The ribbon’s been cut on the new $132-million Cloverdale Sport and Ice Complex in Surrey, B.C., and local skaters are excited to lace up their skates and hit the ice.

The new arena features two NHL-sized ice rinks, each with 227 seats for spectators, four full-size team dressing rooms, and features for accessible ice sports such as para ice hockey, according to the city.

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke said the arena, located at 6336 177B St., will support children, youth and adults.

“This complex is about kids getting their first pair of skates, women and girls hockey expanding, figure skaters training closer to home, and hockey tournaments that fill our hotels,” Locke said.

“It’s community health and inclusion and economic activity all in one place.”

The arena complex will get a third NHL-sized rink, as construction on a $35-million addition is set to begin soon, according to Locke. The mayor said she expects the third rink to be finished by 2027.

The original design for the Cloverdale arena project was developed in 2017, according to a city staff report in 2022, but the project was "paused" in 2018 as part of a budget review. The project returned to the council agenda in February 2022.

The province contributed $70.2 million to the project as part of its growing communities fund, announced in 2023, which gives grants to municipalities using a formula to reflect population size and growth.

"Surrey is one of the fastest cities to have turned that funding into a real facility for the community," Premier David Eby said at the arena's opening.

Locke hinted that city council is in the midst of developing a plan for another three-rink arena project in South Surrey.

“We really do have to build more … ice surfaces for Surrey. I would say that we can always build more — it’s insatiable, the need in Surrey, and that’s mostly because we’re a city of families.”

Community groups ready to hit the ice

Figure skaters with the Lower Mainland Synchronized Skating Club’s junior team Valencia Budijanto and Jaymee Downey both agreed the new rinks will benefit their team and the wider community.

“It’s great that we have another facility … making sure we’re ready for competition, it’s good to have more ice time,” Downey said.

“It’s really spacious, so we have lots of room to do our off-ice [warmups]” she added.

Budijanto said the arena will be a good central location for the team, which has members scattered from Vancouver to Chilliwack.

Members of the new Pacific Junior Hockey League team the Cloverdale Junior Hockey Club are also excited for the new rinks.

Team captain Zachary Johns said it’s a “top-of-the-line” facility.

“It’s pretty nice — we only have one rink here in Cloverdale, so to get two more, it’s pretty special,” Johns said.

“It's special for the whole community, especially the little kids growing up, you know, they get this nice facility to play games and practise in and it's just more ice time for everyone that wants to hit the ice.”

Head coach Adam Rossignol said the team, which is in its inaugural season, is Cloverdale’s first junior team since the 1970s.

“I’m super excited to get our team off the ground and see this brand new beautiful facility that everybody in Cloverdale gets to use,” Rossignol said.

Two Metro Vancouver cities are continuing their push to host a new provincially supported museum celebrating the cultures and contributions of South Asian Canadians in B.C.

A report released in August by the Government of British Columbia on the findings of its year-long public consultation process states Surrey as the “most suggested” location for the future Canadians of South Asian Heritages Museum.

However, the City of Vancouver isn’t giving up the fight just yet, renewing its call for public support in a new video asking viewers to “imagine a space where 120+ years of South Asian Canadian stories, culture and contributions come to life. ”

“Vancouver is uniquely positioned to host this landmark institution honouring the legacy and impact of BC’s vibrant South Asian Canadian communities,” said Mayor Ken Sim in a release.

“As the historic heart of South Asian settlement in British Columbia and one of the top visitor destinations in Canada, our city offers an ideal setting to reflect on the past and celebrate and share stories of South Asian Canadians with the world.”

The “What We Heard Report,” released by the provincial government in August 2025, stated that downtown Vancouver was a runner-up museum location in public support.

“If a goal of the museum is to educate Canadians and international visitors about Canadian South Asian heritages in B.C., then downtown Vancouver was seen as the ideal location. Museums in other jurisdictions, such as Toronto, Ontario, are positioned in the downtown core to capitalize on the volume of traffic and tourists,” reads the provincial report.

However, Surrey was the most suggested location for the “South Asian Canadian Museum,” a temporary working name.

“Those who favoured this location noted the high number of Canadians of South Asian heritages who live and work in Surrey, as well as the number of people that travel to Surrey to shop for South Asian groceries, cuisine, and clothing,” explained the report.

Nearly 40 per cent of Surrey’s residents are of South Asian descent, with heritage rooted in countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.

Surrey is actively advocating for the establishment of the new museum in the city. Supporters can sign an online petition to show their approval.

“As one of Canada’s most diverse cities and home to one of the largest South Asian populations in Canada, Surrey is uniquely positioned to host this museum,” reads the petition. “With a rich cultural history and strong civic pride, Surrey offers the ideal setting to honour the stories, resilience, and achievements of South Asian Canadians.”

Vancouver is also stepping up its game to try and bring the South Asian Canadian Museum to the city.

It is asking supporters to email Anne Kang, the minister of tourism, arts, culture and sport, to let the government know that “Vancouver is the right choice.”

“As B.C.’s premier tourism and transportation hub, Vancouver welcomes millions of regional and international visitors each year,” added the City of Vancouver online.

“A museum here would share South Asian Canadian stories with a global audience while also serving as a vibrant and inclusive space for the local community to gather, celebrate and host cultural programming.”

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The union representing 34,000 striking public sector workers says it will enter into mediation over a labour dispute that has threatened the delivery of services in the province.

“We’re committed to exploring every option to achieve a fair and respectful agreement for our members,” said B.C. General Employees' Union (BCGEU) president Paul Finch in a release Friday.

The union said the decision follows a request from government on Thursday.

“Mediation represents a next step toward resolving this dispute in a way that respects the vital work our members do every day,” said Finch.

The union said mediation would begin as soon as possible, but workers would continue with pickets across the province during the process.

WATCH | BCGEU heads to mediation:

Its result will be non-binding, meaning any tentative agreement will need to be decided on by a vote by union members. About 34,000 members are part of the bargaining unit that is currently involved in job action, around 25,000 of whom have been actively striking.

The BCGEU is seeking a four per cent general wage increase each year for two years.

BCGEU members began a strike on Sept. 2, which resulted in pickets at government offices and service locations.

Restaurants and bars have been hit especially hard with the shutdown of B.C.'s provincial liquor distribution network.

WATCH | Strike causing liquor shortage for B.C. restaurants, pubs:

As the strike wears on, with the two sides in disagreement over appropriate wage increases for a new two-year deal, the union has continued to increase the number of members walking off the job.

This week, the BCGEU said it was coming close to a "near-full walkout,” according to Finch.

'The strike is having an impact'

All Service B.C. locations were behind pickets as of Wednesday, but those offices will continue to provide essential services for people who rely on it, although timelines may be longer than usual, the province said in a release.

Also this week, the Professional Employees Association said its engineers, geoscientists and mining inspectors are among those now on the picket lines, but some of its essential members will remain on.

In a statement on Friday the province said, "the strike is having an impact on the public, businesses and employees, and government is committed to reaching a fair agreement that works for everyone."

It confirmed it and the BCGEU had entered mediation with mediators Vince Ready and Amanda Rogers, "in an effort to find a resolution to the current dispute between the parties that has resulted in the public-service strike."

Premier 'hopeful for fast resolution'

In an interview with CBC's Rosemary Barton, Premier David Eby said he was "very hopeful for fast resolution."

He didn't directly respond to a question on why it's taken so long to bring in mediators.

WATCH | Eby questioned over 7-week government worker strike in B.C.:

"We've been engaged in conversations throughout and I think that everyone can agree that this has gone on far longer than anyone wants it to," he said.

Eby declined to comment more on the mediation, saying it was important to "leave the space for the group at the table to be able to have the conversations we need to and hopefully bring this to a quick end."

Simon Fraser University’s School of Medicine is now accepting students, marking a major milestone for healthcare and education in British Columbia.

SFU and the Province of British Columbia announced today that the school, Western Canada’s first new medical school in nearly 60 years, has received preliminary accreditation from the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS) and is now accepting applications for its inaugural class. A new site for its permanent home at the university’s Surrey campus was also announced.

“SFU is committed to making a difference for B.C. and the communities we serve through education and research,” says SFU President Joy Johnson. “The new School of Medicine will exemplify that strong commitment, by training future physicians to deliver community-embedded, socially accountable and culturally sensitive primary health care.”

Students will begin clinical training just one month into the program, gaining hands-on experience in community-based offices, clinics, and hospitals across the province. When complete, the permanent school site will also include an outpatient clinic, offering care to Surrey residents while supporting student learning.

The first class of 48 medical students will begin their studies at the interim location, the SFU Surrey campus, in August 2026. The size of each cohort will gradually increase to 120 students by 2035.

“We are seeking future physicians who are passionate about community-based medicine—individuals who want to experience the joy and satisfaction of primary care and make a meaningful difference in the lives of British Columbians,” says Dr. David Price, founding dean of the SFU School of Medicine. “Our students will train in the community, with the community, and for the community. We know that when students learn near their home communities, they are more likely to return and serve there.”

The permanent home for the School of Medicine will be located in the Centre Block development in Surrey City Centre, adjacent to the SFU Surrey campus and the Surrey Central SkyTrain Station. The purpose-built facility will span eight floors of a 12-storey building and include classrooms, clinical skills spaces, research labs, administrative offices, and a child care centre with 49 spaces. The outpatient clinic will serve both as a training site and a health care resource for the community.

The school is being developed through collaboration between the Province, SFU, the City of Surrey, the First Nations Health Authority, Fraser Health, Divisions of Family Practice and the broader medical community.

“These two major milestones bring us closer to training the next generation of family doctors right here in Surrey, where they are urgently needed,” says Premier David Eby, who was at SFU’s Surrey campus to announce the milestone. “The new state-of-the-art SFU Medical School, along with the new Surrey hospital and B.C. Cancer Centre, will make this city a hub of innovative, high-quality health care. This is just one way our government is improving health care in British Columbia and helping more people find a primary care provider close to home.”

Prospective students are already expressing enthusiasm for the opportunity.

“The news that the SFU School of Medicine is accepting applications for the class of 2026 is incredibly exciting as a prospective student,” says SFU undergraduate Owen Gudmundson.

“Considering the extremely competitive nature of the medical school application process, the opening of a new medical school in BC, the first in Western Canada in decades, provides students like me a greater opportunity to pursue our dreams of becoming doctors, while also providing British Columbians with more physicians to care for them.”

Construction of the permanent facility is expected to begin in late 2026, with the school opening its doors in Fall 2030. The estimated capital cost of $520 million will be shared between the Province and SFU.

Learn more and apply at sfu.ca/medicine.

It didn't take long for Jonathan Meads' future Surrey, B.C., high rise to hit its condo presale targets last year, giving the developer the green light to start building.

"We hit the presale requirement very quickly, four months," said Meads, noting that developers typically need to sell about 60 per cent of their units to secure construction financing. "We were one of the last three high rise towers [in Metro Vancouver] to truly hit that last year."

Construction for the project is moving full steam ahead, but sales have since dried up, prompting Meads — and many builders like him in B.C. — to think twice before forging ahead on new projects.

"When we look at our competitors, they're all in the same boat. It has literally disappeared. There's no first-time buyer confidence, there's no investor confidence," he said.

As the City of Surrey looks to build 13,000 housing units by 2026 to accommodate its growing population, city officials say this year there's been a drop in high-density condo development applications making their way through city hall.

The decline comes as about 2,500 new condos are sitting unsold and empty in Metro Vancouver, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).

"Some of the larger projects are slowing down," said Surrey's planning and development general manager Ron Gill.

In 2024, the city issued a record number of building permits for a net 6,200 units, Gill said. By comparison, the city has issued permits for about 3,500 units so far in 2025.

Meads, who is the vice-president of development company StreetSide, says market conditions, including construction costs, development fees and overall economic uncertainty, make it challenging to build homes that average buyers can afford.

For now, Streetside has paused a 1,000-unit multi-building development in north Surrey that would take about 10 years to complete.

"It's very challenging to launch a new condominium project in a new neighbourhood in a down market," said Meads. "So we've paused the work, we're sitting on it, we know it's incurring land interest, but it would be very difficult to launch in this market to achieve a presale requirement."

Development cost charges

One area developers like Meads say local governments could help to reduce the cost of new builds is to limit upfront fees.

Development cost charges (DCCs) and community amenity charges (CACs) are among fees developers pay to municipal and regional governments in B.C. when building a new project. The dollars typically go toward improving community infrastructure and services like parks, water, sewers, transportation, fire and policing.

The Homebuilders Association of Vancouver (HAVAN) says the fees can add up to as much as 25 to 30 per cent of a unit's overall cost.

"These projects can no longer take this," said HAVAN CEO Wendy McNeil. "One of the challenges is [the fees] keep compounding, but are never brought down."

Meads says for a typical new condo unit selling in the $600,000 range, the cost of fees being passed down to the buyer can be anywhere from $60,000 to $85,000.

"If we can halve that, now get that down below $600,000, suddenly more people can afford it, the bank might be able to lend," said Meads.

Metro Vancouver says it's reviewing its DCC rates in response "to social, political, and economic circumstances." The review started in 2025 and will continue through 2027.

Gill says Surrey does its best to keep its development charges low and competitive with other municipalities, but that the dollars are critical when it comes to keeping infrastructure apace with population growth.

"New housing requires infrastructure, requires amenities. That infrastructure and amenities has to be paid for. If it's not through development contributions, it's through taxpayer contributions. So we're trying to find a nice balance in Surrey," said Gill.