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Surrey to get a little more Indian
Surrey, Western Canada’s most South Asian city is going to get a little more Indian.
But are the plans a political ploy to direct the South Asian vote in the upcoming municipal elections to outgoing mayor Dianne Watts’ handpicked slate or is it actually a noble plan to encourage small entrepreneurs in the city?
Surrey announced last week a "South Asian cultural shopping district" with the authorities seeking to legalise and re-zone the present commercial encroachment of the Newton industrial land into a new commercial zone, a media report said.
The district is proposed on the 6.5-hectare site in the area around 128th Street and 80th Avenue in Newton.
The request for re-designating the site comes as the city said could not control an influx of commercial activities in Surrey's Newton industrial suburb.
The area is already dotted retail outlets selling Indian staples like jewelry, saris and sweets and these businesses have essentially violated the current industrial zoning laws.
This move if successful, will seek to legalize the encroachers and allow the city to have better control of the area.
Leading the charge for Surrey on this matter is councilor Tom Gill, who is expected to run again in the upcoming municipal election alongside candidates that have the backing of Mayor Watts against prime opponent Barinder Rasode , who is likely to announce her mayoralty intentions.
"The idea is to consolidate all the businesses into one commercial precinct catering to South Asians, with large, treed boulevards for pedestrian access, commercial shops with their own entrances and a parking lot serving the mini-mall," a news report quoted Gill as saying.
"It is a magnet for South Asians in the sense that it is a cultural shopping district. Main Street in Vancouver is, for a better choice of words, dead. Successful retailers have all pretty much relocated to Surrey and they have really all gathered in this particular area," Gill added.
Gill said the proposed district would usher in more jobs and encourage small entrepreneurs in the city.
Rasode was conspicuously absent as a voice for the city on this matter.
Rasode announced recently she was leaving the mayor's Surrey First party to sit as an independent after her outspoken position on public safety concerns left her isolated within the ranks of Surrey First.
“There is a lot of politicking going on now in city hall with Dianne’s impending departure..it is very obvious that Barinder is being shunned from major announcements as Dianne’s slate gets all the limelight,” a city hall insider told the South Asian Post.
“You’ll likely see more of this as we get closer to the municipal elections,” he said.
Rasode was also unceremoniously dumped as chair of the city’s police committee in February.
Although Rasode has not announced her candidacy for the mayor’s job a recent poll showed she has some of the highest name recognition going into this year's election.
Vancouver polling firm Insights West asked residents how familiar they were with potential mayoral candidates, Couns. Barinder Rasode, Tom Gill, Bruce Hayne and Linda Hepner.
According to the poll results, Rasode leads the group with seven per cent of respondents saying they were "very familiar" with her. She was followed by Gill at six per cent, Hepner (five per cent) and Hayne (three per cent).
Rasode ran under the left-leaning Surrey Civic Coalition slate in the 2005 civic election. In the 2008 election, she joined Surrey First, and made history when she became the first South Asian woman elected to Surrey council.
Meanwhile, a news report said both Mayor Dianne Watts and Coun. Judy Villeneuve flew first class to Asia in November 2012 for a trip to celebrate the 25th “sister city” anniversary with Zhuhai.
Three others — Coun. Tom Gill, economic development manager Donna Jones and mayor’s assistant Jagit Mann — also attended but flew economy class.
Christine Tian of the Canadian Consulate General in Guangzhou questioned the delegation’s attendance at the Zhuhai airshow in an October 2012 email.
“We do appreciate Mayor Watts’ support, but it might not be (appropriate) for government officials who is not in aerospace industry to attend,” according to Freedom of Information documents.
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