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The proposed data centre on East Wellington Road has been a contentious subject since it was first proposed several years ago.

When I was at a recent party celebrating The Discourse’s five-year anniversary of community journalism in the city, I heard directly from readers about their concerns and questions about the proposed data centre and how much water it could use.

At a recent city council meeting, Nanaimo resident June Ross gave a presentation to council about her concerns with the proposed data centre, which had already been approved by council back in 2022. 

We felt it would be useful to try and pull together as much information as we could to help answer some frequently asked questions about the data centre in one place. 

If you have any further questions about the data centre, or anything else in the city of Nanaimo, please let me know by emailing me at nanaimo@thediscourse.ca.

Thank you for reading,

Mick Sweetman

What’s the deal with the proposed data centre in Nanaimo?

The Discourse found answers to frequently asked questions about a proposed data centre in Nanaimo.

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“Coverage of local grassroots issues, city council meetings and ongoing coverage of Nanaimo's (oh so necessary) OPS initiative. Good to see Sarah Lovegrove's photo and comments in this edition.”

— Jane Osborne, from our newsletter survey.

Council Corner

City council will be holding a special finance and audit committee meeting on Friday that will include presentations by:

• Nanaimo Area Land Trust

• Connective Support Society

• CatNap Society 

• Vancouver Island Regional Library

• Vancouver Island Conference Centre

• Tourism Nanaimo Society 
  

The committee will also hear reports on the progress council has made on priority actions, an update on the city’s monitoring strategy, data and engagement results to inform budget discussions, and options for implementing the Health and Housing Action Plan.

The committee will also discuss plans for improvements to Loudon Park, including a delegation by Lana Fitzpatrick from the Wellington Action Committee. 

There will be a presentation by Wendy Fulla, the city’s director of finance, on a Luminous Paths Festival and Active Transportation in the city.

On the Island

🌊 North Cowichan began dismantling the Lewis Street encampment on Nov. 17, moving about 75 residents to new sites. The Cowichan Community Care Network says the move puts people at risk of violence and overdoses as the new sites are further away from the Warmland Shelter and overdose prevention site. There were also more than 80 overdoses in the Cowichan Valley in the days following the decampment. Reporter Eric Richards has the full story.

🌊 “The message is out that the civil courts should not be used to suppress the right to free expression unless there is a solid overriding reason to do so,” a lawyer says about a groundbreaking Anti-SLAPP case against a Union Bay shipbreaking company. Reporter Madeline Dunnett has an interview with Jason Gratl, who represented community activist Mary Reynolds in the case.

In other news

👉 Fundraising is underway to make the Emergency Department at Nanaimo General Hospital more friendly for seniors. The Nanaimo and District Hospital Foundation is seeking to raise $1.2 million to help renovate part of the ER so that lighting is dimmed, sound is dampened and staff trained in geriatrics have accessible equipment. The Nanaimo News Bulletin has the story. 

👉 Nanaimo city council is asking staff to prepare a report with options for a zoning amendment for industrial lands that would exclude emissions-intense heavy industry. The Nanaimo News Bulletin has the story.

CHLY 101.7 FM’s Midcoast Morning sat down with Coun. Paul Manly about his motion as well as Harmac CEO Paul Sadler. You can listen to that interview here.

👉 Nanaimo-Lantzville MLA George Anderson’s Professional Reliance Act bill, that would require municipalities to accept technical submissions by a certified professional for housing projects, passed second reading in the B.C. legislature on Nov. 17, 2025. The Nanaimo News Bulletin has the story. 

Anderson said the bill will help speed up the process for housing approvals but the Union of BC Municipalities says it would “prohibit local governments from requiring a standard technical peer review during housing development applications” and could slow down the process and create greater liability for local governments.  

The Select Standing Committee is now seeking input on Bill M216 until Tuesday, Dec. 2 at 3 p.m., after which it will be debated by the Committee of the Whole and would still have to pass third reading before the legislative session ends.

👉A new land guardian program by Snuneymuxw First Nation’s lands and natural resources department will monitor wildlife, including deer populations that travel through Snuneymuxw territory. The Nanaimo News Bulletin has the story.  

👉 Two new ferries that will be working the route between Nanaimo and Gabriola Island will bear Hul'q'umi'num names chosen by Snuneymuxw First Nation.

“The Island xwsaĺux̌ul means ‘grassy place’ and represents the location where the Snuneymuxw Sarlequun Treaty of 1854 was signed.

“A second vessel will be called Island sarlequun (pronounced Sar-le-kwun) which means ‘people at Nanaimo Harbour’,” according to a report in Nanaimo News Now.

In your words

Re: Motion to close Nanaimo’s Overdose Prevention Site withdrawn

“Nanaimo is among the most important battlegrounds for harm reduction in BC, with influential players having spent years attempting to pin the city’s ills on supervised consumption.” - Euan Thomson, Drug Data Decoded on Bluesky.

Have your say

📣 A town hall focusing on the City of Nanaimo’s budget will take place on Monday, Dec. 1 at the Vancouver Island Conference Centre’s Shaw Auditorium. The meeting will start with an overview of the proposed financial plan by city staff followed by an eTown Hall for one hour where residents can engage with council members on the budget. 

Budget documents can be found on the city website at nanaimo.ca/goto/budget.

To participate in the eTown Hall residents can submit questions through the city website at nanaimo.ca/goto/etownhall, by using the hashtag #NanaimoTH on Instagram, Bluesky and X (formerly known as Twitter), and on the eTown Hall Facebook event page. Residents can also call the City at 250-754-4251, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday until Dec. 1. During the meeting, residents can ask their question in person or send it in online.

The eTown Hall will be streamed on the City website as part of the regular council meeting at nanaimo.ca/meetings and on Rogers TV channel 4 or 105, beginning at 7 p.m. on Dec. 1.

Community photo

Community members gathered to mark Transgender Day of Remembrance at Sands Funeral Chapel on Nov. 20, 2025. Photo by Mick Sweetman / The Discourse. 

Do you have a great photo from the community? Share it with us for a chance to be featured in an upcoming newsletter. We’d love to see Nanaimo through your lens. 

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