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Oak Bay is an upscale eastern suburb (or, Municipality) of Greater Victoria. It is a member of the Capital Regional District. The population is about 13,000. The current mayor of Oak Bay is Christopher Causton, re-elected in 2002 by acclamation. Oak Bay has a reputation throughout Victoria as a hold-out for older residents and wealthy people, because of a combination of a few things:
- The upscale area of the Uplands, with underground wiring and many multi-million-dollar houses,
- A large number of retirement homes and communities (in fact, many of the municipality's most controversial issues have involved the construction and/or renovation of upscale retirement condominiums), and
- Travelling to Oak Bay, within Victoria is referred to as "going behind the tweed curtain", a reference to Oak Bay's association to the United Kingdom. Oak Bay has multitudes of English-style tea rooms, restaurants, antique shops, and other establishments geared towards seniors.
The name "Oak Bay" refers to the Garry oak tree, a sub-type of the Oregon white oak which usually only grows on Vancouver Island.
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