Since opening its door in January, the Hub, which provides daytime services for the unhoused and an overnight shelter, has been at the centre of controversy from neighbours, while showing how the work they do is badly needed. (File photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

resource centre

Top Stories of 2025: Drop-in Hub opens in downtown Nanaimo amid neighbourhood concerns

Dec 19, 2025 | 2:31 PM

NANAIMO — Announced in December 2024, a new year-round warming and cooling centre was set to open in January at 55 Victoria Rd. in Nanaimo’s downtown.

Operated through a joint partnership between Island Crisis Care Society (ICCS) and Nanaimo Family Life Association (NFLA), with financial backing from the City, the drop-in Hub offered unhoused people a place to go for a bite to eat, a place to rest and clean up, and access to community resources.

Violet Hayes, executive director of ICCS, told NanaimoNewsNOW at the time of opening, the need for a centre was identified years ago through talks between local organizations and those living rough.

“It was unanimous that they would like a resource centre, where they could come receive supports they need, get warm or cool but also just to be able to take that next step, meet with someone from Island Health or someone that can help them with housing applications.”

Funded in part by the City, ICCS operated the site during the day, while NFLA assumed operations overnight.

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The ‘Hub’, as it became to be known, averaged almost 70 visits a day by June, representing 207 unique individuals.

Multiple other local agencies also provide regular onsite services, including the 7-10 Club Society, Island Health Complex Care Housing Team, and Snuneymuxw First Nation Outreach.

However, not everyone was happy with the Hub’s progress, specifically nearby residents, who cited increased social disorder they say is caused by the Hub’s clientele remaining in the area on sidewalks and nearby lots.

Even during daytime hours, scenes like this appear to show the spillover from the Hub along Victoria Ave. (Submitted photo)

Members of the City’s public safety committee expressed their concern in June, with Collen Middleton calling the area a “vacuum” due to the high number of services of this nature offered within a finite radius.

“We’ve essentially created a black hole of human suffering in downtown Nanaimo and south end, and the people that live in the neighbourhoods are essentially on the event horizon. People are being traumatized just by living around it.”

In addition, several traffic-related concerns have been reported involving people wandering onto the busy highway.

A City staff report said Community Safety Officers (CSO) responded to 117 calls for service to the Hub from January 1 to June 15, 2025, with the majority of calls related to assisting other agencies like the RCMP, BC Ambulance or Island Health.

Meanwhile, the RCMP were tasked with 503 calls for service in the area of the Hub, as well as the 100 block of Victoria Rd and the 100 block of Nicol St. from January 2024 to June 11, 2025.

There’s been at least one confirmed report of a person on the road outside the hub being struck by a passing vehicle in November, with only minor injuries reported. (File photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

A further $500,000 in federal grant money went towards the Hub in July for operational costs while concerns from neighbours continued, with one resident calling it “a total degradation of our neighbourhood.”

In July, the City provided funding to keep the Hub open until March 31, 2026, while City Staff work with the Hub’s service providers to find another, more suitable location.

According to a City report on the Hub at the time, they had supported 314 unique individuals to date, an average of 77 visits per day.

Their 20-bed overnight shelter was at 93 per cent capacity since opening in January.

Sixty-four additional shelter beds were included over the winter, ending on April 30, with the Hub operating at full capacity since then, turning away an average of 10 people per night.

Neighbours continued to lobby for the immediate shutdown of the Hub while a new location was being sought.

In mid-December, several speakers presented both in support of and against the facility, as the City continued to look for a new location.

A City report states they’ve been unable to identify a new potential location, with 20 properties explored so far.

Daily usage has steadily increased since it opened, averaging 83 unique visits per day, and turning away an average of five people a night.

Barriers include landlords being unwilling to rent them a space, buildings not meeting their needs, and a lack of funding for sites only available for purchase.

The committee approved Council sending a letter to the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs to discuss the urgent need for funding for the Hub and other housing-related priorities.

Complaints related to loitering, open drug use, and social disorder began shortly after the Hub at 55 Victoria Rd. opened it’s doors in January. (File photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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