NANAIMO - A major housing development is welcoming its first residents in the city's downtown. The first phase of a 195-unit, multi-storey rental housing build at the corner of Wallace St. and Wentworth St., owned and operated by TELUS Living, received an occupancy permit on Thursday, April 30, and began welcoming resi...

NANAIMO - Fresh off one of the warmest winters 124 years, the hot and dry conditions appear to be continuing well into the spring. The mean temperature last month was an even 10 degrees Celsius in Nanaimo, a full degree warmer than usual, making it the 19th warmest April in the city's history. Meteorologist with Enviro...

NANAIMO - While removing invasive plants isn't exclusively a fair-weather activity, the spring bloom sprouts all kinds of damaging species. Numerous neighbourhood-level work parties are chipping away at a variety of pesky invasive plants around Nanaimo throughout May. Recognized locally as Invasive Plant Removal Month,...

NANAIMO - Following its resurrection last year, volunteer organizers are preparing for a bigger, and better dry grad for local students this June.The entire Beban Park complex will be fenced off and set up with a wide array of activities for Nanaimo and Ladysmith-area grade 12s, celebrating the end of their time in hig...

PARKSVILLE - Crews responded to a significant fire impacting a Parksville car dealership on Island Hwy. East. Parksville Fire Rescue was called to Winchelsea Motors on the Highway at McVickers St. on Friday, May 1, at about 2:30 a.m., chief Marc Norris told NanaimoNewsNOW. He said firefighters were met with heavy fire ...

NANAIMO - Already Vancouver Island's largest commercial steel manufacturer, a Nanaimo company is moving forward with an ambitious growth strategy despite turbulent geopolitical headwinds.Niik Steel, located in the Duke Point Industrial Park, received a $900,000 B.C. government grant, allowing the company to make equipm...

NANAIMO - United Way BC (UWBC) is once again collecting menstrual products for those in need, with last year's donations unable to match the high demand. The Period Promise Campaign starts on Friday, May 1 and runs until the end of the month, with over a million menstrual products requested from 26 different frontline ...

NANAIMO - A morning house fire has claimed the life of three cats and badly damaged a south end home. Calls to 9-1-1 came around 10:10 a.m. on Friday, May 1, regarding a home on Haliburton St. between Crace St. and Finlayson St. with smoke visible from the outside by neighbours and passersby. Assistant chief of operati...

NANAIMO - After nearly 12 hours of public hearing submissions across three days, a proposed rezoning application will go back behind closed doors for further discussions.A third public hearing session, held Thursday, April 30, for a rezoning application at 950 Phoenix Way, again brought a passionate, near-capacity crow...

NANAIMO - Seasonal water restrictions are now in effect, with more likely on the way in the weeks and months ahead.Most areas of the Regional District of Nanaimo, including the City of Nanaimo, City of Parksville, District of Lantzville, and Nanoose Bay, are under stage two water restrictions, effective Friday, May 1, ...

NANAIMO - Late guilty pleas cancelled a pending BC Supreme Court trial following a high-profile drug and weapons bust with arrests made at a local overdose prevention site. Gerid James Gregory-Allen and Sara Lynn Koshman both pleaded guilty to their roles in a drugs and weapons bust at the Nanaimo Overdose Prevention s...

NANAIMO - It's time to dust off your stormtrooper helmet and polish your Bat boots, as the 2026 edition of Curious ComicCon is on this weekend in Nanaimo. Celebrating their ninth year hosting vendors, artists, cosplay enthusiasts and fans, Country Club Centre will once again be packed on Saturday, May 2, from 10 a.m. u...

NANAIMO - Last summer, an offender was walking out of Vancouver Island Walmart stores with hundreds of dollars' worth of unpaid merchandise. Austin Carlson-McPherson vows he's a changed man who's highly motivated and focused on turning his life around. A Wednesday, April 29, sentencing hearing at Nanaimo Law Courts del...

NANAIMO - Loaves and Fishes Community Foodbank recently received a big boost in grant money as they prepare to move into their new building. The Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN) approved $119,200 in funds for the purchase and installation of a structural pallet racking system for their new, currently under constructi...

NANAIMO - A two-vehicle crash south of Nanaimo sent three people to hospital. According to Nanaimo RCMP, the detachment responded to the intersection of Cedar and Haslam roads on Saturday, April 25, just before 12 p.m. "All involved parties remained on scene and the investigation resulted in a Motor Vehicle Act vi...

NANAIMO - The mid-Island was glowing green and blue on Wednesday, after a suspected meteor was caught on camera hurtling across the night sky. A Reddit user captured the stunning footage of the shooting star passing over their north Nanaimo home at 12:12 am on Wednesday, April 29. Submitted/Cootski on Reddit VIU astron...

NANAIMO - A judge scolded Oceanside RCMP for the detachment's handling of a man charged with distributing and possessing child sex abuse material. Provincial court judge Chris Churchill determined Robert Vernall Dalling, 65, was unlawfully detained at his Parksville apartment unit and wasn't given access to a lawyer wh...

NANAIMO - It's the annual Day of Mourning in B.C., remembering all of those who have been killed or injured in work-related incidents last year, including several from Nanaimo. Tuesday, April 28, is the day to recognize the 138 workers in B.C. who died last year due to workplace-related injuries or illness, including s...

LADYSMITH - A parcel of land near Ladysmith's water treatment facility is now in possession of the Town, in what they're calling the most significant park acquisition in decades. Located southwest of town, the 5.68 hectares of land on the southern slopes of Arbutus Hump is now marked for "ecological protection and...

NANAIMO - Warmer weather means vacations, road trips, and motorcycles on mid-Island roads, and driving enforcement officers want to make sure everyone gets home safely.May is high-risk driving and motorcycle awareness month, and the BC Highway Patrol is reminding all drivers just because the temperatures are increasing...

LANTZVILLE - A transformational vision for upper Lantzville is on hold for now, with no clear path forward for the developer. Proponents behind Lantzville Projects submitted major zoning and Official Community Plan (OCP) policy changes for an envisioned mixed-use development on 64 acres of primarily undeveloped land bo...

NANAIMO - A peculiar month-long road construction project at the southern entrance to Nanaimo's Beban Park is due to defective construction, according to the City. The City of Nanaimo is advising road users of an anticipated month-long project underway as of Monday, April 27, involving the new Beban Parkway roundabout ...

PARKSVILLE - A small wildfire in rural Oceanside is being held by responding crews.The Coastal Fire Centre reports the Rowbotham Lake wildfire grew to two hectares in size after being discovered Sunday, April 26, burning around 10 kilometres southwest of Parksville.Burning in a cutblock, a combination of a unit crew, a...

NANAIMO - A glimmer of hope in securing a multi-faceted social services hub for Nanaimo's vulnerable has been dashed as the hunt for alternate sites marches on. Following a suggestion from local MLA Sheila Malcolmson to pursue reopening The Hub at 250 Albert St., the building's owner has publicly confirmed their addres...

NANOOSE BAY - Copious sweat equity is paying off to restore a small island to its natural, pristine site.Over 80 volunteers, almost half of which were high school students from Qualicum Beach and Port Alberni, spent portions of six days on Gerald Island, off the coast of Nanoose Bay, clearing and burning around eight m...

NANAIMO - A Harbour City tradition aims to strike the right chord once again this year. Concerts in the Park, featuring 14 performance dates across multiple genres, starting this past Wednesday evening carries on through August 27. Adrienne Breen, the City's manager of culture & special events, said local performer...

NANAIMO - The Americans have come, and come in record numbers.Invited by local couple Tod and Jocelyn Maffin, the second Nanaimo Infusion drew around 1,000 people to Maffeo Sutton Park on Saturday, April 25, a vast majority of whom were visiting from all across the United States.During his opening remarks, Tod said the...

NANAIMO - An annual sweet treat fundraiser in the name of improving regional primary healthcare is back. Tim Hortons' annual Smile Cookie campaign involving specially decorated chocolate chunk cookies sold at all Nanaimo Tim's locations between Monday, April 27 and Sunday, May 3, to support the Nanaimo and District Hos...