Surrey city council is about to push the provincial government to allow the municipality to have more independence.
Mayor Brenda Locke says having its own Charter would give the community the opportunity to choose its own course, instead of being forced to follow provincial regulations.
“It allows the city to be able to do things that are very focused, especially when we’re talking about things like economic development, about land use and how we move forward as a city,” Locke told 1130 NewsRadio sister station OMNI News.
Locke says the current legislative framework doesn’t give Surrey the latitude it needs to make decisions for itself. But Locke says it’s not just about giving Surrey more power.
“This is an opportunity for the province, too, to take a look at Surrey and take a look at Surrey as an economic engine, and give us the strength and the power to be able to develop who we are, as a very important economic engine for the entire province of British Columbia,” she added.
Surrey is just one of the many B.C. communities that’s recently pushed back against new provincial regulations around zoning and development.
Surrey is set to become the biggest city by population in the province within the decade.
“Surrey will be the first city in British Columbia to hit a million people,” she explained. “We are certainly going to be the largest city in, probably, three short years,” she said.
“So, it’s our time.”
Surrey city council is set to meet to discuss the plan Monday evening.