BY ERIK MORDEN
It is no secret that downtown Nanaimo has developed a certain reputation.
I have had countless conversations over the last five months living here, and the sentiment toward downtown is usually the same: ‘avoid it at all costs.’ When I tell these same people that I enjoy spending time downtown and actively try to make it part of my daily experience, I am often met with wide eyes and dropped jaws. And I won’t sit here and act like it’s perfect, but I challenge residents of Nanaimo to take a moment and think:
What is actually so bad about downtown Nanaimo? And is there nothing you could do to change this?
As a prospective community planner, it is hard to ignore the glaring fact that downtown Nanaimo is a victim of urban sprawl and poor planning. And while it may no longer be the same small town that many long-term residents remember it to be, giving up on it will only make it worse. To a fresh set of eyes, I see downtown as a labyrinth of history and character, painted by the land and sea it sits between. A community with a thriving arts and music scene, quirky cafés, and welcoming shops.
Compared to similar-sized cities in the Lower Mainland, Nanaimo is lucky to have a centralized and historic downtown core. And while it is important to highlight this history and retain the built heritage that makes Nanaimo unique, it is also important to acknowledge that renewal is not only a physical re-ordering of the built form, but a renewal of thought. It is up to us to re-think and re-frame how we view downtown – if we are to ever re-shape downtown.
According to the Project for Public Spaces, a non-profit organization based in New York dedicated to creating and sustaining public places that build communities, successful places are based on four qualities: sociability, uses and activities, access and linkage, and comfort and image. And while I think much of this falls on the role of the community planner to stimulate, I would argue sociability is largely the responsibility of the resident. Without a sense of pride or stewardship for the place you live, the other qualities are bound to hurt, no matter what policy is written or building is built.
Commercial Street and Terminal Avenue are being upgraded to improve the pedestrian experience, and multiple new businesses have opened their doors. It is hopeful that downtown is heading in the right direction, but everyone needs to be on board if these initiatives are to be worthwhile. If you care enough about downtown to have strong opinions on it, you should care enough to make a difference.
Nanaimo is never going to be the same as you may remember, but authentic experiences are not solely based in the romanticism of the past. The origin of a space is ongoing and is activated and (re)produced by the users and activities within the space. In this sense, the people are the place, and we are responsible for making spaces into what we want them to be. There are already tons of amazing individuals, artists, shop owners, community groups and associations doing their best to make a difference, and we must support them. I encourage you to go downtown, stop at a local shop, and sit on that bench that currently no one does. Watch the feedback loop work, and be a part of the change. I will be down there, and I hope you will be too.
Erik Morden is a master of community planning student at Vancouver Island University.
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