The previously dormant White Spot location on Terminal Ave. is now home to cooking activities related to Salvation Army meal programs. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

Plan B

Nanaimo Salvation Army secures venue for temporary kitchen

May 2, 2023 | 5:00 PM

NANAIMO — A lease agreement has been secured by a social service provider left without a kitchen and dining hall while a portion of its downtown location is redeveloped.

Salvation Army New Hope Centre executive director Jeffrey Baergen said the old White Spot restaurant at 130 Terminal Ave. will be used to cook food for their clients and other vulnerable community members.

He expected they’ll be in the new location by the end of the week, emphasizing it won’t be used to provide services directly and will be closed to the public.

“We will be cooking out of the White Spot and delivering the food back to 19 Nicol St,” Baergen told NanaimoNewsNOW.

He estimated the arrangement will be in place for about two years while their new-look project comes to fruition.

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Baergen said they met with the Newcastle Community Association to eliminate any confusion about how the site would be used.

He added the venue will be occupied seven days a week to cook meals for Salvation Army New Hope Centre clients and other vulnerable community members.

One of the agency’s Emergency Disaster Services vehicle’s was parked on Victoria Rd. for the past three-and-a-half months to provide meals to its clients.

“It’s fantastic, but it really is only built for very short-term stints. We’ve been cooking out of that truck for four months. To get our staff back into a proper kitchen is going to be extremely helpful.”

Salvation Army’s Emergency Disaster Services mobile van is expected to be imminently relocated to Victoria. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Earlier plans by Nanaimo Salvation Army to temporarily move into into the old Caprice Theatre on Nicol St. to cook and serve food fell through.

Necessary building code requirements could not be obtained to re-locate to the old theatre, Baergen said.

The Nanaimo Salvation Army provided more than 140,000 breakfast and lunch meals last year, up steadily from previous years, according to the facility’s director.

Tearing down the older two-storey half of the New Hope Centre is intended to give way to an expanded four-storey building for additional programming and residential space.

Salvation Army has an active demolition permit application submitted to the City.

The aging portion of the unoccupied building housed the agency’s commercial kitchen and dining hall, which was closed down mid January due to structural concerns following nearly 135 years of use.

The Salvation Army New Hope Centre provides a range of services for marginalized populations, including permanent and transitional housing, rent supplements and spiritual care.

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ian@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @reporterholmes