Construction is underway on a new 10-storey student housing complex at the Nanaimo VIU campus. The building will eventually house 266 students, and is expected to be complete by 2027. (Government of B.C.)

By Jordan Davidson

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Construction begins on new 266-bed student housing complex at VIU

Jan 25, 2025 | 9:52 AM

NANAIMO — Construction has started on a massive new student housing project at Nanaimo’s Vancouver Island University (VIU).

Originally announced in 2022, the 10-storey building complete with 266 new beds, a 200-seat dining hall, study rooms, shared kitchens and more broke ground last fall and is expected to be complete by 2027.

Third-year VIU student Samantha Overland attributed her success to her easy access to VIU resources, which she has enjoyed thanks to living on campus for the last three years.

“It is almost impossible to find housing now as a young person, so the new housing building is going to take a lot of stress away from people who are worried about finding a place to live.”

The Province is providing up to $103 million to support construction, with VIU also contributing around $800,000.

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Construction begins on new 266-bed student housing complex at VIU

Jan 25, 2025

Included is a 200-seat dining hall, student rooms, lounges, shared kitchens, a multi-purpose room, bike storage, and shared laundry.

At a September 2022 event on campus, VIU president Deborah Saucier said the project would help students in a significant way.

“We have a 300-person wait list right now, so this will clear a backlog. But importantly for every student who doesn’t get into space here on campus, there’s one rental unit out there in the community, so it’s almost double the effect.”

The new student housing building will be located at the eastern edge of the student residence area just off Fourth St. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

The project also contains seven accessible units and multiple barrier-free facilities.

The new building will allow for future expansion of their housing system, enabling them to increase capacity and connect the new building to the rest of on-campus student housing.

“Safe, affordable, accessible and high-quality housing is an essential building block for student success,” said VIU president and vice-chancellor Deborah Saucier. “We are grateful to the provincial government for providing this funding so VIU can realize our goal of having more students living as well as learning on our Nanaimo campus. Living on campus also promotes a deeper connection to the campus community for students, enhancing their overall experience.”

According to the Province, this project is part of their commitment to add 12,000 student housing units across B.C., with over 10,000 students built under construction or already complete.

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