On Sunday, August 17, 2025, volunteers from the Falaise Community Association, the Greater Victoria Placemaking Network, and the neighbourhood threw a repainting party for the road mural on Falaise Crescent in Saanich. A team of over 30 volunteers repainted and expanded the existing road mural.
The initial road mural was designed by local artist Desiree Shelley, working in consultation with neighbours, and takes its inspiration from the yellow montane violets that were discovered in Falaise Park. It was installed in August 2022, and you can read more about the initial design and installation process here.
The following year, in August 2023, the mural was repainted. In addition to touching up the yellow montane violets, purple camas flowers were added. The decision to expand the mural was made after conversations with neighbours – we surveyed neighbours and they reported positive views of the mural and its impact on the community, but the most common comment was that people wanted a wider range of flowers. We selected camas as they are a beautiful purple flower, and we knew that purple would contrast nicely with the yellow of the violets. Camas are also “one of the most important traditional foods in Salish country,” (source), and like the montane violets, they can be found growing in the nearby park.
In 2024, we conducted a survey of the mural and as it was holding up well, we opted to forgo a repaint that year. By the spring of 2025, we found that there was sufficient wear on the mural to warrant a repaint and we once again organized a repaint.
Building on our past success, we decided to add a third type of flower. We wanted a native wildflower that contrasted well with the existing yellows and purples of the mural, and we settled on the red-flowering currant, a beautiful magenta/pink flower that can also be found in the nearby Falaise Park.
“It is so rewarding to have our community turn out to brighten up the mural,” said Stuart Macpherson, President of the Falaise Community Association and project organizer. “With the addition of red-currant flowers to the yellow montane violets and camas, we now have three native flowers that are found in Falaise Park represented in the road mural.”
In addition to painting and repainting flowers, volunteers, and especially young volunteers, were given the opportunity to paint on images of acorns along the road that runs adjacent to Falaise Park. We added this element the first year in order to engage many of the younger volunteers who turned up to help.
“It was wonderful to see so many young people taking an active role in building community through placemaking,” said Teale Phelps Bondaroff, volunteer with the Greater Victoria Placemaking Network, Saanich Councillor, and project organizer. “I love how young people will be able to come back and visit their acorns whenever they are at the park. It’s a fun and meaningful way for them to feel connected to this space.”
Road murals are murals painted on the surface of the road. In addition to beautifying streets, connecting neighbours, and fostering identity of place, research has found that they encourage drivers to slow down, thereby improving road safety.
“Road murals like this one do more than just beautify our streets. They bring people together, celebrate the unique identity of a neighbourhood, and create a sense of belonging,” said Phelps Bondaroff. “Research has also shown that road murals help encourage drivers to slow down, and in this way, they help make our roads safer.”
You can find more about road murals here. You can read local news stories about the road mural repaint in the Victoria Buzz, Saanich News, and Times Colonist.
The project was a first for Saanich, and was installed as a pilot. It has been led by the Falaise Community Association with support from the Greater Victoria Placemaking Network, and received funding from a Community Well‐Being and Placemaking Projects Grant from the District of Saanich.
Guest Author Dr. Teale Phelps Bondaroff
Visit Teale’s Blog / Website: https://www.teale.ca/
