Project Name: Central City

Project Sector: Mixed-Use Development

Client: Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC)

Project Description:

Central City is a mixed-use development located in Surrey, BC combining 140 retail stores, restaurants, services, a 350,000 square foot Simon Fraser University campus, and a 560,000 square foot AAA office tower, located adjacent to the Central City SkyTrain station.

BLG Role:

When the BC government changed ICBC’s direction on this iconic project, BLG stepped in to handle what became the most complex air space parcel subdivision in British Columbia, with 9 air space parcels and two remainders, with the realized goal of providing greater investment flexibility for the mall, university, and office components of the project.

All of these were achieved through a single air space parcel easement agreement, which balanced the business and operational needs of the various components of the project, providing a workable and equitable legal structure to manage them together as an integrated development. BLG also acted on the sale of the educational space to Simon Fraser University and the balance of the retail and office components to Blackwood Partners. Central City has since become a key component of a thriving new urban core for the City of Surrey.