Whatever happened to the basement suite? Those were the days. Just a few weeks after the Quattro fire (by the way, it’s worth taking a look at some of the comments on that post), Surrey largest development, Infinity at Central City, is now seeking bankruptcy protection.

Photo via Caleb Quinton

The developer of the five-tower Infinity project in North Surrey has filed for bankruptcy protection as a result of the collapse of one of its chief financiers, Lehman Brothers.

Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy Sept. 15 after the U.S. Treasury Department refused to bail the company out in the wake of the global credit market meltdown.

Wednesday’s announcement by the Jung Group, the developer of Infinity, has thrown the future of two highrises – which are part of the second phase currently under construction – into question. [Surrey Leader]

Apparently those who have bought into the projects, put down deposits etc., are safe and everyone is optimistic that these will be completed. However, if you’ve taken a look at the Downtown Surrey plan you’ll notice a dozen more developments in the same general vicinity (with 40 new developments planned in total for the central Surrey area).

According to the Surrey Leader article, “South Korean businessman Hee Yong Yang, director of Jung Group, is also the developer of the Sky Towers, 36-storey and 40-storey highrises – the tallest between Calgary and Vancouver – that are to be built across the street from Infinity, near King George Highway and Old Yale Road.”

All involved with the Ininifty project however, are looking up and have faith that new financing will be found. Even Surrey’s Mayor, Dianne Watts, blames “Wall Street and the market.” I’m just waiting for the anti-Surrey remarks to start pouring in but given the fact that even Inifnity sold out in mere hours (same with Quattro) I don’t think that the livability of the area is even in question.

I spend a good part of my week defending my hometown of Surrey. Sure the city isn’t perfect, it’s people aren’t either, but I honestly don’t think Pleasantville can be found anywhere in the Metro Vancouver area.

Over the weekend a terrible incident, fueled by intolerance and hate, occurred in the West End.

Early Saturday morning, Jordan Smith was walking along Davie Street, near Hornby Street, holding hands with another man. A group of four young men approached the pair, calling out gay slurs, Smith told CBC News. One of the men then hit him in the face with enough force that he fell back on the sidewalk and was knocked unconscious. [CBC]

The suspect in an attack on a gay man in the city’s West End on the weekend made a brief appearance in Vancouver’s new community court on Monday morning. [CBC]

(You can read more on Raul’s post from yesterday as well.)

What infuriates me this morning is reading a comment from the Executive Director of the West End Business Association:

The head of the West End Business Improvement Association is blaming “Surrey-ites” for causing trouble in her neck of the woods, including gay bashing. In light of the weekend attack on a gay man on Davie Street, West End BIA Executive Director Lynn Hellyar says there are people coming in from Surrey who aren’t what she calls “friendly” to the gay population, “I know there a lot of people coming from the Surrey area to the west end and they’re not particularly friendly towards the gay population but it’s mostly, I would say that they’re ignorant, they don’t understand it.”

Asked how she knows these people are from Surrey?, Well, the police are telling us that’s what’s happening a lot in the evenings.” [CKNW]

This broad, ignorant, and generalized statement doesn’t help anyone’s cause, really. Haters come from everywhere. It’s sad and tragic however, the WEBIA’s lumping of the suspect of this despicable crime into a category with all other “Surrey-ites” makes me feel more shame as a current resident of the West End than being a person from Surrey.

Law breakers and hate mongers also live Downtown and on the North Shore while sociopaths and miscreants aren’t uniquely from south of the Fraser River. I think we could all use a lesson in tolerance and respect, no matter where we’re from or where we are now.

This afternoon while popping by Tanya’s house in Surrey I noticed a flyer (“The New View“) from the Downtown Surrey Business Improvement Association on her kitchen table which contained the following:

It’s Your Downtown – Tell them what you think
One last time, the City of Surrey is reaching out to you, the community, for feedback on the new City Centre Plan proposal.

Similar to the City’s Ideas Fair of two years ago, SFU will be the site for two Public Open Houses in its Mezzanine to inform, inspire and invite input for the final proposal to City Council. Committed to visuals, interactivity and clean communication, Open Houses will feature displays and feedback stations on a comprehensive field of community issues such as land use, sustainability, greenspace, density, amenities, accessibility, transit, and neighbourhood enhancement. [Source: The New View by the Downtown Surrey BIA]

A few years ago when fancy pants new condo developments started to spring up once again (after the Gateway & teal boom of the ’90s) they were being marketed with slogans like bringing “Yaletown to Surrey.” One part of the plan in The New View that threw me for a loop was the new naming structure for neighbourhoods in the designated “downtown” area of Surrey.

Online copy of the image from The New View was found via VancityBuzz

From North to South / West to East: Gateway, Grosvenor, 5 Corners (what I’ve always known at Whalley’s corner), Binnie, Forsyth, West Village, SCTV The Village, East Village, Old Yale, Matthew, King George, Hospital, Fraser.

My first thought was, “Everyday I try to give Surrey a better name but I guess I never thought of simply changing it,” but I suppose that’s part of the reasoning behind it all really. I think all of the proposed names are perfectly fine although being a little old school, I may have trouble with “West Village”, “East Village” and “SCTV The Village”.

West Village – Surrey’s “West End,” this will be a collection of high-density low- and high-rise residential buildings connected by a network of pedestrian routes, mini-parks, plazas and local services, shops and cafes [Surrey City Centre Plan Update]

With a chuckle, “SCTV” makes me picture Eugene Levy, Rick Moranis or John Candy hanging out near the Stardust.

This concept isn’t new, I mean people have been using neighbourhood names (ie. Fleetwood, Panorama Ridge, Fraser Heights, Crescent Beach, Hazelmere, or Strawberry Hill) instead of simply saying “Surrey” for years (and some names even pre-date the City itself).

I’m all for growth in Surrey although as I was discussing with Tanya, some things will never change. Central City will always be Surrey Place Mall, I know Dave will forever call Surrey Central Whalley Exchange and Clayton Heights will always be the area formerly known as the Hillcrest Drive-In (even though Hillcrest has relocated further along Fraser Highway and is now the Twilight Drive-In, but I digress).

Photo credit: Paul Hillsdon on Flickr

The evolution of the plan (initiated in 1991) can be found on CityCentre.Surrey.ca and more info about development in Surrey can be found on Paul’s CivicSurrey website. Actually, some of the proposed transportation and cycling plans remind of Paul’s work.

The naming of neighbourhoods is, in all reality, very low on my list of concerns for this City which I hold so dear. I’d like to see more about the plans for amenities, health care facilities, helping the homeless population and transit/alternate transportation methods.

The first Open House took place September 11th from 4:00pm – 8:00pm and the next is Monday the 15th at the same time. According to the Downtown Surrey BIA, the hope is that the new “City Centre will be: The heart of Surrey, a centre for transit, a regional centre for the Fraser Valley, the highest density of residential, offices and institutions.”

I’m very curious to learn more about the proposal however, I’ll be liveblogging Third Tuesday tomorrow night (yes, on a Monday). If you’re able to attend the Open House drop me a note in the comments if you’d like to share your thoughts.

View my other Surrey or What The Surrey posts.

My weekly Hockey Stars post is now up and it discusses team logos and hockey jersey pride. I originally wanted to include a blurb about how in the locally-filmed movie, Happy Gilmore (during the opening credits), Adam Sandler is sporting a Surrey Minor Hockey jersey. Unfortunately I couldn’t find the clip anywhere online so I put the call out on Twitter. Peter came through (since he owns the DVD) and snapped this screenshot.

Props to Peter for capturing this for me, and if you’re looking for your own SMH gear, they have a brochure online so you can now purchase your own.

I’ve written about the aggravation I have felt trying to catch a bus in Surrey, one that only comes every 45 minutes. I used to have to deal with that every day (during the work week) but somehow it seems even more annoying now that I know the difference in service between regions.

When I was at Surrey Central last I noticed the service improvements to weekend and holiday schedules so I’ve decided to look up the rest.

314 Sunbury/Scott Road Station/Surrey Central Station
Route revised near Surrey Central Station; service on Old Yale Road and 134A Street discontinued.
323, 324, 325 Surrey Central Station/Newton Exchange
Weekend/holiday service improved to run every 30 minutes along each of the three routes.
329 Surrey Central Station/Scottsdale
Route revised near Surrey Central Station; service on Old Yale Road and 134A Street discontinued.
345 White Rock Centre/King George Station
Monday – Friday service improved to run every 30 minutes, 9 a.m. – 9 p.m. Also, schedule adjustments will create better service coordination with the improved 375 service.
375 White Rock South/Guildford
Service improved to run every 30 minutes, Monday – Friday 6 a.m. – 10 p.m. and weekends/holidays 6 a.m. – 9 p.m. Also, schedule adjustments will create better service coordination with the improved 345 service.

Also of note, Surrey Central bus loop has reassigned its bays so check out the new map on the Translink website before you form a queue for the wrong bus [PDF]

Although these improvements are a step in the right direction I still don’t feel as though commuters are getting fair and frequent service. If I miss a bus on Robson Street I can either wait for the next one in 5 minutes or simply walk to my destination downtown. If I miss one at Surrey Central it would take me hours to get where I need to go or 30-90 minutes for another bus. Given that there are pretty much as many people living in Whalley as the downtown core of Vancouver (roughly 80,000 each), this just doesn’t seem balanced to me.

After 71 years, the Pattullo is probably now in its most dangerous condition. Aside from being too narrow for modern-day vehicles and transportation standards, causing dozens to lose theirs lives in recent years, and even being packed with asbestos, the Bridge of Death is just plain scary to cross (so don’t ask why I did it with my Flip yesterday).

There are promises that a new bridge will finally happen (as we’ve been saying all along a median or repairs are not the answer) which means there could be tolls in place. In my opinion as long as the death toll doesn’t rise, let’s get this project going as soon as possible.

Read more in my Pattullo series on Miss604 tag:Pattullo or on Metroblogging Vancouver: August 2006, December 2006, January 2007, July 2007.

I was contacted earlier this week by the CBC, wanting to do a story about my blog but looking for some unique angles. Turns out the most prominent discussion on my blog at the moment is about the Dana Carvey Surrey Girl Joke so they wanted to talk about that, and I was more than willing.

You can click here to view the spot if you are having troubles with the player above.

I received a really nice email from a reader recently who thanked me for my positive portrayal of Surrey. The note helped me recall something I read a few weeks ago I thought this would be perfect opportunity to write a post of this nature.

Photo credit: OmniTV

I was enjoying lunch at the cafe across the street and I decided to peruse some of the free daily newspapers Vancouver has to offer. A sub-headline in the Vancouver Courier caught my attention as it stated that more people love “Hitler” than “Surrey”. Completely flabbergasted I read the article (which was probably the intention with a title like that) and found that it was simply a recap of the author’s experience Googling various things. His twist was typing in “I love…” and filling in the rest with local city names and the names of popular (and infamous) people.

“I love my mother” nets a touching 129,000, though it pales before the 1,020,000 entries for “I love myself.” When the search is revised to exclude singer Bif Naked, who penned “I Love Myself Today,” the latter number drops to a self-loathing 223. [Vancouver Courier]

Here’s what the author of the article did (in case you’re unfamiliar with the way Google works). If you type words into the search field and include quotation marks, Google will search that exact phrase or word instead of simply finding sites that contain those parameters.

It appears that the research was correct, with “I Love Surrey” turning up 226 results (displayed on the top right of the screen) and “I Love Hitler” with 7,550 (according to my count) – as appalling as that might be.

Now this post isn’t about silly articles in newspapers, nor is it about making any sort of political or sociological statement about the things we love to write about. It may not even particularly be about smashing down stereotypes about my hometown, which I so frequently love to do. Quite frankly, this is to add to the “I love Surrey” list on Google and hopefully (with the magic of some SEO) bump this up to a top result for that search. Although my motives are completely selfish in the web realm I think it’s not all horrible since it is in fact true… I do love Surrey.

Update: 25 minutes after this post was published it became the #2 Google result for an “I love Surrey” search.

What’s next? Dogs with bees in their mouths and when they bark they shoot bees at you? Not quite, but something that should concern commuters yet again is the deterioration of the Pattullo aka Bridge of Death as it has recently been revealed that its deck contains asbestos.

The toxic material was mixed in with the asphalt and laid down on top of the original concrete deck during the 1980s. It’s complicating TransLink’s latest efforts to repave the bridge and better assess its structural safety.

Now classified as a contaminated material, the asphalt can’t just be ground up as it would in most other road projects lest it become a hazardous airborne dust. Instead it must be kept wet and be removed in sealed containers as part of specialized handling and disposal requirements that have kicked in. [Surrey Leader]

No seismic upgrades, no median barrier to prevent head-on crashes, lanes that are obscenely and illegally narrow, and so many lives lost. Translink has put all Pattullo renovations on the backburner so they can figure out what to do about the asbestos in the deck and until they receive reports about the potential widening or twinning of the Bridge of Death. I suppose until then we should all just hold our breath and focus our attention on the beaver situation in Surrey.

(Read any or all of my previous posts about the Pattullo [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9])

Surrey’s Good Citizen Award was handed to Jim King this past week for his work “…as an executive director since 1997, being a past-president of the Surrey Chamber of Commerce and a founding member and past director of the Surrey Tourism and Convention Association” – [Surrey Leader].

The award is given to an individual each year who has performed outstanding service for the betterment of the community.

Photo credit: Squeaky Marmot on Flickr

Recent recipients also include Volkmar (Wally) Sandvoss in 2007 and Bruno Zappone in 2006.

Surrey’s first ever “Good Citizen” was Len Shepherd.

“Len Shepherd was a Surrey municipal council member from 1932 until 1937. In 1937 he was elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly serving the Delta riding, covering the area of Richmond, Delta, Surrey and Langley. In his very first term as MLA, Len Shepherd presented a petition to this very House with over 3,100 names from the people of the Fraser Valley, asking that the new Pattullo Bridge be free of tolls. Very quickly, he became an avid advocate for the working people.” [Debates of Legislative Assembly]

This all makes me wonder what ever happened to Vancouver’s Good Citizen Award? Strolling the archives on VancouverHistory.ca I kept coming across recipients of the “Good Citizen Award” like Pearl Steen, Sister Frances, or Arthur William Delamont but it made me wonder if this award still exists today.

The first Good Citizen was fire chief John Howe Carlisle in 1922 and the title was since bestowed upon maybe good souls in the community every year but I haven’t heard of any new recipients since the 1980s. I believe there are awards for volunteers in Vancouver, but I’m still wondering whatever happened to the city’s recognition for its outstanding (and often selfless) members of the community with the “Good Citizen Award”.

Regardless, I’m pleased to see the folks of Surrey doing good in their neighbourhoods, schools and businesses. Congratulations to Mr. King for being Surrey’s 2008 Good Citizen of the Year.