Is it April Fools Day already?

 Despite  publicly stating that "Newton would not be home to any more  social  housing"  tonight we learn that  Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts appears to welcome Vision Quest into the already saturated  neighbourhood.
 The plan is to have Vision Quest move into the burned out  Hotel Bollywood, a shabby boarded up motel on the King George strip. There couldn't be a worse place to house vulnerable people than  at that location. This cannot be allowed to happen yet again in Newton.

Mayor Watts said  she wouldn't do this and  she needs to be held  accountable to all Surrey residents. The people in this part of Surrey have absorbed more than their share of similar type housing and organizations, and it has created an unbalanced and unhealthy  area along the King George corridor  in South Newton.

The people of South Surrey were listened to last month and managed to block a mega casino  development  in their community with the mayor casting the deciding vote. That 'no' vote  means  the gaming license held by Gateway stays in Newton.  And the slots at Bingo Country at King George and 71st Ave, which the mayor told us would be "temporary" will continue to operate and  tempt  the  large number  of already marginalized residents who live within a few blocks.

And now she wants to put another  recovery facility close by?

Please tell us that it's April Fools Day, because this has to be some sort of joke.

Watch the Global News  feature here.
Click here
 Update Thursday Feb 28
Mayor Watts gives statement saying  Vision Quest will not be going into the Hotel Bollywood.  Claims Vision Quest acted without her approval and consent.  Pretty sure we haven't heard the last of this. Surrey politics, very strange indeed.

Local Gems....

  A quick shout out to  a business who continue to provide the best service around! One of our local Newton gems is Pet Food 'n More in the Newton Village where today I had a nice chat with Raffi, a 32 year old Macaw parrot. What a beautiful bird! 

The staff at this store are so helpful and they always make time to  carry purchases to my car.  

 Plus, their prices  are  very reasonable.  Check them out!

Move over Flash Mob- It's Cash Mob!

 Cash Mobs are a great way  to support local businesses. People love  getting involved and business gets a big boost . Great way to put the focus on a  neighbourhood  restaurant, deli  or what have you, and have some fun while you're at it.
Check  out what one community did.
Cash Mob

Retrofitting Suburbia's Dunham-Jones @ SFU Surrey

Update: Last night  we heard Ellen Dunham-Jones speak at Simon Fraser University in  Surrey. It was exciting and encouraging to see what can be done to the aging suburbs with just a little vision, some forward thinking and  the willingness to allow change to come to the neighbourhood.

The condensed  TED Talks video link below gives an excellent summary of the potential of the suburbs. 

We need to let them grow up!

Original post:

For any resident, government official or business person interested in the future of the their community,  Retrofitting Suburbia by Ellen Dunham-Jones and June Williamson is a must read. 

Ellen Dunham-Jones  will be giving a lecture  at  Simon Fraser University -Surrey Campus on the evening of Thursday Feb 7th 

SFU "Retrofitting Suburbia" Lecture info here

She will aslo be taking part in an all day symposium Beyond Downtown   at UBC on Friday Feb 8th.

 Have a look at  a  short TED Talks presentation  with Dunham-Jones and her unique take on what decades of suburban sprawl and short-sighted planning has meant for the suburbs. She addresses smart and in many cases easy and inexpensive ways to turn a place around.    Watch video here