Our History
The Marine Technology Centre was originally built as a Federal/Provincial Development Project for developing high tech industries. In 1989 the building sold to Genprobe Technologies Inc. with 99 year lease on the 5 acre parcel the building is sitting on. The University of Victoria originally rented the space for academic programs, and as UVic became the major tenant, negotiations began to acquire the space for further expansion. The previous owner was willing to donate the building & leasehold agreement if the University was able to acquire the entire 16.83 acre parcel of land from the Federal Government. The building and land parcel were officially purchased but the University in March 1994. The University amended the zoning in January 2002 to P7 (Light Industrial/Educational Research Facility.)
Today, The Marine Technology Centre (MTC or the Centre) remains aUniversity of Victoria initiative that is +/- 40,000 square feet located on +/- 17 acres in North Saanich. It is located on premier Patricia Bay ocean waterfront, and thanks to recent shipbuilding announcements, at the centre of Canada IRB initiatives. This property is set amongst the federal government’s Institute of Ocean Sciences (IOS) and its associated adjacent properties to the Marine Technology Centre, together offer an area of some 80 combined acres of opportunity to a focused technology marine environment.
Notably, MTC is home to the Neptune and Venus projects, two UVic initiatives that are aimed at helping us better understand conditions off the coast of Vancouver Island, while developing original and new technologies in the process.
