City Updates
Issue 10/Spring 2025
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150 Years of Incorporation
Nanaimo may have been incorporated as the sixth municipality (and fourth city) in BC on December 24, 1874, but it wasn’t until 1875 that the first Council was formed. The newly formed City’s first election took place on January 19, 1875 electing Mark Bate as our first Mayor and the first Council meeting was on January 22, 1875.
Luminous Paths: Nanaimo's 150 and Beyond
provided by the Nanaimo Chinese Cultural Society and 7 Potatoes further made the park glow.
Luminous Paths was partly funded by the Government of Canada through a Canadian Heritage grant.
Commercial Street: Phase 1 almost complete!
The Commercial Street Improvements project will transform our historic downtown into a more welcoming, people-first space. During this first phase, upgrades to the street are being made from Diana Krall Plaza to Chapel Street including new water mains, streetlights, trees and a new mural at the intersection of Bastion and Commercial Streets. Also, we’re making this section curbless so it’s event ready, creates more opportunities for businesses to utilize the space in front of their stores and makes it easier for those facing mobility challenges. The street is anticipated to be open and ready in time for the start of the Commercial Street Night Market on June 19.
Midtown Projects Wrapping Up
The Gateway project turned a site that was impacted by coal mining activity into a revitalized neighbourhood gateway. A wetland was restored, a new connection to Beban Park was created and new walking and multi-use trails were added. Despite the significant traffic disruptions anticipated over the coming months, the project is expected to be complete by the fall. For more information, visit www.nanaimo.ca/goto/MidTownGateway.
DID YOU KNOW? The City’s tree voucher program is still going on! If you are a registered property owner in the City of Nanaimo, you can purchase a $25 voucher for a tree worth up to $90 in value from Green Thumb Garden Centre. For more information, visit www.nanaimo.ca/goto/TreeVoucher. |
2025 Property Taxes are Due July 2, 2025
There are a number of ways to pay:
Your bank: online, phone or in person. To add the City of Nanaimo as a payee, search for “Nanaimo”. The account number is the 8-digit folio number (no period) found on your notice. Please note: we do not accept e-transfers.
Mail a cheque: 455 Wallace Street, Nanaimo, BC, V9R 5J6. Payment must be made out to “City of Nanaimo” and received by July 2, 2025. This option may not be available in the event of a Canada Post strike.
In person: at the Service and Resource Centre located at 411 Dunsmuir St, Monday through Friday from 8 am to 4:30 pm. Please note: we do not accept credit card payments.
How much should you pay?
The amount you need to pay depends on whether you qualify for the Regular or Additional/Senior Home Owner Grant, or if you do not qualify for the grant.
A late payment penalty of 2% will be applied to current year outstanding balance at the end of the day on July 2, 2025 and an additional 8% will be applied at the end of day on August 29, 2025.
REMINDER: Make sure to claim your Home Owner Grant by July 2, 2025. Claim it online at www.gov.bc.ca/HomeOwnerGrant or by phone at 1-888-355-2700.
Please make sure to read over your tax notice for important information.
Your property tax notice: A step-by-step guide
When you open your property tax notice, make sure to review it. There are some important things to note:
Due date - this is the date taxes are due. After this date, a penalty will be applied to the amount you owe.
Total taxes due line - this, along with knowing which column (A,B or C) you fall under based on Home Owner Grant availability, will tell you how much you owe.
Your folio number - this will help you pay your taxes online through your bank.
Back of your tax notice - find more information such as accepted methods of payment and information needed to claim your Home Owner Grant.
Now that you have reviewed it:
Claim your Home Owner Grant (if applicable)
Make a payment by July 2 to avoid any late penalty fees.
Plan ahead for your 2026 property taxes. You can apply to make monthly instalments.
If you haven’t already, sign up for eBilling so you can receive future tax notices by email.
WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOUR TAXES GO TOWARD? Visit www.nanaimo.ca/goto/budget to review the City’s Financial Plan and the Budget Quick Facts. |
Receive future tax notices by email
Property Taxes: Setting up a monthly payment plan
No more lump sum payments! When you sign up for the Property Tax Pre- Authorized Withdrawal Plan, you can start putting payments towards your 2026 property taxes with automatic monthly payments withdrawn from your bank account.
Once you pay this year’s taxes, you can apply for the program. It’s the perfect time to sign up as the July 15 start date will give you a full 12 months of payments before your 2026 property taxes are due. You will find on your current tax notice the suggested monthly amount, which is specific to your property and looks at your current balance, Home Owner Grant history and estimated 2026 property taxes.
There are no additional fees for this program and once your monthly payments are set up, you only need to do two things each year:
- Review your tax notice to see if there is an outstanding balance to pay before the tax deadline, and
- Claim your Home Owner Grant (if applicable).
Not only do monthly payments through the Property Tax Pre-Authorized Withdrawal Plan make it easier to budget, they also earn you money! As this is a prepayment of future taxes, interest is accrued on your payments. The interest rate is set quarterly by the Province of BC. At the time this newsletter was created (April 2025) the rate was 2.95%. The next rate will be set July 1. Instalments are applied to tax levies in May and no interest is earned May and June. Learn more and apply for the program at www.nanaimo.ca/goto/paws.
DID YOU KNOW? The average home in Nanaimo making monthly payments toward their 2025 property taxes earned approximately $59* in interest on their prepayments for 2025 property taxes! *Example calculated using historical and estimated interest rates earned on installment balances July 2024 to April 2025. The average home had an assessed value of $783,808 in 2024, with a total gross tax levy of $5,028.47. |
Enjoy summer fun in Nanaimo's parks
All summer, we have FREE fun events for everyone in Nanaimo’s parks. Check them out!
Nanaimo’s parks come alive with music during the popular Concerts in the Park series. Check the City website for a list of dates, times, locations and line ups.
Pack up the family and head down to one of Nanaimo’s popular destination parks for Family Fun Nights! Join us from 4:30 to 7:30 pm on July 30 in Harewood Centennial Park and on August 22 in Maffeo Sutton Park for an evening of games, crafts, food and more.
Kids can cool down daily from 9 am to 8 pm in Nanaimo’s four water parks located in Departure Bay Park, Deverill Square Park, Harewood Centennial Park and Mansfield Park.
Enjoy the beach life safely with lifeguards on duty at Westwood Lake First Beach daily from 12 to 5:30 pm from June 28 to September 1.
Kids can join in some fun in their neighbourhood park with the Playground Programs featuring activities including crafts, games, music and more from July 2 to August 29. We have two programs to participate in: each week, we will be at a different park with the roving playground program and all summer long, you can find us at Departure Bay Park. Check recreation.nanaimo.ca for locations of the roving program.
Celebrate with us at our annual Canada Day festivities on July 1 from 11 am to 3:30 pm in Maffeo Sutton Park.
Play in one of Nanaimo’s playgrounds. In addition to neighbourhood playgrounds, destination playgrounds are located in Beban Park, Harewood Centennial Park, Maffeo Sutton Park and Oliver Woods Community Park.
Explore Nanaimo’s parks and trails this summer. Pick up our Parks and Trails brochure available at any recreation centre for details.
For more details, please visit recreation.nanaimo.ca or call 250-756-5200.
Westwood Lake Improvements: Get ready for more beach!
The second phase of upgrades at Westwood Lake Park is nearing completion, and we think you’re going to enjoy beach days there even more.
This phase included an expanded beach area with waterfront decks, seating and tables, shade trees, new washroom/change room facilities and a new public art piece titled, “Fluence” by Urban Design Roster artist David Martinello from Alternative Woodworks. Work is expected to be complete by the time lifeguards are on duty for the summer.
Temporary Public Art: new installations on their way
This summer two new Temporary Public Art projects will come to life in our community!
- “Histogram Histories,” by Kiranjot Kaur, will involve colourful hanging fabric cylinders, made from different fabrics, representing metrics of change throughout Nanaimo’s history. The artist hopes this project will help people think about Nanaimo’s history in new ways. Watch for this art installation to be installed in Oliver Woods Recreation Centre.
- “Lost Intersections,” by Jackie Wong will remember Nanaimo’s old Chinatowns, highlighting the history and contributions of Chinese people in the city. Jackie will make three art pieces, to be installed where each of the old Chinatowns used to be. This project will help people learn about an important part of Nanaimo’s past that many may not know.
“Histogram Histories” and “Lost Intersections” will be unveiled in summer/fall 2025 and will be available for people to see and enjoy for up to five years.
Visit: www.nanaimo.ca/goto/TemporaryArt to learn more about the City’s Temporary Public Art Program.
STAGE 2 WATERING RESTRICTIONS IN EFFECT Until September 30, even-numbered addresses can water on even-numbered days and odd-numbered addresses on odd-numbered days for up to 2 hours between 7 am to 10 am or 7 pm to 10 pm. Veggie gardens and fruit trees can be watered any time. |
Here Comes the Sun: Have a safe and FireSmartTM summer
Follow these simple steps and visit www.firesmartbc.ca to help reduce the risk of wildfire:
- Clear dead brush, dry debris and other combustibles from within 10 metres of your home, clean your roof and gutters and keep your lawn short.
- Remove branches overhanging the roof of your house and keep all lower tree branches pruned up by at least two metres.
- Clean and maintain your BBQ before using it and never leave it unattended while cooking.
- Properly extinguish and dispose of all smoking material. NEVER throw cigarette butts out the window of your car. Not only is it littering, it’s also the cause of many wildfires.
- Call 911 to report all fires no matter the size.
- Make sure to sign up for Voyent Alert!, the City’s emergency alert system. Download the app for free or call us at 250-758-5222.
Recycle Right! - Let's reduce blue cart contamination
Let’s work together, Nanaimo, to recycle right and reduce blue cart contamination! Contamination happens when items we can’t accept are mixed in with accepted items in your blue cart. We WISH we could recycle everything you toss in the cart however, there is a reason why some items can’t be mixed in with other recyclables. Glass containers break and can make dangerous handling conditions for workers. Soft plastics (eg. plastic wrap and bags) can get tangled up in machines at the sorting facility and cause damage.
Recycle BC, the organization that oversees recycling in BC, requires us to maintain contamination rates below 3% to meet contract requirements. Our current level is just under 6%, one of the better rates in BC, but there’s still room to improve! Higher levels of contamination lead to increased fines, higher fees and recycling ending up in the landfill. Keeping out contamination means that over 90% of materials collected in BC can be made into new products. In 2024, Nanaimo recycled nearly 3,600 tonnes! The goal is to never leave a cart behind, but homes that continue to contaminate could see their blue carts not collected.
If you aren’t sure if something is accepted in your blue cart, use the What Goes Where Waste Wizard tool found on the Recycling page on the City website at: www.nanaimo.ca/goto/recycling or download the free Nanaimo Recycles App. Or, you can give the Recycling Hotline a call at 1-800-667-4321. Waste Ambassadors will also be on curbside collection routes this summer inspecting carts and answering questions about acceptable materials!
Reduce and Reuse Special Annual Events!
Do you have household items that you haven’t looked at, let alone used, in years? Nanaimo’s annual Trunk Sale and Reuse Rendezvous aim to give unwanted household items a longer lease on life and reduce the amount of waste sent to the landfill.
TRUNK SALES
On June 21, come down to the Country Club Mall parking lot from 9 am to 2 pm and on August 23 the sale will be held from 9 am to 2 pm at VIU’s Upper Parking Lots. Registered vendors can sell their unwanted items from the trunks of their cars to bargain hunters. Registration is free and spots are limited.
REUSE RENDEZVOUS
Join in on the city-wide swap meet over the weekend of July 19 and 20. Stick a “FREE!” label on unwanted household goods and set them out on the curb for other community members to take and reuse. Please make sure to take any items left over after the weekend back inside.
Check out www.nanaimo.ca/goto/NanaimoRecycles for full details and event updates, including registration information for the Trunk Sales and guidelines for Reuse Rendezvous.
QUESTIONS ABOUT CURBSIDE COLLECTION? Call us: 250-756-5390 Email us: Zero.Waste@nanaimo.ca |
Last updated: May 13, 2025
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