Surrey City Centre: Potential for a sustainable regional downtown?

This research project compares the growth of Surrey City Centre with Burnaby’s Metrotown and Richmond Town Centre to determine why Surrey’s centre has not developed substantially as a sustainable regional downtown. The hypothesis is that Surrey City Centre has not developed as planned due to external competitive market forces. The study compared data from two other regional town centres to determine if their development has affected Surrey City Centre’s anticipated growth. Interviews were conducted with municipal officials and developers to determine the effect of government policies and practices on town centre development. A review of town centre land development and population growth explored barriers against and opportunities for sustainable development. This research reveals reasons why Surrey’s downtown has not evolved more fully and also provides a framework of policy prescriptions for guiding its future development in a sustainable manner.