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Cloverdale Community Association launches pool, ice rink survey

Residents are being asked if they want to press the City of Surrey for a new indoor pool or ice rink – or both.
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The Cloverdale Community Association acts as a collective voice to Surrey City Hall for residents.

When it comes to indoor recreation, what should the city’s top priorities for Cloverdale and Clayton should be?

Residents of some of Surrey’s fastest-growing neighbourhoods are being asked to take part in a survey being conducted by the Cloverdale Community Association.

President Mike Bola says not enough is being done to address the needs of residents of Cloverdale and Clayton, areas that have witnessed rapid residential growth in the past decade, and are now closing in on a population of 70,000, making Cloverdale the fourth-largest town centre in Surrey and larger than Fleetwood and Guildford.

The association acts as a collective voice to city hall. Lately, its calls have grown louder as members have asked to slow down the pace of development here – allowing infrastructure and services like new schools, pools and parks to catch up.

“Residents living in Cloverdale have been waiting for a full recreational facility for a number of years, but nothing has surfaced,” Bola said.

“Everywhere I go, I get asked, ‘When are we getting our pool and ice staking arena?’”

Bola remembers appearing before the city’s parks and recreation committee two years ago asking council to include a three-rink ice arena and a 50-metre pool be included in the 2013-2017 capital plan – to no avail.

Nearly a year later, he was part of a delegation asking the city to allocate funds to build those facilities  – only to be told Cloverdale residents should use the forthcoming South Surrey Pool being built at 168 Street and 24 Avenue or the Surrey Sports and Leisure Complex, he said Monday.

The father of three said he is fed up with watching Cloverdale and Clayton get passed over for new recreation facilities like an indoor pool and new ice rinks.

“The mayor and council continue to push housing developments at a rate never seen before yet they don’t give anything back in terms of public amenities,” he said.

This week, the association launched a survey asking residents if they want a pool and/or a new skating rink.

If a majority say they want a pool, ice rink, or both, the association will push for these items on behalf of residents by making them an election issue this fall, Bola said.

He urges residents to visit the association’s website at www.cloverdalecommunity.org to participate in the survey, and to let their friends know about it – particularly those who live in townhomes and don’t receive a local newspaper.

The survey will run for four months, he said.

See also:

A Voice for Cloverdale

Revitalized Community Association Stands up for Cloverdale

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