Several roads will be closed downtown for a commemorative procession and service for Queen Elizabeth II on Monday (Sept. 19.)
Government, Fort and Quadra Street will be closed as the procession in honour of the monarch walks from the B.C. Parliament Buildings to Christ Church Cathedral, where a multi-faith commemorative service will be held starting at 11 a.m. The service is open to the public but seating is limited. Doors open at 9:30 a.m.
Victoria Police Department said it would reopen the roads as the procession clears to cut down the impact on traffic.
Quadra Street and other roads in the area of the Christ Church Cathedral will remain closed as needed during the ceremony itself. All roads are anticipated to be reopened by 1:30 p.m.
Temporary CCTV cameras will be installed and regional police officers will also be on the scene including the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team and the Integrated Canine Service.
“The deployment of these cameras is part of our operations to help keep this event safe and peaceful and is in keeping with both provincial and federal privacy laws,” said Bowen Osoko, VicPD spokesperson in a statement. “Temporary signs are up in the area to ensure that the public is aware. If you’ve concerns about our temporary camera deployment, please email engagement@vicpd.ca.”
Osko added that drones aren’t permitted in the downtown area as the Inner Harbour is an active flight zone for float planes and helicopters.
Various politicians and members of the military are set to attend on Monday, including Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia Janet Austin and Premier John Horgan.
Both the procession and the service will be available to watch online. The procession walk can be watched on Hansard Services at: https://www.leg.bc.ca/ between 9:45 a.m. until 10:20 a.m.
The church service will be live-streamed at: https://www.christchurchcathedral.bc.ca/live.
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