Linda Annis' Surrey First party vows to cancel 10,000-seat arena and instead build conference and performing arts venues

Surrey First party mayoral candidate and sitting city councillor Linda Annis is proposing a 1,000-delegate conference centre and a 2,000-seat performing arts centre in Surrey City Centre, as alternatives to Mayor Brenda Locke and the Surrey Connect party’s planned 10,000-seat indoor arena for Surrey’s emerging downtown.

The projects are part of Surrey First’s proposed $1.8 billion package of major community facilities.

The party’s election platform also promises more police officers, free recreation access for children and seniors, and a zero residential or business property tax increase for 2027.

Annis previously pledged to cancel the arena at her September 2025 mayoral campaign launch. Then a year later, in a mid-September 2026 statement, Surrey First reiterated that she would not proceed with Locke’s arena project, asserting that it puts taxpayers’ money at risk and emphasizing improving neighbourhood recreation facilities should be a priority.

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In June 2026, following a bidding process, the City of Surrey first announced it had reached an agreement with the owners of the WHL’s Vancouver Giants to build a 10,000-seat arena at the 5.1-acre former Safeway grocery store site of 10355 King George Blvd., located immediately east of SkyTrain’s Surrey Central Station. The City would acquire the site through a $116.6-million land swap with local developer Wesgroup Properties, which had been struggling for years to get going with its proposed high-density, mixed-use redevelopment for the site.

Beyond the Giants’ home games, according to the municipal government, the arena would attract concerts, conventions, community gatherings, and a range of other sporting and entertainment events.

In addition to the 10,000-seat arena, the complex would have a luxury hotel with about 175 guest rooms and some conference space, 100,000 sq. ft. of office and retail/restaurant uses to support the creation of a vibrant entertainment district, and residential uses.

Although the land acquisition will not require any cash, the City has set aside $200 million in funding in its 2026-2030 capital plan to cover the majority of the estimated $360-million construction cost of building the 10,000-seat arena.

Preliminary construction and site preparation work for the arena component began at the former Safeway site in early September 2026, with the Giants and City officials hosting a groundbreaking ceremony.

However, Surrey First argues that a greater focus on attracting conferences and meetings would generate more sustained spending at local businesses than individual hockey games or concerts.

“A concert or hockey game at the arena lasts three hours while a conference lasts three days, with every delegate worth more than $1,000 to our local economy, including hotels, restaurants, taxis, and retailers,” said Annis.

Major conference and performing arts facilities would be pursued through public-private partnerships, which Annis says would establish and limit taxpayers’ financial obligations upfront.

Furthermore, she said that such alternative projects of building different types of event facilities would be realized through leasing City-owned land, instead of performing any permanent sales, including land swaps.

“Our contribution to projects will focus on long-term leasing of City-owned land. We will never sell City lands, but we will leverage our land to help build and grow major city facilities and our economy,” she continued.

Building a 150,000 sq. ft. convention centre and a 50-metre pool at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds

Another major component envisioned by Annis’ party is a redevelopment of the Cloverdale Fairgrounds, including a 150,000 sq. ft. convention and exhibition centre and a multi-sport facility with a 50-metre competition swimming pool.

Surrey First would relocate the Cloverdale Curling Rink to the Cloverdale Ice Complex and move the Vintage Truck Museum to the Surrey Museum.

The party also proposes enabling commercial and hospitality space along the Cloverdale Fairgrounds’ 176 Street edge and would encourage Elements Casino to add a hotel, banquet facilities, and meeting space.

For the emerging Cloverdale Town Centre area, Surrey First wants a coordinated theme, citing Fort Langley and Chilliwack’s District 1881 as examples. The broader goal is to attract more regional visitors to the town centre and fairgrounds.

In contrast, in addition to the 10,000-seat arena in Surrey City Centre, Locke’s Surrey Connect party envisions building a convention and exhibition centre with up to 200,000 sq. ft. of space at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds. There would also be a major hotel to help establish the vision for a year-round entertainment hub at the fairgrounds, along with some commercial and residential developments.

Imagine Surrey mayoral candidate Mike Starchuk wants to revive the Cloverdale Fairgrounds as a year-round destination for agriculture, rodeo, and community events, with the involvement of Semiahmoo First Nation and Kwantlen First Nation.

Meanwhile, Safe Surrey Coalition mayoral candidate Doug McCallum is proposing to rebuild the Cloverdale Fairgrounds’ horse barns and racecourse, which were demolished after the City’s decision in Summer 2025 to terminate the site’s lease agreement for Fraser Downs’ horse racing uses. McCallum wants to restore the horse racing tradition at the fairgrounds, and implement new checks and balances to prevent the site from being redeveloped into other uses beyond event-hosting facilities.

New community and recreational facilities, and improved public safety staffing

As for the other platform promises, across Surrey, Annis’ party proposes a 20-year recreation construction plan targeting one new project every 16 months, beginning with the Newton Indoor Sports Centre at Newton Athletic Park.

It would also provide free access to municipal pools, rinks, gyms, and community centres for Surrey children and seniors. The party estimates this would benefit 160,000 children and 120,000 seniors.

A swimming initiative would aim to teach 60,000 children over four years, supporting the goal of having every Surrey child learn to swim by age 10.

Other commitments include seeking greater public access to school gyms and playing fields, adding park benches and covered picnic tables for seniors and elders, and improving lighting and washrooms. Surrey First also proposes launching a Surrey Festival of the Arts in 2027.

On public safety, the party promises to complete the transition from Surrey RCMP to Surrey Police Services, and add 300 police officers over four years.

A new police training centre would support faster recruitment and training. Surrey First also proposes giving police round-the-clock access to live feeds from 600 City-operated traffic cameras and adding 600 police security cameras.

The public safety staffing commitments extend to hiring 40 firefighters and 25 bylaw officers annually, alongside building an emergency services training centre for firefighters.

Annis, who has now served on City Council for eight years, says the platform responds to concerns about safety, rising costs, and infrastructure failing to keep up with population growth.

“I’ve been a councillor for eight years and watched two different mayors disappoint our residents and taxpayers,” she said.

Creating a new independent Auditor General for Surrey’s municipal government

To support her financial commitments, Annis promises a review within 90 days of being elected to identify savings and improve municipal operations. The platform describes this as an examination of a $2 billion budget.

Alongside the 2027 property tax freeze, Surrey First vows to stop using additional fees and levies to obscure the overall increase facing taxpayers.

Similar to the City of Vancouver’s 2021 creation of an independent Auditor General, Surrey First would create an independent Auditor General for Surrey’s municipal government to scrutinize spending and assess whether municipal programs deliver value for money. An annual public report would track progress on planned and ongoing capital projects.

Its economic strategy focuses on attracting employers so more residents can work closer to home. Annis argues that expanding the business tax base would help ease pressure on residential taxpayers.

The platform identifies six areas for growth: manufacturing, technology and emerging industries, agriculture and food processing, business and professional services, transportation and logistics, and construction materials and support services.

“You can’t just put out the welcome mat, you have to demonstrate in real and practical ways that we are ready to talk business in Surrey, starting with a clear focus on specific sectors where Surrey has natural advantages,” said Annis.

For businesses and residents dealing with Surrey City Hall, Surrey First proposes an “Amazon-style” online system to track the progress of permits, applications, inspections, and other requests.

It also sets a five-day approval target for routine licences and calls for measurable customer service standards.

A one-year pilot project would extend City Hall’s service counter hours to 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on three days each week. Other changes include a 311 information line and a public question period at every council meeting.

Annis would give city councillors written assignments outlining their responsibilities for particular municipal services, with those roles offered regardless of party affiliation.

“Nine pairs of hands on Council can get a lot more done, so every councillor regardless of party will be offered the chance to help. Once we are elected to Council, I want to put politics in the rearview mirror and get to work putting our city first,” continued Annis.

Transportation commitments include identifying the 50 intersections most urgently needing improvements and doubling the pace of sidewalk construction. The party also wants infrastructure needs considered from the outset of development planning.

Surrey First would also urge TransLink to improve Surrey’s public transit bus services by reallocating the buses freed up by the opening of SkyTrain’s Millennium Line Broadway extension to Arbutus in 2027 and the Expo Line Surrey-Langley extension in 2029.

Annis’ party also wants to see investments in building street-level light rail transit (LRT) in Surrey, after SkyTrain’s Surrey-Langley extension is built.

It also proposes pursuing access to provincial, municipal, and BC Hydro rights-of-way for truck parking, citing a shortage of more than 2,000 spaces.

In addition to Annis running for mayor, Surrey First is running eight candidates for City Council, including Janet Brown, Clint Stewart, Debra Antifaev, Mike Bose, Bilal Cheema, Gagan Nahal, Jasroop Gosal, and Shina Vermani.

Like other municipalities across B.C., Surrey’s civic election’s main voting day takes place on Saturday, Oct. 17, with voting locations open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Separately, a week after the civic election, B.C voters will return to the polling stations on Saturday, Oct. 24 to cast their ballot in the provincial general election — to choose the MLA for their riding, which will influence which provincial political party will form the next provincial government.

You might also like:
• Construction work has already begun on 10,000-seat Surrey hockey arena
• New renderings of the Vancouver Giants arena in Surrey City Centre
• Vancouver Giants moving to new $360-million, 10,000-seat arena in Surrey City Centre
• How the City of Surrey's $116.6-million land swap with Wesgroup Properties will secure the Vancouver Giants arena site
• Doug McCallum vows to rebuild the horse racetrack and barns at Surrey's Cloverdale Fairgrounds
• Doug McCallum sets his sights on building a new hospital in Surrey
• Brenda Locke's Surrey Connect platform outlines $1.5 billion in projects and property tax increases capped at inflation