiver was appointed to take over and the project was finished by another company.
Friend and former colleague Craig Norris said Evans had been a “regular fixture” in the restaurant at Songhees, built as part of the marina development.
Norris, Victoria International Marina marina chief executive, would find Evans “sitting at the window overlooking the marina and thinking of his next big vision.”
Evans and WAM Developments Ltd. of Alberta partnered on the marina plan. Evans left the project in 2016, Norris said, and new owner Community Marine Concepts Ltd. completed the marina.
Norris said that Evans made some people uncomfortable with grand ideas. “But this type of thinking is desperately needed for a better tomorrow.
“He was a storyteller but just as much a story creator.”
Friend Ryan Burles, president of Black Ball Ferry Line, remembers Evans as someone who believed in this region as a world-class destination.
“He wanted to create something special,” and envisioned projects that would meet that standard.
Burles called Evans someone with a great mind and a man of courage. “I’ve got to give him a lot of credit for that.”
Evans was born in Alberta and moved to Saskatchewan. He learned to sail and his football skills saw him drafted to play semi-pro in Calgary. A move to Edmonton took him into the world of property development, which continued when he relocated to Greater Victoria.
He served for a term as an alderman on View Royal council in the late 1980s.
Evans also looked outside of Victoria for ideas. In 2011, Evans promoted the idea of a waterfront village on the former gravel pit at Royal Bay, featuring a 150-slip marina and commuter ferry service to Victoria. The land is now in the midst of being developed by others.
The ferry idea is still alive. Colwood Mayor Rob Martin has been lobbying B.C. Ferries for a commuter ferry.
