More than a quarter-of-a-million square-feet of commercial space recommended for Cloverdale
Published 9:30 am Saturday, April 25, 2026
With the new hospital and cancer centre coming to Surrey, a massive increase in commercial space could soon be a reality for downtown Cloverdale.
“The new hospital is setting the pace for possible development here,” said Paul Orazietti, the executive director of the Cloverdale BIA. “The full impact of which isn’t even really known yet.”
He said an economic consultant for the city has now estimated Cloverdale could easily add 250,000 square feet of new commercial space over a 10-year period.
“They did one study for 176th Street and said they could add 4,000 square feet, which is one building,” he added. “But Cloverdale’s town centre is much bigger.”
He said most of the growth will occur on the streets surrounding 176th, most notably to the east.
Orazietti explained that as new buildings go up on the north side of Highway 10, possibly near 177th Street and 58A Avenue. They would have residential on top and commercial at street level.
“We’ve been approached by a developer that wants to put in affordable housing and wants to put six, six-storey buildings up,” he revealed. “There are some buildings there that are aging out.”
He added that with any new talk of development, he continually hears how people are worried about the speed with which the town is growing.
One complaint that arises on top of development plans and rezoning chatter is that of automobile congestion.
“The traffic on the highways is horrendous and getting worse,” Orazietti said. “So people are concerned with that too as more development happens and it brings more people to an area that is already strained by too many cars. Let’s face it, everything is automobile-oriented right now.”
He added that if the commercial space gets built north of the highway it will contribute to a better environment for those in the area, including many seniors, who would be able to do the shopping they need without having to cross Highway 10.
“Wherever you go it’s all cars and traffic. It’s not getting better it’s getting worse. And no one is taking a bus. So the whole idea behind this is to make the neighborhoods more livable, to make people be able to walk and shop and work in the same area.”
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