Surrey city council has approved the launch of a feasibility study to explore the creation of a unique waterfront district, potentially featuring entertainment, restaurants, retail, parks, and plazas.

“We do think it’d be quite an exciting place in Surrey… entertainment, shops, really create a landmark in Surrey,” Ron Gill, general manager of planning and development for the City of Surrey, during a public council meeting, the Daily Hive reported.

“So we’re excited to move forward on the plan for that.”

The study will focus on an area framed by the future new Pattullo Bridge to the north, the South Fraser Perimeter Road to the east, Tanner Park/Tannery Road to the south, and the Fraser River to the west. The location is north of Fraser Surrey Docks.

City staff noted that the scope of the study area has expanded beyond initial expectations, now incorporating lands owned by the municipal government, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, Canadian National Railway, and private entities, according to the Daily Hive. The study area also extends past Brownsville Bar Park and Tannery Park.

The feasibility study will also need to address industrial-land use concerns. The port authority has expressed a preference for designating lands near port sites exclusively for industrial purposes, the Daily Hive reported. Metro Vancouver is facing a growing shortage of land suitable for traditional industrial uses, with the port being a key user of such space.

Much of the region’s protected industrial land base is within Surrey.

Pictured: Photo of area near the existing Patullo bridge and the new one that is now under construction in Surrey, B.C.

Photo: Government of B.C.