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but economic development is stalled, she reckons. In early 2017, this lack of condence prompted a group of local business lead- ers headed by Bob Moss, president and founder of real estate brokerage NAI Com- mercial Central Vancouver Island, to form the Mid-Island Business Initiative (MIBI). A decade ago, Moss helped lobby the city to create an independent economic develop- ment o€ce; its decision to kill the arm's- length organization frustrated him, he says. But these days being exasperated by civic politics comes with Nanaimo citizen- ship, so he moved quickly. "I knocked on doors to see if there was interest in creating a privately funded orga- nization, and I got a great response," Moss recalls. More than a dozen businesses and institutions now back the initiative, includ- ing Vancouver Island University (VIU), web design and Internet marketing rm Array Studios and Kristo Zorkin Group, the devel- opment rm behind the rejuvenation of Nanaimo's old downtown quarter. "We're competing with a lot of communities, and we want to get the message out about Nanaimo," Moss says. MIBI hired John Hankins as its CEO, a half-time position, and in 2017 it hosted two events in downtown Vancouver. This past April, the group welcomed guests to the Terminal City Club for another of these gatherings, which Hankins describes as "invite-only meet-and-greet, awareness- building and myth-busting sessions," aimed at highlighting Nanaimo's a™ord- ability, lifestyle and business-friendly attributes. "We're not here to point ngers, but whatever is happening business-wise in Nanaimo these days is in spite of city hall," Hankins says. Odai Sirri, director of operations at Waterfront Holdings, rolls his eyes at the mention of MIBI during a meeting at the Grand Hotel Nanaimo, a property developed and owned by Waterfront in the north of the city that serves a mostly business clientele. He prefers the Graham Truax approach: forget the cheerleading, roll up your sleeves, and get down to work. Waterfront got its start in West Van- couver 30 years ago, when Sirri's Iraq- born engineer father turned his focus to property development. With two and a half decades' experience in Nanaimo, the company has been involved in a variety of projects and partnerships there, among them a redevelopment of the Moby Dick Oceanfront Lodge and Marina, a motel with a rough-and-tumble past that was originally developed by Frank Ney, one of Nanaimo's most colourful former mayors. In 2012, Waterfront signed an economic development agreement with the local Snuneymuxw First Nation focusing on joint ventures and investment in tourism, hospitality, marine services and education, and including plans to grow tourism busi- nesses on Newcastle Island, a scenic park accessible by water taxi from the harbour. Waterfront's latest venture is the Diver Lake Innovation and Technolo¡y Park, similar in spirit to Kelowna's Innovation Centre, which opened last year. The pro- posed 70,000-square-foot facility, aimed at IT and R&D rms and located in the heart of Nanaimo, is still at the blueprint stage. Sirri says Waterfront hopes to start build- ing once the project reaches 70-percent tenancy commitment. The idea for the technolo¡y park emerged from a conversation that Sirri had with the city's Amrit Manhas several years ago about robot maker Inuktun need- ing to move to a new space: "Amrit told us that Nanaimo denitely wants to keep a company like Inuktun." But getting shov- els in the ground is proving to be a test of endurance. Nanaimo is a city that doesn't "understand itself and lacks political matu- rity," Sirri says. "We know there are good businesses here; we know that we're a fast-growing community. But everyone is sick of hearing about how Nanaimo has so much poten- tial," he adds. "Nanaimo is really about playing the long game." The long game, and the lifestyle game. For Hyas Infosec founder Chris Davis, despite the drawbacks of being away from venture capital hubs like Silicon Valley, the pros of Nanaimo still far outweigh the cons. He's prepared to pay what he calls a "de facto tax" for setting up shop in the city. "Our employees are all absolutely loving it here. They are engaged in the community, going to local events, bitch- ing about the city government and getting out to explore every chance they get," Davis says. "Much like most people who live here." ¥ 52 BCBusiness jULY/AUGUST 2018

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