A fire-ravaged lot in the heart of downtown Nanaimo and two other lots in the Old City Quarter are being offered up by the city to encourage commercial and residential development in the core.
Nanaimo is seeking separate expressions of interest for the two locations, each with a submission deadline of Sept. 5.
“The former Jean Burns property at 6 Commercial St. is one of the most high-profile vacant sites in the city of Nanaimo,” Mayor Leonard Krog said.
The city will evaluate expressions of interest for the 0.25-acre lot in the heart of downtown but won’t necessarily choose the highest bidder.
“When council acquired the property in 2021, our goal was to see the property brought back into productive use and to help reinvigorate the downtown. This expression of interest process allows council to receive proposals and identify a project that is the best fit for our community,” Krog said.
Nanaimo bought five lots, including the Jean Burns site, in 2021 to move forward with its vision of a new “front door to downtown,” Krog said at the time.
The lot was home to the historic two-storey Jean Burns building, which was destroyed by fire in spring 2016 with the remaining structure demolished in 2017. It has been unused since.
Selling the lot to a developer would tie in with other plans coming up this year and beyond in the immediate area.
This lot faces both Terminal Avenue and Commercial Street. Improvements to Terminal Avenue are scheduled to start next month and Commercial Street upgrades are to begin in the fall.
The city is hoping to see a new downtown transit hub developed next year.
A new project on this site would “contribute to the further revitalization of downtown and complement ongoing projects and initiatives,” the expression of interest states.
Options could include ground-floor commercial with housing above. City design guidelines expect buildings in this area to be five storeys tall.
Nanaimo cautions that the lot is in what used to be an inlet on Nanaimo Harbour.
It was filled in with coal waste from local mines. It has contamination issues and several “hot spots” that would have to be dealt with.
The second offering from the city is on 350 and 398 Franklyn St. in the Old City Quarter neighbourhood, close to shops, restaurants and city hall.
Used as parking lots by the city, the total area covers 0.43 acres and has an appraised value of $2.14 million.
Like the Commercial Street lot, Nanaimo is hoping for proposals to help revitalize the area.
Zoning for the gently sloping site permits residential and commercial uses.
In this area, the city plan supports ground-floor commercial, with housing or offices above in four- to five-storey buildings.
Proposals will be assessed on how plans fit with the site and neighbourhood, value-added components such as community and economic benefit, the number of non-market housing units and the number of adaptable units, purchase price and financial feasibility.
Green building technology is on the city’s wish list.
Proposals may be eligible for a 10-year tax holiday under a municipal downtown revitalization program.
Nanaimo points out it wants to see these properties developed fairly quickly. Buyers would have to agree to give the city an option to buy it back if development does not start within two years of the sale closing.
A similar kind of proposal went out several years ago when the city wanted to see 100 Gordon St. developed for a hotel next to the Vancouver Island Conference Centre. In that case, original plans did not proceed but a subsequent development saw the Courtyard by Marriott hotel open this spring. The Snuneymuxw First Nation is a majority owner in the hotel.
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