Construction is underway on a new student housing and dining hall at the Vancouver Island University’s (VIU) Nanaimo campus.
The new addition will provide 266 new beds, a 200-seat dining hall, study rooms, lounges, shared kitchens, a multi-purpose room, bike storage, shared laundry and office spaces for staff.
Site work began in fall 2024 and the project is expected to be complete by 2027.
The 10-storey, 9,547 m2, building will use mass timber, a renewable resource with a lower carbon footprint compared to traditional concrete construction. Construction plans have achieved Step 4 of the BC Energy Step Code and meet CleanBC’s energy-efficiency requirements for new buildings.
The project will also achieve Rick Hansen Foundation accessibility certification as it offers extensive accessibility features for students, such as seven accessible units and multiple barrier-free facilities, including washrooms, kitchen and lounge areas on each floor.
The campus is connected to a geo-exchange system, which circulates water from the flooded, abandoned Wakesiah coal mine underneath the VIU campus, to significantly reduce its carbon footprint by decreasing output for heating and cooling several VIU buildings to near zero. The student housing building will connect to an expansion of the system, which will provide the capacity to connect the rest of the student housing buildings in the future.
“Students need a place to call home when they are studying and preparing for their future careers,” said Minister of Infrastructure Bowinn Ma . “As more people seek higher education, we’re working to build the student housing they need, while also easing pressure on local rental markets and helping communities become healthier and more affordable.”