BURST
One of Surrey’s most prominent and quickly developing neighbourhoods has much more coming over the next few decades.
Plans will be revealed at Monday’s council meeting for the public land owned by the city and TransLink in the bustling neighbourhood of Newton.
“This plan reflects years of community planning and will bring a mix of new homes, civic amenities, and local commercial spaces to the neighbourhood, supported by significant public investment,” said Bill Aujla, president and CEO of Surrey City Development Corporation (SCDC), the city-owned real estate development company.
Over the next 30 years, projections indicate Newton — which is bordered by the City of Delta to the west, Mud Bay and South Surrey to the south, 160 Street to the east and the areas of Whalley and Fleetwood to the north — will have more than 4,000 new residents.
As a result, the area needs more housing, transit, parks, commercial space and a new community centre, notes a news release from the development company.
“The City of Surrey’s Newton town centre plan envisions the town centre site as a vibrant, high-density urban core organized around the BRT (bus rapid transit) station. Development will deliver a mix of residential, commercial, office, and civic uses that together create a complete community and an identifiable ‘downtown’ for Newton,” the presentation from SCDC notes.
Included in the plan are more than 2,200 new residential units, more than 150,000 square feet of retail space, 15.7 acres of parks and open space, and the new Newton community centre, which has been funded by the city and is undergoing planning, to be opened by 2030.
Of the total land to be developed, the city owns 35 acres, while TransLink owns five acres, located along King George Boulevard near 72 Avenue.
“The Newton centre master development plan will help create a more walkable, transit-oriented neighbourhood, and it demonstrates how our real estate development program can support housing and services while generating long-term revenue,” stated Kevin Quinn, CEO of TransLink.
Newton is home to more than 150,000 people and hosts Surrey’s popular Vaisakhi parade. It operates as a South Asian hub, with the area consisting of 64 per cent South Asians.
The town centre includes the neighbourhoods of Sullivan and Panorama. The area also includes the bulk of Surrey’s industrial land.
Newton is also one of the more affordable areas of Surrey, more so than South Surrey and City Centre.
“Recent data shows Newton sales outperforming recent historical averages in 2025m despite regional softness — signalling resilient end-user demand when appropriately scaled and priced,” the presentation from the development company reads.
Even so, development in the town centre has slowed, with the area seeing fewer housing starts, completions and limited new supply over the last few years.
“This pause is not due to a lack of demand, but rather broader macroeconomic challenges and market cycles. Importantly, Newton continues to absorb product — particularly wood-frame condominiums and townhomes, which remain the most market-supported built forms in the short to medium term.”
This presents opportunity for developers, SCDC notes, in addition to the spacious land available to make it even more so a transit hub as rapid transit is expected to run through the area by 2029.
Also in the long-term plan is to make the area more walkable and transit-oriented to encourage less driving, to create more jobs through the commercial developments and to utilize as much vacant land as possible.
“It’s an exciting time when projects like these are visioned out for the future. Newton has a vibrant future and this is a stepping-stone toward starting the revitalization of the town centre,” said Philip Aguirre, executive director of the Newton Business Improvement Association.