New Semiahmoo Town Centre Plan Adopted
The Semiahmoo Town Centre Plan has been officially adopted by the City of Surrey, meaning that new development in the area will be guided by its principles.
The recently adopted Semiahmoo Town Centre Plan seeks to create a vibrant and pedestrian-friendly town centre in Semiahmoo, focusing on sustainability and creating a sense of community. This is great news for residents and businesses in Semiahmoo, who have long desired a central gathering place in the community. The planning process included a comprehensive community engagement strategy with workshops, open houses, community surveys, site visits, and dozens of stakeholder meetings.
The Semiahmoo Town Centre Plan is another step forward for this vibrant community, with land use designations and densities aligned with the area’s growing population. The plan designates an economic hub, increased density, new amenities, and upgraded infrastructure to accommodate the next 30 years’ worth of growth.
“It’s no secret that more and more people are choosing to call the City of Surrey their home,” Mayor Doug McCallum said. “The Semiahmoo Town Centre Plan is an important step in accommodating our growing population and ensuring Surrey remains a great place to live, work and raise a family.”
The Semiahmoo Town Centre Plan
The adopted plan envisions to:
- Concentrate on growth and development within the existing Semiahmoo Shopping Centre site and along transit-served mixed-use high streets
- Have a medical node surrounding Peace Arch Hospital that would support the development of hospital supporting uses, such as clinics, specialists’ offices, pharmacies, and other medical needs within the community.
- Expand on much-needed transit, including the RapidBus, including four stations on 152 Street and 16 Avenue.
- Build four new neighbourhood parks.
- Extend the Semiahmoo Trail Greenway.
- Encourage the development of zero-carbon operational buildings.
- Provide Urban Design Guidelines and a Maximum Building Height Strategy
- Build a new community and cultural hub, including dedicated performing arts and studios spaces.
- Have housing policies to support a range of family supportive housing forms.
- Build new community connections, making it easier to get around with new sidewalks, cycle tracks, local roads, and pathways.
The plan presents a clear vision for the future of the Semiahmoo Town Centre, with a capacity for an additional 6000+ new homes and approx. 5000 new jobs. All new developments within the plan area will be a short walk to/from public transit.
Summary
- The Semiahmoo Town Centre plan envisions new community amenities to accommodate population growth for decades.
- Semiahmoo Town Centre is a transit-oriented community with diverse populations.
- The land-use plan focuses density near long-term rapid transit and shorter-term RapidBus service along 152 Street and 16th Avenue, within the existing Semiahmoo Shopping Centre site and a medical district north of Peace Arch Hospital.
- Redevelopment is intended to focus density within mixed-use areas at critical locations.
- The transportation strategy outlines a more delicate grain street network to support compact neighbourhood development and connectivity.
The adopted Semiahmoo Town Centre Plan can be viewed in its entirety here. Please contact us if you would like to learn more about how this new plan could impact your business, your property, or future real estate opportunities in South Surrey.
Source: City of Surrey
