The Fraser Heights Community Association received a lot of feedback regarding the pub & liquor store application at 160th St and 108th Ave. Given the strong feelings of the community as reflected in the responses via e-mail and at the November general meeting, the association took the position of opposing the application. Following is an excerpt of a communication to the Mayor and Surrey City Councillors in November:
The Fraser Heights Community Association (FHCA) would like to express its opposition to application 7908-0218-00 to change the CD zoning to allow the inclusion of a pub and liquor store in Fraser Heights at the location of 160th St and 108th Ave.
The current CD By-law governing the property states:
- Neighbourhood Pub is not permitted.
- Liquor Store is not permitted.
These types of licensed establishments are specifically excluded from this site. It is important to note that this was done as a condition of approval for the shopping plaza in direct response to the concerns of the community after more than a year of difficult interactions between the developer and the residents of Fraser Heights.
Reasons for the community’s resistance to these establishments at that location are many but among them are the close proximity to our children’s schools and recreational facilities. Quoting the City of Surrey’s ‘Locational Criteria For Liquor-Primary Establishments (Neighbourhood Pub)’, passed by resolution R03-2634, Sept 29, 2003:
“Neighbourhood public houses should:
Not be close to children’s facilities. No pub should be located within 400 metres of a school, a children’s park or playground. Some concern has been expressed by members of the community that exposing children to neighbourhood pub use is not a desirable influence.”
Distances from the proposed pub & liquor store to children’s schools and facilities in our neighbourhood:
- Fraser Heights Secondary School – less than 100 m (across the street)
- Erma Stephenson Elementary School – 250 m
- Dogwood Elementary School – 390 m
- Fraser Heights Recreation Centre – 380 m
- Fraser Heights Water Park – 360 m
- Baseball/Soccer fields – 350 m
- New Tennis courts (next to Rec Centre) – 370 m
- Existing Tennis courts (next to high school) – 320 m
City planning notified just the few or so residents within 100 m of the proposed location, as required by law, and Fraser Heights Secondary School. When the FHCA was notified of the application in mid-August and told by the city planner that it could go to city council as soon as Sept 22nd, we asked that we be allowed to present it to the community at our next regular meeting, scheduled for Sept 23rd, before it be presented to council.
Prior to the meeting we notified our membership about the application and invited them to provide feedback on our website. We also invited the developer, Bob Cheema, to the meeting so that he could present his proposal directly to the community and take questions. For 45 minutes Mr. Cheema discussed the application with those in attendance. It is important to note that Mr. Cheema, on several occasions, emphatically stated that he was only responding to what he felt the community wanted and if the community didn’t want the pub and liquor store he would withdraw the application. With Mr. Cheema in attendance a show of hands indicated that 50 (85%) were against the pub & liquor store and 9 (15%) were in favour.
In addition to that feedback we received 49 written responses through our website of which 38 (78%) are against the application and 11 (24%) are in favour. These have been forwarded to the city planner along with the names and contact information of each respondent.
When we first became aware of the application we asked the city planner why no sign advising of the application was posted. We were told that the developer was told to post a sign at the corner of 160th St and 108th Ave. To this day this has not been done, though eventually a sign was put up at the west end of the property, contrary to the city’s instructions, and not visible from the specified corner.
Our key objections therefore:
- the shopping centre was approved explicitly on the condition that there be no pub & liquor store,
- the proposed location is in close proximity to our children’s schools and parks,
- residents remain overwhelmingly against having a pub & liquor store in this neighbourhood.