The ever-popular Neck Point Park in north Nanaimo will get a face lift over the next month, with work crews paving the parking lot, doing away with an often muddy, pothole-filled area. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Alex Rawnsley

paving paradise

Nanaimo’s Neck Point parking lot to close for month-long paving project

Sep 24, 2025 | 5:33 AM

NANAIMO — The City is preparing to pave a tiny part of paradise for a parking lot, in a bid to make one of the area’s most popular parks a little bit easier to visit.

Work crews are expected at Nanaimo’s Neck Point Park beginning Monday, Sept. 29, for a roughly one-month-long project, temporarily closing the parking lot to pave it and make the entire area more accessible.

City deputy director of parks and natural areas Charlotte Davis told NanaimoNewsNOW this project builds on work done to improve washroom access at one of the city’s most frequented areas.

“This is one of our most popular destination parks, particularly our most popular natural area destination park, a jewel in the crown of Nanaimo. This really is a very, very minimal project, and we’re just paving the area for the parking spots and that will allow many more people to get into the park safely.”

Signs have been up at the park for a few days, outlining changes to come, beginning Sept. 29. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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The park itself, including all trails, will remain open and fully available throughout the project.

It’s expected the new paved parking lot will reopen by Oct. 31.

Thirty-two spaces will be outlined in the new design, which will also include new crosswalks, a speed bump and four accessible parking spaces.

Paving the area will do away with extensive maintenance which was quickly undone by rainfall and heavy vehicle traffic, leaving behind potholes and compounded accessibility issues.

During construction vehicle access to the park will be closed off, with parking available along Morningside Dr. and at Morningside Park.

After-hours parking, on weekends and from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays, will also be available at Ecole Hammond Bay Elementary School.

Davis said the City doesn’t keep count of the exact number of people who use the park, but said it was comfortably in the “hundreds per day”.

The project was also done through consultation with the City’s Advisory Committee on Accessibility and Inclusiveness.

“We have the washroom now, that means that people can spend the day, but we need for all people to be able to spend the day and get there safely, which is why we’re improving the parking lot. Future improvements will include signage and wayfinding, and interpretive information.”

Budget for the paving project is $287,000.

Davis added paving the Neck Point parking lot was in the top three for most common requests the Parks department receives from local residents.

Cars are typically door-to-door during most hours of the day and evening at Neck Point Park, with parking at a premium. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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