The Surrey Board of Trade has announced a bold move by purchasing a second location in Surrey’s Health & Technology District by the Lark Group. In a co-ownership arrangement with Western Community College, the space is expected to open in early 2023 following renovations to establish the Surrey Technology and Skills Centre.
“As Surrey’s city-building business organization, the Surrey Board of Trade is using its fiscal equity to expand economic development projects to transform the board of trade/chamber of commerce business model, elevate local and regional market conditions, and enhance our profile,” said Anita Huberman, President & CEO, Surrey Board of Trade. “We are extremely grateful to Western Community College for their partnership as we continue our workforce projects together, addressing the labour challenges of our business community. We are building a bridge between private education, as well as with our continued work with public education, to deliver an unparalleled value proposition to our members.”
“As a private post-secondary educational institution founded in Surrey in 2012, with three campuses, Western Community College is committed to supporting businesses across the community in developing a highly trained and skilled workforce,” said Gurpal Dhaliwal, President & CEO, Western Community College. “We have worked successfully with the Surrey Board of Trade on several federal and provincial labour market training programs to build a vibrant and digitally skilled labour force in Surrey. We are proud to be the educational training partner on this initiative.”
The new Surrey Technology and Skills Centre will be the premier centre for research, business, and innovation, creating local and global opportunities for the ecosystem that continues to expand at the Surrey Health & Technology District.
The investment between the Surrey Board of Trade and Western Community College will:
- Bridge education and business
- Focus on global partnerships through the Surrey International Trade Centre to support education and diversity
- Escalate economic and workforce projects to include:
- Health and technology training programs (government funding)
- International partnerships and Surrey International Trade Centre expansion
- Indigenous Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre
- Cyber Crime Centre of Excellence
- Blockchain Centre of Excellence
- Immigration Innovation Lab
- Other entrepreneurship hubs (women/youth)
- Co-working spaces to start up or scale up businesses
“No other chamber or board of trade is expanding in this way to meet the economic needs of our society and business community,” added Huberman. “With our connections in Metro Vancouver and the Cascadia economic region, and our global connections, our next phase of growth results in success for our economy, and the community. This is the first step of our expansion, with potential to grow into other parts of Surrey. “This acquisition enhances the Surrey Board of Trade’s ability to meet our goals to support business and attract business.”
PRESENTERS AT THE SEPTEMBER 22 PRESS CONFERENCE:
- Anita Huberman, President & CEO, Surrey Board of Trade
- Gurpal Dhaliwal, President, Western Community College
- Rowena Rizzotti, Vice President, Surrey Health & Technology District at the Lark Group
- Tanja Yardley, Vice President, Clinical Innovation, HealthTech Connex
- Ian Faris, Senior Vice President, Chamber Network Relations and Advocacy, Canadian Chamber of Commerce
