“This is your next Metrotown”

April 16, 2014 By in Planning and Development, Surrey Langley White Rock Tags: , Leave a comment
The Surrey Central tower, housing SFU operations and the Fraser Health head office, seen from Holland Park

The Surrey Central tower, housing SFU operations and the Fraser Health head office, seen from Holland Park

 

Dianne Watts, the mayor of the City of Surrey since 2005, has brought a level of logic and discipline to her job that was lacking under her predecessor.

Residential towers on King George Boulevard, seen from Holland Park

Residential towers on King George Boulevard, seen from Holland Park

It’s interesting, then, to consider the logic behind Surrey Central, perhaps Ms. Watts’ pet project.  This burgeoning development combines civic functions, commercial expansion and residential towers, organized around the Surrey Central and King George rapid transit stations. Built in the middle of a neighbourhood that has struggled with crime and social issues, Surrey Central goes beyond the standard suburban facelift. It’s an attempt to build a commercial, civic and cultural hub worthy of a Great City. Continue reading →

Coquitlam’s waterfront plan

March 31, 2014 By in Planning and Development, Tricities Tags: , 4 Comments

 

Looking across Como Creek to the proposed site of the Coquitlam waterfront village. The hillside in the left background is New Westminster.

Looking across Como Creek to the proposed site of the Coquitlam waterfront village. The hillside in the left background is New Westminster.

As it stretches along the south side of Highway 1, much of Coquitlam’s United Boulevard is zoned “Highway Retail Industrial.”

Furniture reducedThis loose designation has enabled the development of a sprawling big-box retail precinct. A City handout counts 18 large-scale furniture stores along United Boulevard, blending into the warehouse and fabricating shop uses that extend down to the Fraser River. [This document was taken out of circulation; as of 2016, the City website referred to a “multitude” of stores.] Continue reading →

Five-year home price trends: 2014 vs 2013

March 11, 2014 By in Housing, Real Estate and Property Taxes Tags: , Leave a comment

Upper AmblesideIn the fall of 2012 we looked at “speculation and stagnation” in the real estate market in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland.

Since then, the outlook has changed. Prices have increased significantly in the detached-home market, and a declining trend in apartment prices has been reversed in many communities. Continue reading →

The village at Ladner

February 23, 2014 By in Days Out, Richmond Delta, Urban Villages Project Tags: , Leave a comment

Ladner docks

If you decide to live in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland, you may as well orient yourself to water or mountains.

You might choose the old fishing village of Ladner, in the south part of the municipality of Delta, because the weather is relatively dry (despite the snow on the day we visited.) Or because residents have worked to develop a prosperous, safe sense of community. Continue reading →