NANAIMO – Environmental studies associated with the City of Nanaimo-owned 26.7 acre waterfront parcel at 1 Port Drive in the city’s downtown core have been completed. The studies reveal that while the majority of the property was created through reclamation using coal waste, the site can be redeveloped using a risk managed approach.
“The completion of the environmental studies is another key milestone in unlocking the development potential of this key waterfront parcel. The approvals we have received from the Ministry of Environment will allow us to proceed with redevelopment of the lands in the near future,” explained Mayor Bill McKay.
The Ministry of Environment has given approval for the lands to be subdivided, rezoned and for development permits to be issued. Future development will use the baseline information from the environmental studies to determine how the soils can be recycled on site or disposed of to an approved facility.
Key Points:
- The City has completed a Stage 1 Preliminary Site Investigation, Detailed Site Investigation and a Detailed Risk Assessment. Total cost of the studies was $440,000 which was supported by a $175,000 grant from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
- The studies have identified 3 areas of contamination on the property that do not need to be removed from the property if they are risk managed.
- The Ministry of Environment has removed the ‘high risk’ designation from the property which allows redevelopment of the property to move forward.
- 1 Port Drive is a City-owned 26.7 acre parcel of waterfront land acquired from CP Rail in March 2013 for $3.4m. The parcel is adjacent to the downtown core and is a future growth area.
- The City is currently undertaking a Master Plan for the property. Public input will be sought in the spring of 2016.
