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This week, I attended the Nanaimo city council meeting where activists who want to preserve the trees in Loudon Park and paddlers who recreate on Long Lake made their case to Nanaimo city council about a plan to build a new boathouse and community centre in the park that would house the Nanaimo Canoe and Kayak Club and the Nanaimo Rowing Club.

I wanted to see for myself what the young athletes, many of whom are in high school or younger, are forced to make do with in terms of the existing facilities so I went to Long Lake on Wednesday where I was graciously welcomed by members of both clubs. The rowing club’s new coach also took me aboard the safety boat to see the training on the lake first hand.

This issue has already received a lot of media attention from other local news outlets based around a well-organized group of activists who oppose the plans for a new modern and accessible boathouse because it would mean that 29 trees would be removed from the park. Those activists were successful in convincing city councillors to walk back its plans to build a new boathouse, and the project has now been sent back to city staff to try and find another solution. 

What I learned is that the current boathouse, if it can be called that, is nothing more than an unheated, covered picnic shelter that has had cinder blocks put around it as walls and an old ATCO trailer adjoined to inaccessible washrooms that are almost 60 years old. 

I hope my story can provide a perspective on the conditions that some of Nanaimo’s young athletes, including one para-athlete, train in year round. 

Thank you for reading,

Mick Sweetman

Long Lake boathouse upgrade needed for safety and accessibility, paddlers say

Parents of young athletes tell city councillors about ‘life threatening’ accidents and accessibility barriers with the current makeshift boathouse at Long Lake.

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Council corner

Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog was sporting a Cowichan Capitals jersey for the council meeting on Monday, May, 26. He had lost a bet with North Cowichan Mayor Rob Douglas about which team would win the BCHL playoffs.

“I sincerely hope that the occasion will come in the near future, next season, where he will enjoy the same pleasure or displeasure that I'm enduring when he has to wear the Nanaimo Clippers jersey,” Krog said.

City council had a musical start to Monday’s meeting with a presentation and performance from the Nanaimo Fiddle Society to mark Nanaimo Fiddle week. You can watch it on the meeting’s livestream starting at 9:19.   

After a long discussion of potential traffic impacts for a proposed rental development on Third Street, including presentations by the property owner and residents of the neighbourhood, council voted to approve a zoning amendment with the condition there is a restriction on driveway access from the property to Wharton Street and Georgia Avenue. 

A discussion on repainting the “O” in the Nanaimo sign at Maeffo Sutton Park resulted in council voting 6-3 to commission a new design for the sign. 

Krog said he appreciated the work of staff but opposed changing the design because he didn’t want to give in to “some bloody idiots who choose to deface public property” who may hold "ridiculous views held by conspiracy theorists that somehow this council is controlled by or an ally with the World Economic Forum.”

“I would regard any change to that sign as a concession to the idiots, and I am not prepared to do that under any circumstances,” Krog said.

Councillors Sheryl Armstrong and Ian Thorpe voted with the mayor to oppose the change. 

CHLY’s Midcoast Morning spoke with the mayor about the decision. 

Monday, June 2 will see a special meeting of the Nanaimo Performing Arts Guild, which manages the OV Arts Centre. The meeting will take place in the boardroom of the Service and Resource Centre. The city is also seeking one volunteer to join the guild and applications are open until June 6. 

A board of variance meeting will be held on Thursday, June 5 at 4 p.m. in the boardroom of the service and resource centre. The agenda for the meeting can be found here. 

The next council meeting will be held on Monday, June 9 at 7 p.m. in the Shaw Auditorium of the Vancouver Island Conference Centre. It can also be viewed live on the city website. 

The City of Nanaimo has also published its 2024 Draft Annual Report.

On The Island

🌊  A massive diversion on the Quw’utsun Sta’lo (Cowichan River) has rendered a section of the river dangerous and impassable to recreationists, but a local river steward says that while the conditions aren’t favourable for humans, this could be great news for the fish that call the river home.

In other news

👉 A Nanaimo woman’s experience surviving domestic violence is featured in a CBC documentary highlighting a charity supporting victims of sexual assault and intimate partner violence. The Nanaimo News Bulletin has the story.

👉 Uber commenced operations in Nanaimo and across B.C. on May 28, marking a significant expansion beyond the Lower Mainland. Nanaimo News Now has the story.

👉 Hudson’s Bay Company plans to sell up to 28 store leases, including one in Nanaimo, to a B.C. mall owner aiming to introduce a new modern department store concept. Nanaimo News Now has the story

👉 BC Ferries announced over 1,000 additional sailings for the summer, but the route between Gabriola Island and Nanaimo will see no changes. Gabriola Sounder has the story.

Have your say

📣 Snuneymuxw First Nation is asking its members to provide feedback on key priorities for SFN lands and waters, including the Stewart Avenue Marina, Sxwayxum (former Tally Ho site), the Foundry Lands and Saysutshun Island and the Ferry Service.  

In your words

Thanks to Cindy and Judy for engaging on Bluesky about my recent story on the VIU senate meeting last week that approved program cancellations as an attempt to deal with an ongoing financial crisis at Vancouver Island University.

Have something to say about the news? Email nanaimo@thediscourse.ca. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

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