The City of Nanaimo will close the Bastion and Commercial streets intersection to vehicle traffic while drilling and grouting work is carried out to fill sub-surface coal mine voids.

The intersection will be closed to vehicle traffic from Thursday, Jan. 2. until late February, according to a city news release.

Pedestrian access will be maintained at all times, the release noted. Businesses with remain open and free two-hour parking remains available along the rest of Commercial Street and on the second and third levels of the Bastion Street Parkade.

Investigative drilling conducted as part of the Design Commercial Project revealed underground voids that must be remediated for the safety of work crews, to protect underground utilities and to minimize the potential for future depressions to form in the roadway.

"鈥機onstruction鈥� and 鈥榙etours鈥� are admittedly some of the least favourite words in our city鈥檚 vocabulary, and yet, it鈥檚 impossible to keep up to our city鈥檚 growing infrastructure needs without them,鈥� Nanaimo mayor Leonard Krog said in the press release. 鈥淭hanks for your patience as we work to make Commercial Street and our downtown an inviting, people-first place to be."

To learn more about the  Design Commercial: Downtown ReImagined Project, visit