This large, Tudor Revival building has dominated Oak Bay Village since its construction in 1936, and has lent much credence to the ‘English’ atmosphere of Oak Bay. Though the shop fronts have been altered, most of the exterior details are intact. The building was constructed using many local products - the ‘Duroid’ roofing and ‘Fibre-Rock’ insulating board were made by the Sidney Roofing and Paper Co. Ltd. of Victoria.

The Castle Block was designed by Eric Charlesworth Clarkson (1895-1977), an architect who had a varied and prolific career in England, India and California before moving to Victoria where he received commissions for Mount View High School in Saanich (1931), the Atlas Theatre (1936) and Red Cross House (1945-46). Between 1932 and 1938 Clarkson also designed a number of residences in Victoria and Oak Bay that were built by contractor Robert Noble, the contractor for the Oak Bay Theatre.

Commissioned by R. F. Castle, this structure originally housed a theatre, coffee shop and dance hall on the second floor, a room once famed for having no obstructing columns. The lower level has continuously operated as commercial space since 1936. The change in function, with the closure of the theatre, is indicative of the changing demographics and tastes of the local residents but the building continues to have strong cultural associations and remains part of collective community memory.

The Castle Building is valued as an important component of the historic context of Oak Bay Avenue, which is enhanced by the Bell Block and the old Oak Bay Grocery building – all three of which serve as ‘anchors’ for the commercial core of Oak Bay.