Explainer: Surrey’s Fleetwood Plan to accommodate new SkyTrain along Fraser Highway
The plan will cater to the growing population of Surrey and Langley
Conceptual drawing of the Town Centre Plaza, north of the future 160 Street SkyTrain station. (submitted)
The City of Surrey is seeking resident, business, and community stakeholder feedback on their updated Fleetwood Skytrain plan draft looking at initial concepts of land use, transportation, parks and open areas, and housing.
Fleetwood is one of Surrey’s developed town centres with diverse family dwellings and growing businesses. It is located in the upper part of the city, surrounded by Whalley, Newton, Cloverdale, and Guildford.
The preliminary survey completed in the early fall of last year explored how residents wanted to see the growth in Fleetwood. They chose among three growth options: concentrated, dispersed, and balanced. Results showed a preference for the balanced and concentrated options, which are centralized around future SkyTrain stations and in Fleetwood Town Centre.
With the development of the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain extension expected to be completed in 2030, Surrey is focusing on developing these areas which are projected to have populations quadrupled from about 38,000 residents to approximately 142,000 residents by 2050.
The Fleetwood Plan covers around 2,000 acres of land and stretches from Green Timbers Urban Forest to the Agricultural Land Reserve. This expanse will include three SkyTrain stations as an extension of the Expo Line, better connecting Fleetwood to the rest of Surrey and the Lower Mainland.
The city is also considering putting a RapidBus service into the area in partnership with TransLink along 152 Street on a potential north-south transit connection.
Other key features of the plan include focusing growth in Fleetwood Town Centre, increasing job opportunities by developing an employment district around 166 Street Station, increased parklands and recreation amenities, and improved community connections like cycle tracks, roads, paths, and walkways.
The plan also includes creating 12 new parks and expanding on nine existing parks, including a new athletic park next to Surrey Sport and Leisure Centre.
Adding affordable housing and rentals will be considered at a later stage of the planning process.
High and mid-rise establishments are to be situated in high-density areas surrounding SkyTrain stations and existing single-family neighbourhoods along the periphery. The local government is also working on creating smaller city blocks to allow more through access and more pedestrian-friendly areas with 10.5 km of new additional roadways.
The next steps in refining the planning process will focus on a review of utilities and infrastructure, detailed engineering and financial analysis, refinements to land uses, community benefit planning, and urban design guidelines.
The draft plan will be updated once feedback is gathered from the online survey, which is open until Sept. 8, and a final plan is expected to be ready for public review in early 2023.
Updates on the plan including the process, timeline, and an interactive map of proposed development areas can be found on the city’s website.
