By Canadian Press

City councillors in Nanaimo, B.C., reject plan for fence to protect municipal staff

Jul 16, 2025 | 5:38 PM

VICTORIA — Nanaimo’s council has decided not to proceed with a plan to build a fence to protect city hall staff from disorder associated with an overdose prevention site next door.

City staff had proposed a “robust” 1.8-metre-high fence to protect employees from “congregations” of people at the site, saying workers had been subjected to intimidation and harassment.

But a committee meeting on Wednesday decided there would be “no recommendation for action” on the proposal, which had an estimated price tag of $412, 000.

Mayor Leonard Krog says he “carefully considered” the proposal but the proposal is now “dead.”

He says he wasn’t satisfied the fence “would make any real difference” for safety, adding that the province needs to invest more resources to address mental health issues.

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Coun. Hilary Eastmure says she voted against the fencing proposal, because it would have created a “false sense of safety” that would have sent a “really problematic message” without solving problems in the area.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2025.

Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press