Little Qualicum/Dashwood Community Hall

These pages discuss choices around repairing, replacing or demolishing the Little Qualicum ( Dashwood ) Hall located at  1210 Centre rd.

The Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN) has expressed a willingness to consider neighborhood views in determining the future of the hall.

Residents are asked to consider three primary issues:

• Is there a need for a hall in this community?

• How might  a hall be more effectively used?

• As a resident, are you willing to assist in the halls renovation, maintenance and, possibly, contribute to the financing?

             This decision calls for some background information so ....

       Hall HISTORY as presented by Sue Mohan to Parks Advisory Board 2014)

Little Qualicurn Hall is situated in the RDN Community Park on Centre Road in Little Qualicum/Dashwood, in Area G. This hall has been operating for many years under the Little Qualicum Women's Institute until the park and hall were taken over by the RDN. The hall is badly in need of maintenance. The floor in the kitchen is sloping, a small part of the main hall floor needs to be repaired and a wheelchair ramp is needed. 

Many hours of volunteer labor have kept the hall in great shape over the years, painting the exterior of the hall, maintaining trails on the grounds, cutting the grass, installing a new roof on the building, laying cedar chips on the trails, and various other maintenance actions as needed. These maintenance repairs were paid for by the community raising funds by bake sales, spaghetti dinners etc. We still have a large group who would volunteer to perform maintenance if it were possible

.Since the RDN has taken over the running of the park, our area residents are not allowed to participate in any upgrades. The playground equipment was purchased by the community, but volunteers were not allowed to install it. Few major repairs have been done by the RDN, to any extent, to maintain the upkeep  of the hall and park, with the exception of trimming shrubs overhanging the trails and cutting grass in the park.

The community understands that we are one of a very few park areas that have a hall. Through hall rentals, the RDN receives revenue, which pays for the running of the hall,

As the largest Emergency Preparedness group of any rural area, with 80 households participating, the area stretches from the Little Qualicum Bridge to  Mistaken Road, and from the ocean to Allgard Road and Huckleberry Lane, the community has the full support of the Regional District of Nanaimo Emergency Planning Department, part of the Strategic Planning Department. The hall and grounds play a critical role in Emergency Preparedness and would be the command centre and community gathering point in the event of an emergency.The community of Dashwood relies on the park and hall as a central meeting place for many activities, and considers it to be an extremely important building and grounds.

The RDN commissioned an:

Engineer's Report   (within RDNMinutes )