This is an accepted version of this page
Nanaimo | |
|---|---|
| City of Nanaimo | |
 Nanaimo in 2005, from theStrait of Georgia | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
| Nicknames: Hub City, The Harbour City | |
  Nanaimo Nanaimo (British Columbia) Show map of British Columbia | |
| Coordinates:49°09′51″N123°56′11″W / 49.16417°N 123.93639°W /49.16417; -123.93639 | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | British Columbia |
| District | Nanaimo Regional |
| Incorporated | 1874[2] |
| Government | |
| • Type | Elected city council |
| • Mayor | Leonard Krog |
| • Governing body | Nanaimo City Council |
| • MPs | Lisa Marie Barron (NDP) |
| • MLAs | Sheila Malcolmson (BC NDP) Doug Routley (BC NDP) Adam Walker (BC NDP) |
| Area | |
• City | 91.30 km2 (35.25 sq mi) |
| • Metro | 1,280.84 km2 (494.54 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 28 m (92 ft) |
| Population (2021) | |
• City | 99,863[1] (ranked 57th) |
| • Density | 1,104.1/km2 (2,860/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 96,415[3] |
| • Metro | 115,459 (ranked 35th)[1] |
| • Metro density | 76.5/km2 (198/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Nanaimoite |
| Time zone | UTC−8 (PST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−7 (PDT) |
| Forward sortation area | |
| Area codes | 250,778,236,672 |
| Website | nanaimo |
Nanaimo (/nəˈnaɪmoʊ/nə-NY-moh) is a city of about 100,000 on the east coast ofVancouver Island, inBritish Columbia, Canada. "The Harbour City" was previously known as the "Hub City", which was attributed to its original layout design with streets radiating from the shoreline like the spokes of a wagon wheel, and to its relatively central location on Vancouver Island.[4][5] Nanaimo is the headquarters of theRegional District of Nanaimo.
Nanaimo is served by theIsland Highway along the east coast, theBC Ferries system, andits regional airport. It is also on the dormantIsland Rail Corridor.
TheIndigenous peoples of the area that is now known as Nanaimo are theSnuneymuxw. An anglicized spelling and pronunciation of that word gave the city its current name.[6]
The first Europeans known to reachNanaimo Harbour were members of the 1791 Spanish voyage ofJuan Carrasco, under the command ofFrancisco de Eliza. They gave it the nameBocas de Winthuysen[5] after naval officerFrancisco Javier Winthuysen y Pineda. When the BritishHudson's Bay Company (HBC) established a settlement here in 1852, they named it Colvile Town after HBC governorAndrew Colvile. In 1858 it was renamed as Nanaimo, after the local indigenous people.[7]: 184 The city has been called "The Harbour City" since the lead-up toExpo 86.[8]
The HBC attempted to start a coal mine atPort Rupert but the project had been unsuccessful. In 1850 Snuneymuxw Chief Che-wich-i-kan, commonly known as "Coal Tyee", brought samples of coal to Victoria. A company clerk was dispatched and eventually the governor James Douglas visited the future site of Nanaimo.[9]
While open to selling coal, the Snuneymuxw wished to retain control of it and retain the exclusive right to mine it. Chief Wun-wun-shum offered to sell coal for five barrels in exchange for one blanket. The HBC representativeJoseph William McKay deemed this "impertinent". The Snuneymuxw retained their rights to the resource for a while, but gradually lost them due to other tribes and miners from the failed Port Rupert project.[9]
By 1852, the first shipment of Nanaimo coal was loaded on theCadboro.
Construction of theNanaimo Bastion began in 1853 and was finished in 1855.[10]
On 27 November 1854, 24 coal miners and their families from England arrived at the settlement aboard theBeaver andRecovery. They had travelled seven months on the shipPrincess Royal arriving atEsquimalt two days earlier. They transferred to the two smaller vessels for the trip to Colvile Town.[9] They were greeted by Joseph William McKay and 21 Scottish miners.
During World War I, the provincial government established anInternment camp for Ukrainian detainees, many of them local, at a Provincial jail in Nanaimo. It operated from September 1914 to September 1915.[11]
In the 1940s, lumber supplanted coal as the main business. Minetown Days have been celebrated in the neighbouring community ofLantzville to highlight some of the locale's history.[12]
In the late nineteenth century, numerous immigrants came from China and settled here. What was known as the first Chinatown in Nanaimo was founded during the gold rush years of the 1860s; it was the third largest in British Columbia.[13] In 1884, because of mounting racial tensions related to the Dunsmuir coal company's hiring of Chinese strikebreakers, the company helped move Chinatown to a location outside city limits.[14]
In 1908, when two Chinese entrepreneurs bought the site and tried to raise rents, the community and 4,000 shareholders from across Canada combined forces and bought a site for the third Chinatown, at a new location focused on Pine Street. That third Chinatown burned down on 30 September 1960 but it was by then mostly derelict and abandoned. A fourth Chinatown, also called Lower Chinatown or "new town", boomed for a while in the 1920s on Machleary Street.[13]
Located on the east coast of Vancouver Island, Nanaimo is about 111 kilometres (69 mi) north-west ofVictoria,[citation needed] and 55 kilometres (34 mi) west ofVancouver, separated by theStrait of Georgia, and linked to Vancouver via the Horseshoe BayBC Ferries terminal in West Vancouver and the Duke Point terminal to theTsawwassen ferry terminal inTsawwassen. As the site of the main ferry terminal, Nanaimo is the gateway to many other destinations both on the northern part of the island—Tofino,Comox Valley,Parksville,Campbell River,Port Alberni,Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park—and off its coast—Saysutshun,Protection Island,Gabriola Island,Valdes Island, and many other of theGulf Islands.[citation needed] A privatepassenger ferry service connecting to Vancouver, namedHullo, began operating in August 2023.[15]
Buttertubs Marsh is a bird sanctuary located in the middle of the city. The marsh covers approximately 100 acres (40 ha). Within this is the 46-acre (19 ha) "Buttertubs Marsh Conservation Area", owned by the Nature Trust of British Columbia.
Like much of coastal British Columbia, Nanaimo experiences a temperate climate with mild, rainy winters and warm, dry summers. Due to its relatively dry summers, theKöppen climate classification places it at the northernmost limits of theCsb or warm-summerMediterranean zone.[16] Other climate classification systems, such asTrewartha, place it firmly in theOceanic zone (Do).[17]
Nanaimo is usually shielded from theAleutian Low's influence by the mountains of central Vancouver Island, so that summers are unusually dry for its latitude and location—though summer drying as a trend is found in the immediate lee of the coastal ranges as far north asSkagway, Alaska.
Heavy snowfall does occasionally occur during winter, with a record daily total of 74 centimetres (29.13 in) on 12 February 1975, but the mean maximum cover is only 20 centimetres (7.9 in).
The highest temperature ever recorded in Nanaimo was 40.6 °C (105 °F) on 16 July 1941.[18] The coldest temperature ever recorded was −20.0 °C (−4 °F) on 30 December 1968.[19]
| Climate data forNanaimo Airport, 1981–2010 normals, extremes 1892–present[a] | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 15.6 (60.1) | 18.3 (64.9) | 21.7 (71.1) | 27.0 (80.6) | 34.3 (93.7) | 40.5 (104.9) | 40.6 (105.1) | 36.7 (98.1) | 33.2 (91.8) | 29.3 (84.7) | 19.4 (66.9) | 18.2 (64.8) | 40.6 (105.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 6.9 (44.4) | 8.5 (47.3) | 11.0 (51.8) | 14.1 (57.4) | 17.7 (63.9) | 20.8 (69.4) | 23.9 (75.0) | 24.3 (75.7) | 20.9 (69.6) | 14.6 (58.3) | 9.3 (48.7) | 6.3 (43.3) | 14.8 (58.6) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 3.5 (38.3) | 4.3 (39.7) | 6.3 (43.3) | 9.0 (48.2) | 12.5 (54.5) | 15.6 (60.1) | 18.1 (64.6) | 18.2 (64.8) | 14.9 (58.8) | 9.9 (49.8) | 5.6 (42.1) | 3.1 (37.6) | 10.1 (50.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 0.1 (32.2) | 0.0 (32.0) | 1.7 (35.1) | 3.9 (39.0) | 7.2 (45.0) | 10.3 (50.5) | 12.3 (54.1) | 12.1 (53.8) | 8.9 (48.0) | 5.2 (41.4) | 1.8 (35.2) | −0.2 (31.6) | 5.3 (41.5) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −18.3 (−0.9) | −17.2 (1.0) | −12.2 (10.0) | −5 (23) | −4.4 (24.1) | 0.6 (33.1) | 2.8 (37.0) | 3.3 (37.9) | −1.1 (30.0) | −6.7 (19.9) | −16.1 (3.0) | −20 (−4) | −20 (−4) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 187.9 (7.40) | 126.0 (4.96) | 113.0 (4.45) | 67.4 (2.65) | 54.3 (2.14) | 43.4 (1.71) | 25.4 (1.00) | 28.4 (1.12) | 35.8 (1.41) | 102.2 (4.02) | 197.2 (7.76) | 184.3 (7.26) | 1,165.4 (45.88) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 167.8 (6.61) | 115.2 (4.54) | 106.9 (4.21) | 67.2 (2.65) | 54.2 (2.13) | 43.4 (1.71) | 25.4 (1.00) | 28.4 (1.12) | 35.8 (1.41) | 101.2 (3.98) | 186.5 (7.34) | 166.1 (6.54) | 1,098.2 (43.24) |
| Average snowfall cm (inches) | 21.0 (8.3) | 10.9 (4.3) | 6.2 (2.4) | 0.2 (0.1) | 0.1 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 1.2 (0.5) | 10.7 (4.2) | 18.4 (7.2) | 68.7 (27.0) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 19.7 | 16.0 | 18.2 | 15.6 | 14.8 | 12.4 | 7.6 | 6.8 | 8.2 | 15.5 | 20.5 | 20.4 | 175.6 |
| Average rainy days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 18.0 | 14.9 | 17.8 | 15.6 | 14.8 | 12.4 | 7.6 | 6.8 | 8.2 | 15.4 | 19.8 | 18.8 | 170.0 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.2 cm) | 3.1 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.2 | 3.2 | 11.0 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%)(at 3pm) | 81.5 | 71.1 | 65.5 | 59.6 | 57.8 | 57.0 | 52.7 | 52.1 | 56.2 | 68.5 | 78.4 | 83.2 | 65.3 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 56.8 | 88.6 | 133.1 | 179.0 | 224.4 | 226.1 | 288.8 | 280.0 | 213.9 | 131.9 | 67.0 | 50.8 | 1,940.2 |
| Percentagepossible sunshine | 21.0 | 31.0 | 36.2 | 43.6 | 47.4 | 46.7 | 59.1 | 62.8 | 56.4 | 39.3 | 24.3 | 19.7 | 40.6 |
| Source:Environment Canada[18][19][20][21][22][23] | |||||||||||||
Nanaimo is served by two airports:Nanaimo Airport (YCD) with services to Vancouver (YVR), Toronto (YYZ), and Calgary (YYC) and[citation needed]Nanaimo Harbour Water Aerodrome (ZNA) with services to Vancouver Harbour (CXH), Vancouver Airport (YVR South Terminal), and Sechelt (YHS);[citation needed].
Nanaimo also has threeBC Ferry terminals located atDeparture Bay,Duke Point, anddowntown. The downtown terminal servicesGabriola Island while Departure Bay and Duke Point serviceHorseshoe Bay andTsawwassen respectively.
A private passenger ferry operates between Nanaimo Harbour and Protection Island. A seasonal passenger ferry operates between Swy-a-Lana Lagoon and Saysutshun (Newcastle Island Marine) Park.[24]
Since 2023Hullo has operated a high speed passenger-only ferry service between downtown Nanaimo and downtown Vancouver. Travel time between the cities is 75 minutes.
Highways 1,19, and19A traverse the city. Highway 19 (Nanaimo Parkway) acts as an expressway bypass to the west of Nanaimo while Highway 1, then Highway 19A traverses the length of Nanaimo as an arterial road within the city proper.
Bus service in the city is provided byNanaimo Regional Transit and offers city-wide service as well as region service connecting Parksville and Qualicum Beach to the north, and Ladysmith and Duncan to the south.
TheIsland Rail Corridor passes through Nanaimo and has a base of operations and yard in the downtown waterfront area.
The Nanaimo Port Authority operates the inner Harbour Basin marina providing mooring for smaller vessels and the W. E. Mills Landing and Marina providing mooring for larger vessels.[25] The Port Authority also operates two terminal facilities one at Assembly Wharf (near the downtown core) and the second at Duke Point for cargo operations. In 2011, the Authority completed the addition of a $22 million cruise ship terminal at Assembly Wharf capable of handling large cruise ships including providingCanada Border Services Agency clearance.[26]
In the2021 Census of Population conducted byStatistics Canada, Nanaimo had a population of 99,863 living in 43,164 of its 45,138 total private dwellings, a change of10.3% from its 2016 population of 90,504. With a land area of 90.45 km2 (34.92 sq mi), it had a population density of1,104.1/km2 (2,859.5/sq mi) in 2021.[27]
At thecensus metropolitan area (CMA) level in the 2021 census, the Nanaimo CMA had a population of115,459 living in49,348 of its51,568 total private dwellings, a change of10% from its 2016 population of104,936. With a land area of 1,279.28 km2 (493.93 sq mi), it had a population density of90.3/km2 (233.8/sq mi) in 2021.[28]
In 2016, the average age of a Nanaimoite is 45.5 years old, higher than the national median at 41.2.
In Nanaimo, there are 40,885 private dwellings, 39,165 which are occupied by usual residents (95.8% occupancy rate). The median value of these dwellings are $359,760, which is higher than the national median at $341,556. The average (after-tax) household income in Nanaimo is $48,469, lower than the national median at $54,089. The median individual income is $34,702, which is also lower than the national median ($38,977). The unemployment rate was 7.7%.[29]
| Panethnic group | 2021[30] | 2016[31] | 2011[32] | 2006[33] | 2001[34] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
| European[b] | 75,815 | 78.14% | 72,560 | 82.78% | 70,455 | 86.38% | 67,275 | 86.66% | 63,540 | 88.49% |
| Indigenous | 7,905 | 8.15% | 6,405 | 7.31% | 5,115 | 6.27% | 4,060 | 5.23% | 3,380 | 4.71% |
| East Asian[c] | 4,220 | 4.35% | 3,220 | 3.67% | 2,200 | 2.7% | 2,235 | 2.88% | 1,615 | 2.25% |
| South Asian | 3,095 | 3.19% | 1,900 | 2.17% | 1,525 | 1.87% | 1,855 | 2.39% | 1,265 | 1.76% |
| Southeast Asian[d] | 2,670 | 2.75% | 1,715 | 1.96% | 1,090 | 1.34% | 1,210 | 1.56% | 1,335 | 1.86% |
| African | 1,180 | 1.22% | 625 | 0.71% | 400 | 0.49% | 380 | 0.49% | 220 | 0.31% |
| Middle Eastern[e] | 740 | 0.76% | 445 | 0.51% | 195 | 0.24% | 145 | 0.19% | 95 | 0.13% |
| Latin American | 710 | 0.73% | 465 | 0.53% | 270 | 0.33% | 150 | 0.19% | 195 | 0.27% |
| Other[f] | 685 | 0.71% | 320 | 0.37% | 310 | 0.38% | 310 | 0.4% | 175 | 0.24% |
| Total responses | 97,020 | 97.15% | 87,650 | 96.85% | 81,565 | 97.32% | 77,630 | 98.65% | 71,805 | 98.36% |
| Total population | 99,863 | 100% | 90,504 | 100% | 83,810 | 100% | 78,692 | 100% | 73,000 | 100% |
Nanaimo's population is predominantlyAnglophone. As of the 2016 census 86.7% of residents claimed English as their mother tongue. Other common first languages were Chinese Languages (2.0%), French (1.3%), German (1.2%) and Punjabi (1.0%).[29]
According to the2021 census, religious groups in Nanaimo included:[30]
The original economic driver was coal mining; however, the forestry industry supplanted it in the early 1960s with the building of theMacMillan Bloedel pulp mill atHarmac in 1958, named afterHarvey MacMillan. Today the pulp mill is owned by the employees and local investors[35] and injects well over half a million dollars a day into the local economy[citation needed] and makes the entire area smell likesulfur multiple times a year.[36] The largest employer is the provincial government. The service, retail and tourism industries are also big contributors to the local economy.
Technological development on Nanaimo has been growing with companies such as "Inuktun" and the establishment of government-fundedInnovation Island as a site to help Nanaimo-based technologicalstart ups by giving them access to tools, education and venture capital.[37]
The average sale price of houses in Nanaimo for 2011 was approximately $350,000.[38] A recent surge of higher-density real estate development, centred in the Old City / Downtown area, as well as construction of a city-funded waterfront conference centre, has proven controversial. Proponents of these developments argue that they will bolster the city's economy, while critics worry that they will block waterfront views and increase traffic congestion. Concerns have also been raised about the waterfront conference centre's construction running over its proposed budget. Nanaimo has also been experiencing job growth in the technology sector.[citation needed]
Nanaimo is served by one newspaper: theNanaimo News Bulletin (33,000 copies twice a week—audited), which is owned byBlack Press.The Harbour City Star, also owned by publisher Black Press, was closed in 2016.[39] On 29 January 2016, the 141-year-oldNanaimo Daily News, shut down.[40] Nanaimo also hosts a bureau forCIVI-DT (CTV 2 Victoria, cable channel 12) and a satellite office forCHEK-DT (Independent, cable channel 6).
Nanaimo is also served by theJim Pattison Group'sCHWF-FM (The Wolf) andCKWV-FM (The Wave), as well asCHLY-FM, an independent communitycampus radio station andVista Radio'sCKAY-FM (ICON Radio).CBC Radio One is heard overCBU from Vancouver, withCBU-FM (CBC Music) andCBCV-FM available asHD Radio signals.
In theHouse of Commons of Canada, Nanaimo is represented byLisa Marie Barron of theNDP, representing theriding ofNanaimo—Ladysmith since the2021 election. The city was split into two separate ridings,Nanaimo—Cowichan (Jean Crowder,New Democratic Party), which includes South Nanaimo and Cassidy, andNanaimo—Alberni (James Lunney,Independent elected as aConservative), which includes North Nanaimo and Lantzville, until the2012 federal electoral redistribution.
| Year | Liberal | Conservative | New Democratic | Green | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 14% | 6,990 | 26% | 12,908 | 29% | 14,373 | 25% | 12,095 | |
| 2019 | 14% | 7,219 | 26% | 13,056 | 22% | 12,004 | 35% | 17,685 | |
In theLegislative Assembly of British Columbia, Nanaimo is represented by the ridings ofNanaimo-Lantzville (George Anderson,BC NDP) andNanaimo-Gabriola Island (Sheila Malcolmson,BC NDP).
Leonard Krog resigned in 2018 to accept the position of Mayor of Nanaimo. In response, Sheila Malcolmson resigned from federal politics and successfully ran for the vacated position. She was re-elected in the2024 British Columbia general election.
| Year | New Democratic | Liberal | Green | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 52% | 20,726 | 24% | 9,507 | 23% | 9,172 | |
| 2017 | 44% | 19,034 | 34% | 14,747 | 20% | 8,707 | |
The mayor of Nanaimo is currentlyLeonard Krog, who replacedBill Mackay in 2018.
The most well-known mayor Nanaimo ever had wasFrank J. Ney, who instigated Nanaimo's well-known bathtub races, which he regularly attended dressed as a pirate. There is a statue to commemorate Ney—dressed in his pirate costume—at Swy-a-Lana Lagoon, which is on the Nanaimo waterfront. Ney was also an MLA for the Social Credit party while he was mayor.[43] An elementary school has been named in his honour.
Mark Bate became Nanaimo's first mayor in 1875. He served an additional 15 one-year terms as mayor (1875–1879, 1881–1886, 1888–1889, and 1898–1900).[44]
The city's planning department has steadily produced enough municipal data to warrant aTime magazine article onopen-government. Nanaimo has been dubbed "the capital of Google Earth".[45] Working directly withGoogle, the city fed it a wealth of information about its buildings, property lines, utilities and streets. The result is earth.nanaimo.ca, a wealth of city data viewed through theGoogle Earth 3D mapping program.[46] Their Open Data Catalogue is available at data.nanaimo.ca.[46]
Nanaimo has over 30 elementary and secondary schools, most of which are public and are operated bySchool District 68 Nanaimo-Ladysmith.
Aspengrove School is a JrK-grade 12 Independent (private) school accredited as anInternational Baccalaureate World School and offers the IB Primary Years, IB Middle Years and IB Diploma programme and received a 10 out of 10 by the IB Organization (IBO) in 2011.
TheConseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique operates two Francophone schools,École Océane primary school and theÉcole secondaire de Nanaimo.[47]
The main campus ofVancouver Island University is located in Nanaimo, which brings many international students, mostly East Asian, to the city.
The Pacific Biological Station, located on the north shore of Departure Bay, was established in 1908.[48] It is the oldestfisheries research centre on thePacific coast. Operated byFisheries and Oceans Canada, the station forms a network with eight other scientific facilities.[49]
The Nanaimo Art Gallery is a public art museum located downtown at 150 Commercial Street. In addition to contemporary exhibitions by local, national and international artists, the Gallery operates Art Lab which offers year-round art-based programs for learners of all ages. The Gallery also holds a collection of artwork, operates The Gallery Store, which features work by local artists and artisans, and runs Artists in the Schools, a program that operates across three school districts.[50][non-primary source needed]
TheNanaimo Museum is a public historical museum located downtown on the traditional territory of theSnuneymuxw First Nation at 100 Museum Way.
The Vancouver Island Military Museum is a public military historical museum located at 100 Cameron Road.
ThePort Theatre in downtown Nanaimo hosts many performers and shows during the year.[51][52]
TheNanaimo bar, which is a no-bake cookie bar with custard filling, is a Canadian dessert named after Nanaimo.
Nanaimo hosts the annual Nanaimo Marine Festival. Part of the festival includes thebathtub race. The race starts in theNanaimo Harbour downtown, goes aroundEntrance Island, north-west to Winchelsea Islands byNanoose Bay and finish in Departure Bay back in Nanaimo. Until the 1990s the race alternated between racing from Nanaimo to Vancouver and from Vancouver to Nanaimo.[53]
Nanaimo has one sister city:
Saitama (←Iwatsuki City),Saitama Prefecture, Japan, since 1996[60]
Nanaimo travel guide from Wikivoyage| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
49°09′51″N123°56′11″W / 49.16417°N 123.93639°W /49.16417; -123.93639
