Nanaimo group calls for new velodrome

A cycling advocacy group in Nanaimo, B.C., has renewed their calls to install a new outdoor velodrome in the city.

The group, the Mid Island Velo Association (MIVA), is currently putting together a plan and proposal to have a velodrome included in the Beban Park Master Plan. They are hoping for a 200-m outdoor banked track.

The City of Nanaimo held public input and information session for proposed change to Beban Park during June 2013. They also hosted a survey during the summer of 2013 in which residents could make known how they wanted the space used. The survey is now closed.

The group hosts time trial events along the river in Nanaimo and want a velodrome built for a new youth training program the club is putting together.

“The initial cost of the track would be significantly less than the Rotary Skate Park or the new artificial-turf soccer fields,” said Peter McCaffery, MIVA’s president, in the Nanaimo Daily News. “A sizable percentage would be covered by sponsorships, donations and advertising on and around the track.”

The 2014-18 financial plan draft was submitted on March 12 with no mention of a velodrome or cyclist track. There is money budgeted for bicycle network infrastructure starting in 2017.