‘Quite unsightly:’ RDN cleaning up problematic Nanaimo River Rd. property

“As of right now, it is quite unsightly, and that’s a result of items coming out from the buildings before the demo takes place, so that’s kind of to be expected right now, but staff plan to keep monitoring the property ahead of the demolition and obviously well after the demolition to monitor the state of the property.”

Discard items like derelict vehicles, boats, and RV’s are strewn around the site in this photo from 2025, with reports of numerous people living in some of the RVs and “ramshackle” buildings, but the owner has said no one is currently living on the property.

The property owner was given 30 days at the end of March 2025 to clean up, or the RDN would step in with a remedial cleanup response.

Mercier said it’s been a “very fluid and dynamic” situation to get to this point, with the owner making progress on improving the two remaining buildings in hopes of saving them, but she doesn’t think they’ll be up to code before the RDN moves in with demolition.

“There’s been ample opportunity to comply, and our staff have really exhausted all of our voluntary compliance efforts, so this is…what’s needed to take place, and we did have to proceed through a court process, unfortunately, and it really delayed things for the RDN to move forward.”

History

Court records show the property remains under the name of Brian Ferstel’s father, who passed away over a decade ago, and is believed to have escheated to the Crown in February 2025 prior to this current round of remedial action.

Ferstel said he has yet to put the property in his name due to significant taxes owed on the property, and the majority of the mess was caused by his brother and his friends, who suffered from addiction issues and passed away before the March RDN meeting.

After seeking reconsideration of the March order, Ferstel again spoke in front of the RDN board in June, asking them to reconsider their decision.

During the meeting, an emotional Ferstel pleaded with the board to give him time for a “fresh start”, noting now his brother has passed, work to improve the property would not be continually undone.

“Considering my cooperation, the time I’ve owned it for, 40 years, and the fact my brother has passed away, please let me have a chance to prove the new management that I will bring to the property. Don’t let the past negative reputation of the land crush the plans and dreams of the man whose been working for years on your side.”

Photos of the property were taken by Bylaw Officers in November of 2024. (Image Credit: RDN)

Following that decision, Ferstel removed garbage and debris from the property, including one of three dilapidated buildings, albeit without a permit, according to the RDN.

Ferstel also promised engineering reports stating the two remaining buildings were structurally sound, which he did not provide.

He was given until October to remove the two remaining buildings himself and obtain demolition permits, giving him another 30 days to comply.

Ferstel then filed for a judicial review in B.C. Supreme Court, citing “undue hardship and unreasonableness” against him by the RDN throughout the remedial action process.

He stated the primary reason for the hardship was due to the “considerable work on the buildings at issue and in securing the property. This includes replacing windows and doors, replacing sheathing, applying new tar paper and roofing materials.”

The demolition ordered was halted by a judge until the review could take place.

Judicial Review

During a Feb. 3 Supreme Court ruling, Justice Francesca Marzari dismissed the petition, stating, “I find that Mr. Ferstel has neither plead, nor established, on the evidence before me, a lack of procedural fairness by the Regional District. RDN provided him with plenty of advance notice.”

Justice Marzari said Ferstel had submitted “unsworn” photos and a copy of a recent engineering report on the two remaining buildings.

However, she said the “engineering report does not suggest that building #3 is safe, and falls far short of stating that building #2 is safe, even now.”

Ferstel was given 30 more days of reprieve following the Supreme Court decision, with Justice Marzari suggesting he use the time to remove any new additions to the two remaining buildings, or they would be demolished, with the RDN allowed to proceed with the remedial action requirements.

Justice Marzari said it appeared whenever Festel was given more time to comply, he would take steps to improve the buildings rather than comply with the removal order.

The anticipated cost of this cleanup, based on 2025 estimations, is between $60,000 and $100,000, but it won’t be confirmed until a contractor is selected and the demolition occurs.

It’s not the first time the RDN has had to step in to clean up the property.

A large-scale clean-up was completed in May 2023, costing over $160,000, which was recovered from the province and placed on the property tax roll as taxes in arrears.

Mercier said if future issues occur, they could seek a civil injunction on the property, but prefer to continue monitoring it to ensure it doesn’t become unsightly again, with direct enforcement actions planned if it becomes an issue again.

A moai statue, a copy of the ones found on Easter Island in Chile, is a recognizable and well-known local feature outside the property gate of 790/796 Nanaimo River Rd., built by Ferstel. (Image Credit: (Google Maps, 2014))

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by Jordan Davidson

‘Quite unsightly:’ RDN cleaning up problematic Nanaimo River Rd. property

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