A pair of street lights/cell towers along Shepherd Rd. in Nanaimo's Harewood neighbourhood, shown here in a rendering, has been given the green light by City council to replace the existing street lights. (City of Nanaimo)

By Jordan Davidson

new cell towers

Pair of cell towers endorsed for Nanaimo’s Harewood neighbourhood

Jul 31, 2025 | 4:25 PM

NANAIMO — A pair of cell towers for the Harewood neighbourhood have been approved by the City, despite some health concerns from locals.

A pair of TELUS-owned, 15.7-metre streetlight/antenna monopoles is being planned along Shepherd Ave, right before Fifth St. on city-owned property, with council recently approving a license agreement at the Monday, July 28 special council meeting.

Coun. Ben Geselbracht was the lone vote opposing the motion, and said he did so due to the opposition he has heard from community members about these towers.

“I haven’t really heard a lot of complaints around that particular area and need for these, so I’m having difficulties supporting.”

A City staff report said the area has “poor service” and would benefit from the towers, with TELUS paying the City a yearly rent of $14,000 over the next 30 years, with rent increasing by an amount equal to the change in the Consumer Price Index Canada.

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An overhead rendering of the proposed towers locations. (City of Nanaimo)

The affected area was notified of the request in May, with one comment received prior to the June 8 deadline.

In a letter signed by six Shepherd Ave. residents, they expressed concerns about the towers being too close to homes, suggesting a minimum of 300 metres away from residential homes, due to people who are sensitive to electromagnetic fields, which are produced by any device that uses electricity.

According to the report, the two nine-metre City streetlights would be removed and replaced with the TELUS streetlights, which won’t interfere with any sidewalk or road functions, and no trees need to be removed.

A rendering of what the proposed towers would look like along Shepherd Ave. (City of Nanaimo)

Health Canada establishes safety guidelines for radio frequency exposure limits, known as Safety Code 6, which ISED states sets strict limits on radio energy levels emitted by any antenna tower.

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) governs cell towers in Canada, which mandates local governments be consulted in advance.

Final approval from ISED is still required before any construction can take place.

A potential build time of the end of this year to 2027 was provided in the report.

Numerous cell tower applications have been pitched and approved in recent years as the mid-Island region continues growing, including a 63-metre tower planned for Nanaimo’s Hammond Bay area, and a 51-metre self-supported lattice tower at 2517 Jingle Pot Rd.

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