34 townhouse units, including some four bedroom homes, are planned for a largely treed lot on Tunnah Rd., off the southern end of Uplands Dr. in Nanaimo. (dHKarchitects)

By Alex Rawnsley

medium density housing

New look Nanaimo townhouse development passes design review

Sep 27, 2025 | 9:29 AM

NANAIMO — A proposed townhouse complex off Uplands Dr. in central Nanaimo has passed its latest hurdle.

Developers are planning 34 townhouse units across seven different buildings for a currently largely treed lot at 3397 Tunnah Rd., off Uplands Dr. and close to Wellington Secondary School.

Included in the design are two one-bedroom, four two-bedroom, 23 three-bedroom and five four-bedroom townhouses.

Each townhouse would also come with an attached one or two car garage with access to the development off a new private driveway on Tunnah Rd.

Rooftop spaces are included in the design for some units, with layouts to be a mixture of one, two, three and four bedroom townhouses. (dHKarchitects)

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Presenting to the City’s Design Advisory Panel on Thursday, Sept. 25, lead designer Nicholas Arthur with dHKarchitects said they’ve also given considerable thought to the overall site layout, and tried to minimize the use of steps on the sloping lot.

“The site includes pedestrian walkways, a centrally located shared space with seating and landscaping, and a communal parking area with bicycle racks and mailboxes adjacent to the site entrance.”

A number of variances, primarily to do with the height of some buildings, were supported by the Panel as they were predominantly to address the sloping nature of the property while keeping the rooflines uniform.

Previous designs for the complex showed flatter roof profiles.

Panel members made nine recommendations to the design form and character, including the addition of more colour in the landscaping or other elements, addition of privacy barriers for some units and a minor change of materials to better help with drainage.

The proposed development is slated come to the Council table at a future meeting for a development permit.

Sidewalks and other amenities are planned as part of the development. (dHKarchitects)

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