safeway

The old Safeway building in downtown Chilliwack is finally coming down.
Sobeys has agreed to demolish the building sometime in the next 90 days. It’s been vacant and boarded up for years, and the city has been trying to get it taken down so that the area can be redeveloped. Mayor Sharon Gaetz says putting condos in there is just one option.

“Of course there is going to be vacant land there for a while.  There is no other way to do this.  When the land is sold we will be happy to get together with the developers and talk about creating an even more vibrant downtown, and this gives us such an opportunity.  It’s such a positive thing for our city, and it’s probably one of the most exciting things that’s happened here since I became mayor.”

She says redevelopment isn’t something that happens overnight, and this is just one more step towards the city’s goal…which is to open up space for developers. The plan is to have mixed use residential, restaurants and shopping centred around green space.