Micro apartments coming to downtown Nanaimo

Nanaimo city council has approved a development permit for a building of 31 micro suites at 337 Robson in Downtown Nanaimo. This rendering shows the building as viewed from Wesley Street. Photo: City of Nanaimo agenda.

A new building of micro rental suites ranging from 323 to 366 square feet is coming to downtown Nanaimo after city council approved a development permit for a five-storey, 31-unit building at 337 Robson Street.

The application by Beck Vale Architects and Planners Inc. on behalf of a numbered company (1362132 BC Ltd.) shows the building covering the entire property with 11 underground parking spaces, 16 long-term bike spaces and four spaces for visitors’ bikes.

The company is marketing the micro units to tenants that do not have a car as their primary mode of transportation as the building is 100 metres from a bus stop on Fitzwilliam and the same distance to Wallace Street which is an active mobility route in the city plan. 

Answering a question from Councillor Janice Perino, Jeremy Holm, the city’s director of planning and development, says that micro units are becoming a more popular option for developers citing the former medical centre at 420 Albert Street as one example. 

“Within the downtown, with access to transit and services, it makes sense,” he said. “The developer believes there's a market for that and 31 units will be a good addition to housing in the area.”

Councillor Ben Geselbracht says that developments like this are helping increase density in the downtown. 

“There's a lot of buildings that are coming in that are going to substantially increase housing availability,” he said. “I think we're starting to see the density come in to make it vibrant downtown.”

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from theLocal Journalism Initiative, administered by theCommunity Radio Fund of Canada.