After nearly two decades at the helm of Esquimalt, Mayor Barb Desjardins says it’s time to make room for new voices. Desjardins announced during Esquimalt council on Oct. 27 that she will not seek re-election in the 2026 municipal election, marking the end of an 18-year tenure that has made her the longest consecutively serving mayor in Esquimalt’s history. “It’s a bittersweet feeling,” Desjardins told Victoria News. “Esquimalt has undergone a transformation that is exciting, and after what will be 18 years, there can be a new vision. It’s an opportunity for our community to continue to do what it’s doing, which is showing it is the best place to be.” Desjardins first joined Esquimalt council in 2005 and was elected as the township’s 22nd mayor in 2008, winning re-election four more times in 2011, 2014, 2018 and 2022. “When I started, Esquimalt was a community that was shrinking slightly, losing businesses, not having development,” she said. “Now it’s a very sought-after community. That’s because of the vibrancy of the events that are now occurring yearly and the economic development that’s taking place.” Among the milestones Desjardins points to with pride are the construction of the Gorge Pavilion, securing $17 million from the McLoughlin Amenity Fund, and the long-awaited public safety building. She’s quick to note, though, that much of that success belongs to the community itself. “It’s not one person,” she said. “It’s the community that embraced all of that and said, ‘We like where this is going.’ We remain feisty, we remain with heart, and I look forward to seeing how that continues.” While she’s proud of what’s been achieved, Desjardins says there’s one issue she wishes she could have resolved: Esquimalt’s ongoing policing situation. “I would say not resolving that to a satisfactory place, where there would be cost control and better governance, is one thing I regret,” she said. “But I’ve got a year and a bit left, and I don’t think I’m going to sit down on that.” As she prepares for her final year in office, Desjardins plans to focus on those remaining priorities: continuing work on policing, supporting Esquimalt’s economic development strategy, and launching a full review of the township’s official community plan. Her decision not to run again also comes with a personal shift. “I think we’re in a good place,” she said. “Now there’s a perfect opportunity for me to step back and allow a whole new generation of people to come in and help create that vision. And, not small in my decision is the fact that I’m a grandmother now. I want to focus on family again.” Still, she was quick to add she won’t be disappearing. “I’m not done yet,” she said with a laugh. “I’m still here to do things for the community, just in a different direction.”
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