There is a hurricane of activity in Surrey’s South Westminster/Bridgeview, and David Wesik is enjoying the sunny weather in the eye of the storm.
“It’s been a good year for us,” said Wesik, vice-president of operations and corporate development at Wesgroup Properties.
In 2003, Wesgroup purchased and remediated 84 acres of brownfield land in Bridgeview. In homage to the company’s strategic ties to the Pacific Rim, Wesgroup named it Pacific Link and began selling long-term leases to businesses in need of warehousing and office space.
Seventy of those acres now house some of the world’s biggest companies, including Frito-Lay, FedEx Freight and Texcan, one of Canada’s largest cable and wire distributors.
Located on the south shore of the Fraser River, South Westminster/Bridgeview comprises more than 1,300 acres of industrial land sandwiched between King George Boulevard and the Pattullo Bridge.
In acquiring the property, with its close proximity to major rail, trucking and waterway transportation routes, Wesik predicted it would become a regional distribution logistics dream come true. His wager appears to have paid off.
“We’re down to our last 15 acres,” said Wesik, noting the company’s remaining parcels are not contiguous. “We don’t have a lot of large, assembled, ready-to-go pieces of land to accommodate more big tenants.”
The area’s growth has affected real estate values, said Wesik. “There’s been a lot of speculation in the area, which has driven land prices fairly high, almost to the point where the economic feasibility of warehouse development is difficult because of the land cost.”
Despite this, the area continues to grow. Wesgroup recently purchased an additional 9.5 acres, six of which have already been leased by Overland West. The continuing development underscores the location’s deep logistical appeal.
FedEx chose Pacific Link in part for its proximity to Fraser Surrey Docks (FSD). Bill Wehnert, vice-president of sales and marketing at FSD, saw it coming. “We’ve been watching that area for years now,” he said. “There’s tons of opportunity there.”
FSD is the largest modern, multi-purpose marine terminal on the west coast of North America, said Wehnert. With four dock gantry cranes and the capacity to berth mid-sized, Panamax-class vessels, FSD is able to handle millions of tonnes of cargo every year.
“Fraser Surrey Docks is going to play a very critical role in regional development,” said Wehnert. “The centralized nature of this area is going to make everyone more profitable.”
Including indirect effects, FSD supports 4,000 jobs, $220 million in wages and $440 million in gross domestic product, according to the City of Surrey. Those numbers convinced city planners years ago that the area was rich ground for industrial investment.
In 2009 Surrey labelled South Westminster/Bridgeview an economic investment zone and set out to draw businesses to the area with three-year property tax waivers, deferred development cost charges and reduced building permit fees. It seems to have worked.
“Those industrial lands have been able to bring in some high-profile, good-quality, well-paying jobs into Surrey,” said Anita Huberman, CEO of the Surrey Board of Trade. “It is a key economic zone.”
“The city is very keen to have businesses move into that area,” she said. “So whether it’s development costs or specific land restoration requirements, the city is willing to work with businesses.” •
- Adjacent to Fraser Surrey Docks, a container and breakbulk terminal with deep-sea vessel capacity
- Access via South Fraser Perimeter Road connecting to Highway 91, Deltaport, Tilbury/Annacis Island, Port Kells and Trans-Canada Highway
- Intermodal yard servicing CP Rail, CN Rail, and Burlington Northern & Southern, with existing or feasible spur line access
- 15-minute drive to United States border
- 25-minute drive to Vancouver International Airport
