What Surrey Needs To Change In Order To Be Considered The New Downtown Of Metro Vancouver

By Esther Amankop Udoh

It’s no surprise the population of Surrey is growing at a fast rate. A city known as the suburbs for Vancouver and its downtown area might now have a chance to overtake Vancouver and become the new downtown for the Metro Vancouver Region.

With the insane cost of housing in Vancouver, many are moving to Surrey where the cost of living is a little more tolerable.

With more people relocating to Surrey, the population is on the rise and many central locations like Guildford, Newton, Surrey Central and more, are now becoming the new hub for fun.

A recent report by the Daily Hive discussed the various reasons as to why Surrey could potentially become the new downtown. Various reasons were mentioned, from the accessibility to the real estate opportunities.

While this sounds like an ideal, a new downtown with an affordable cost of living. It’s almost impossible for Surrey to attain the title of Metro Vancouver’s “downtown” without drastic changes being made to the city.

Surrey resident Nicole Gonzalez Filos spoke about her excitement at the thought of Surrey turning into a downtown hotspot.

Filos mentioned her excitement for the growing city and how she looked forward to not having to travel all the way to Vancouver in order to go out and [have fun].

“Many things [can] happen here. The new SkyTrain can be built, because we really do need a new SkyTrain from King George to Newton,” she said. “It would be very helpful for everyone,” she added.

The growth of Surrey also comes with more job opportunities. Filos spoke about the job opportunities that could open up for the residents of Surrey.

“If the city keeps on growing it’ll mean … more jobs for people in Surrey and that will be very good, because they won’t have to go to Vancouver for their job and instead they can do everything right where they live,” she said.

Along with the changes that could bring more job opportunities, and a possible train expansion- a topic which is still up in the air, the changes can also bring a higher cost of living for the residents.

Regardless of the potential rising cost of living. It’s apparent that Surrey would be a suitable place for a new downtown core.

With the new modern buildings, parks, and budding restaurants. Many people can begin walking along the busy streets of Newton and Surrey Central.

However, before any of this can happen, the obvious change for a SkyTrain extension to other parts of Surrey, like a Newton to King George extension needs to be made or at least be a topic for discussion.

Like the Surrey to Langley SkyTrain extension. Which, as of Jan.30th, had its business case approved, with a final approval anticipated to come by the summer.

If all goes accordingly, the construction for the train is expected to start next year, with the train extension running by 2025.

This change is something Surrey residents can expect in the next five years, and something that could further push Surrey to contending for a chance at Metro Vancouver’s new Downtown.