Nanaimo’s Rotary Bowl partially closed for major upgrades

In a news release, the City said the work has a $1.4M budget, with $300,000 provided through the Union of British Columbia Municipalities Community Works Fund.

Construction is expected to be completed in October.

Nanaimo’s Rotary Bowl will be partially closed during construction, including the entire infield and most of the track. Photos from Thursday, July 2. (Image Credit: Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Urbanowicz said the sprint start extension will be a huge improvement in how they operate shorter races.

“We want to be able to run the 100 meters in both directions…depending on the wind direction, so that’ll make a big difference too.”

The City said the work is being done to “meet the growing demand of the community,” while also enabling them to host higher levels of track and field competitions

“We’re always competing with all the other sports in town,” said Urbanowicz. “But I think track and field is definitely becoming more popular, and people are seeing the benefit of putting their kids in. We’re just hoping that we can keep it going the way we have been, because right now we’re one of the biggest clubs in the province.”

Several improvements have been made to the Rotary Bowl since the City took possession of it almost ten years ago. (Image Credit: Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Interest in track and field normally sees an increase following the summer Olympics, which has been especially true locally after Nanaimo’s own Ethan Katzberg won the gold medal in hammer throw at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the first Canadian to do so.

“We’ve definitely seen an uptick in kids in the province doing hammer throw,” said Urbanowicz. “Not just because of Ethan, but also Cameron Rogers, who’s also from B.C. So hammer is really seeing a resurgence, and we’re becoming quite a powerhouse in that event. Hoping to see that translate into more kids wanting to do hammer here in Nanaimo.”

The City named the Rotary Bowl’s hammer cage in Katzberg’s honour that fall.

The Rotary Bowl was purchased by the City from Nanaimo Ladysmith Public Schools in 2017, with multiple improvements made to the area since.

An incident of arson was a setback for the local track and field club this past February when the club’s pole vaulting equipment and metal shed housing the items were destroyed.

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by Jordan Davidson

Nanaimo’s Rotary Bowl partially closed for major upgrades

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