Piper Park

Piper park is the 1.1 acre green knoll above front street and adjacent to Vancouver Island Conference Centree. The Nanaimo Military Museum, first nation's petroglyphs, a miner's cottage and steam engine are currently in Piper Park. Heritage trees on site - Douglas Fir and Arbutus. Landmarks include a locomotive, coal wagon and mining components.

In 1923, the Cdn. Western Fuel and Electric Company filled in the parts of the Commercial Inlet with mine refuse and turned the area now occupied by Port Place and Piper Park into the Nanaimo Central Sports Field. Piper Park is the only green space that still remains of the original Central Sports Field.

The City of Nanaimo bought the Central Sports Field from the Western Fuel Company for $1.00 in 1948. The fields had grandstand with a capacity for 1500 and were host to baseball, lawn bowling, cricket and rugby.

The Piper Park land was dedicated in 1948 and Piper Park opened in 1952. Smaller fields around Piper Park were temporarily leased to the lawn bowling club for $1.00 per year until November 30, 1966. The rest was sold for commercial uses in 1951 and Port Place was built.

Piper Park was named after former alderman Philip J. Piper who was born in Nanaimo in 1891. Piper was instrumental in the purchase of Beban Park