The Ladysmith train station, seen here in 2018, is the focus of $1 million in provincial funds for a restoration project. (Colin Stepney)

By Alex Rawnsley

bringing back history

$1M awarded for restoration of historic Ladysmith train station

May 26, 2025 | 5:29 AM

LADYSMITH — New funding is posed to breathe new life into a historic stop along the E&N Rail Line.

The provincial government’s Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program (REDIP) has awarded $1 million to the Island Corridor Foundation (ICF) for restoration work on the Ladysmith train station near Transfer Beach Park.

Thomas Bevan, CEO of the ICF, told NanaimoNewsNOW the work is in partnership with the Ladysmith Chamber of Commerce, and will see long overdue updates to the historic building.

“People have worked on this for quite some time, and the community has had fundraising efforts and organizing campaigns for almost a decade. It’s also connected to the waterfront transformation, which has been thought about for a long time, and Ladysmith being the charming town on the hill, but the waterfront has been forgotten about in many ways for the past 20 years.”

A revamp of the historic site is planned, including addition of a visitor’s centre run by the Ladysmith Chamber of Commerce. (Ladysmith Chamber of Commerce)

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Planning is still underway, but the goal is to make the facility a community hub, anchored by the Ladysmith Chamber of Commerce and its visitor’s centre.

Bevan added the restoration would add to a hive of recent activity along the waterfront in the region, including updates to Transfer Beach Park, Stz’uminus First Nation’s projects at Oyster Bay Marina and many more.

He said exact details will be determined over the next 12 months, but early indications are the building itself is in good condition.

“This isn’t a rebuild, this is a refurbishment, and then really thinking about how to make the space more friendly to the community to come down and enjoy.”

Built in 1944, it replaced another station which was destroyed by a fire.

The station was added to the Canadian Register of Historic Places in 2014.

“It was a very important place for at least the industrial economy of 50, 60, 70 years ago, but as that has kind of fell away and Ladysmith, I don’t think there’s any coal extraction happening and Ladysmith anymore,” Bevan added. “The town’s become much more about tourism.”

Construction is hoped to start by summer 2026 and take roughly a year to complete.

Bevan said this project is not connected in any way to long-term ambitions to restore passenger rail service along the E&N line.

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