Oh, Nanaimo. We had to chuckle at the Nanaimo Port Authority trying to polish the turd that is their $24 million cruise ship facility. In the Daily News yesterday, Nanaimo officials talked breathlessly about the impending arrival of the first of two cruise ship visits scheduled for this year.

The truth is that this facility has been an expensive, abject failure. From an op-ed we wrote earlier this year:

Take Nanaimo’s $24-million cruise ship terminal, for example. In early 2008, the province announced it would kick in $5 million for a new cruise dock. A year later, federal taxpayers matched with another $8.5 million, while the provincially-funded Island Coastal Economic Trust added $3.5 million. The Nanaimo Port Authority paid the final $7 million, and the terminal opened in 2011.

Great things were foreseen: the Nanaimo Port Authority promised “25-30 large cruise calls per season with [an] estimate of 45,000 to 55,000 passengers,” and an estimated economic impact of $5 million a year.

This has proven to be grossly exaggerated. In 2014, only two large cruise ships are expected to visit Nanaimo, for a grand total of 24 hours. Last year, only six ships used the dock. Needless to say, taxpayers are losing their shirts on this cruise ship terminal.

It’s unfortunate Nanaimo didn’t heed the cautionary tale that is Campbell River, which also lost big in the cruise ship business. Taxpayers spent $18 million on that terminal, which opened in 2007, and hasn’t seen a boat since 2009 – despite promises of up to 30 ships per year, and $7 million in annual spinoffs.

Nanaimo’s business case expected 30 ships a year – they’re getting two big ones and two little ones this season. That, folks, is a text book example of government way overpromising and hopelessly underdelivering.