Randhawa slams ‘questionable’ land purchase by Surrey
Published 10:30 am Monday, July 6, 2026
Conservative Party of Surrey mayoral candidate Honveer Singh Randhawa is claiming city hall paid $6.8 million in a “questionable transaction” for a 13.07-acre property at 7580 – 152 Street that had been listed for $4.9 million and sat on the market for two years until finally selling for $3.35 million a few weeks before Surrey then bought it for the higher price.
“These numbers raise a very simple question – what due diligence was done before taxpayer money was committed?” Randhawa said. “When a property reportedly sells for $3.35 million and then, within weeks, city hall pays $6.8 million, Surrey taxpayers deserve clear answers backed by documents.”
In response, city hall issued a statement Monday, attributed to its corporate services department, indicating its acquisition of the property next to Surrey Lake Park – which it’s eyeing for “recreation, park, and environmental purposes” – was done through a “standard real estate process that included approximately five months of independent due diligence, market valuation, and review by multiple City departments before being presented to council for approval on May 11, 2026.”
The City of Surrey’s statement reads that the negotiated purchase price of $6.8 million was “supported by an independent third-party appraisal prepared by Colliers Canada and was approximately $1 million below the appraised market value, representing strong value for taxpayers.”
According to this statement, a numbered company – 1341678 BC Ltd. – had acquired the land in 2022 for roughly $6 million – about $3.4 million above its assessed value at the time – and then held it until Surrey, which became aware of the property as a potential acquisition late last year and bought it in June.
Meantime, Safe Surrey Coalition Councillor Mandeep Nagra is calling for a “full police investigation” into the purchase.
“After becoming aware of the full circumstances of how this transaction unfolded, I do not believe it can be brushed aside. Something is not right here. And I am not willing to stay silent while taxpayers are out millions of dollars,” Nagra said. “If there is an innocent explanation, a police investigation will find it, and city hall has nothing to fear. But if this was corruption, Surrey deserves to know, and the people responsible must be held accountable. The public’s trust is on the line. Only the truth gets it back.”
Beside his political aspirations, Randhawa is also a corporate, commercial and real estate lawyer. He charged that Surrey paid more than double the $2.9 million he says BC Assessment valued it at.
“When market prices are falling and properties are selling below assessment, city hall must explain why it paid more than double the assessed value for this property,” Randhawa demanded. “Taxpayers deserve to know whether independent appraisals were obtained, whether the recent sale history was reviewed, whether the two-year listing period and price adjustments were considered, and how the purchase price was justified.”
He said this matter is “even more concerning” given the controversy surrounding city hall’s recent land swap to secure a site in Whalley for a 10,000-seat sports arena.
Surrey mayoral candidate Doug McCallum accused Locke of “bailing out” a developer in the celebrated land swap publicly revealed on June 30 where taxpayer-owned land was traded for the site of the proposed arena, to be built where a Safeway grocery store was on 104 Avenue and King George Boulevard. Locke denied this.