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vancouverities are notorious for having a huge superiority complex. It exists on a national level (toronto and calgary being recipients of this attitude), and exists at a regional level - usually directed surrey.
Surrey is what it is, a city with over 400,000 people. Any city of it's size is going to have it's share of good and bad. The north side (whalley, guildford, newton and bridgeview) has typically had a fair number of social problems (poverty, violence, squatting, homelessness, staggering car theft etc.). Although the city is working to revitalize these areas, they still have some work to do. The problems in these areas pail in comparison to the social problems that exist in vancouver's dt eastside - however surrey's problems are often spread out a much larger area - so it's more noticeable than in vancouver.
It also stems from the fact that many in the city of vancouver value an urban lifestyle - in a city that is often viewed as a model of city planning and urban design across the world. Surrey is a prototypical suburb in north america - strip malls, detached houses and very car centric layout.
Also vancouver in many ways feels threatened by the regional economic shift that is starting to favour the suburbs - and many of these initiatives are being spearheaded by surrey. While vancouver and it's political leaders are obsessed with ideas like raising homeless chickens - surrey under mayor dianne watts leadership has tackled real issues that matter to people, including crime, transportation, community services etc. This appeals to business and residents, and it's population growth numbers are proof of this. Surrey is projected to surpass vancouver in population within the next 10 - 20 years.
In reality, many areas of surrey are fine places to live and raise a family. If i were to ever move back to vancouver, south surrey/white rock area would be at the very top of my list of places to be - far ahead of any area in vancouver proper and i know many people who feel the same way. Cloverdale, fraser heights etc are all great areas as well. Generally, the further east or south you are in the city, the better you are.
Living in the gta - i see the same relationship between toronto and mississauga. If surrey uses mississauga as a model on how to become a thriving "second city" within a region, it will have earned respect - regardless of what a handful of elitist in vancouver proper think.
huh? There is in every north american city I've been to.
There is coexistence, but no integration.
People tend to stick to their own, to people and things they are used to, understand better, and know how to deal with.
It's very obvious (and understandable) in any multicultural city like Vancouver where probably 50% of the population are foreign born. You don't move to a different country and embrace local culture from the day one.
On the other hand, locals don't expect all those newcomers with open hands, either.
Last edited by movingwiththewind; 12-23-2011 at 05:25 PM..
Vancouver thinks it's superior to every place on the planet so it's feelings towards Surrey is 10X that feeling.
Surrey is really 2 cities.........South Surrey is a very affluent, beautiful district with about 80,000. There is a great park system some some nice pedestrian friendly areas and charachter filled and lively White Rock is next door. People down here do NOT live in Surrey but rather South Surrey, White Rock, Cresent Beach, or Ocean park. Tell anyone down here you live in Surrey and consider your life in danger. Needless to say it is very expensive even by Vancouver standards..........the average price of a house is $950k.
Surrey {which means the rest of the city, is a decidedly low income area with huge swaths of poverty, drug addicts, prostitutes, and crime. It is also an urban planning nightmare. Yes they are trying to improve the Central City area but it is still a dangerous, unpleasant dump.
Some Surrey jokes..........What's the best thing about living in Richmond?...........never having to say your Surrey. What does a Surrey girl call safe sex?..........a bus shelter. What's the first thing a Surrey girl says in the morning?........so, what team do you guys play for?
In my early twenties, I can recall the invention of "Surrey jokes" ie: "What's the safest night to walk the streets of Surrey"? A: "Night of the tractor pull". The jokes highlighted the perception that people from the suburbs were thought to be "red-necks". I can remember sitting around my grandmother's table as she would recall what the teenagers were doing to her yard that week in Surrey. Nobody in Van had the problems she had with pipe bombs going off in her mailbox, bus stop sign being pulled out of the ground, attempted break-ins, etc... We just didn't have that stuff in the "big city". The jokes helped her cope. Afterall, laughter is good medicine.
It IS a fact that Surrey had a higher crime rate throughout the 80's and 90's. Until the late 90's it was perfectly safe to walk downtown Vancouver after midnight. Surrey had more shootings, gang activity and mostly petty crimes probably due to suburban boredom.. vandalism, break and enter and auto theft. Vancouver's east side problem were isolated to the Hastings area where no families lived and were more related to drug abuse, homelessness, prostitution and addiction.
It's also a fact that figures on crime, vandalism, gang activity and muggings went up drastically after the skytrain route opened linking Surrey to Vancouver. A close friend of mine was beaten by some Surrey guys to within an inch of his life for being homosexual. That said, a lot of Vancouverites will tell you that the rioting behavior witnessed in Vancouver seemed uncharacteristic of their urban values... interesting that it happened adjacent to skytrain lines.
The reason why vancouverites hate surrey is because of the crime rate that city has. Everytime there's a shooting or stabbing in vancouver its always someone from surrey. It has nothing to do with vancouverites feeling threatened of a "regional economic shift that is starting to favour the suburbs".
thats ridiculous.(I live in west vancouver which is very hilly suburb just on the otherside of lions gate bridge) Although surrey is getting better its still where the majority of crime and gangs are here in greater vancouver.
The reason why vancouverites hate surrey is because of the crime rate that city has. Everytime there's a shooting or stabbing in vancouver its always someone from surrey. It has nothing to do with vancouverites feeling threatened of a "regional economic shift that is starting to favour the suburbs".
thats ridiculous.(I live in west vancouver which is very hilly suburb just on the otherside of lions gate bridge) Although surrey is getting better its still where the majority of crime and gangs are here in greater vancouver.
Here is a map of homicides in Metro Vancouver from 2009 - 2011.
Certainly the bad areas of Surrey (Newton and Whalley) have more than your fair share, but there were just as many in East Vancouver and the downtown core.
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