---
title: "Surrey City Centre Arena faces uncertain future as McCallum takes office today"
description: "Mayor-elect Doug McCallum has promised to pull the City's $200-million funding commitment from the 10,000-seat arena project and order a forensic audit of the land deal behind it."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/bc/surrey-2026/news/surrey-city-centre-arena-mccallum-public-funding-november-2026"
last_updated: "2026-11-02T18:23:55.474Z"
---

The City of Surrey's plan to build a 10,000-seat arena at its downtown core faces an uncertain path as Mayor-elect Doug McCallum and his Safe Surrey Coalition take office tonight with a promise to end public funding for the project.

Daily Hive Urbanized reported November 1 that McCallum has pledged to withdraw the up to $200 million in municipal funding that outgoing Mayor Brenda Locke committed to the arena over the City's 2026-2030 capital plan. His Safe Surrey Coalition's election commitments include ordering a forensic audit of the land deal behind the project, which McCallum told the Surrey Now-Leader in September 2026 would be one of his first acts as mayor.

## The project and where it stands

The arena, called the Surrey City Centre Arena and Cultural Event Centre, would sit at 10355 King George Boulevard on a former Safeway site across from Surrey Central SkyTrain station. The arena component is estimated to cost up to $360 million, according to Daily Hive Urbanized. Demolition and site preparation started September 10, 2026. Major construction is scheduled for 2027, with a planned opening in 2030.

The Vancouver Giants, who currently play at the 5,300-seat Langley Events Centre with a lease expiring in 2030, signed an agreement in principle with the City under Locke to make the new arena their home. Giants majority owner and president Ron Toigo told Daily Hive Urbanized the location's access to SkyTrain and the building's larger capacity were the main reasons for the team's interest.

## The land deal McCallum wants to audit

To acquire the site, the City arranged a land swap with Langley-area developer Wesgroup Properties, exchanging three City-owned properties for the former Safeway land. Each side of the exchange was valued at $116.6 million, according to Daily Hive Urbanized. McCallum and other critics argued during the campaign that the properties Surrey traded were worth more than the site it received.

In an October 6, 2026 campaign announcement, McCallum said: "Twelve questionable land deals. One hundred and fifty million dollars overpaid. And a mayor who will not explain a single one of them." His Safe Surrey Coalition platform commits to making the audit findings public.

McCallum's promise to keep public money out of any new arena, and to audit the land deals, are tracked on his page at [/bc/surrey-2026/candidates/doug-mccallum](/bc/surrey-2026/candidates/doug-mccallum).

## Tonight's swearing-in

McCallum and the incoming council, where his Safe Surrey Coalition holds a majority, are scheduled to be sworn in at Surrey City Hall on the evening of November 2, 2026. The new council's first steps on the arena will give a clearer picture of whether the project can continue as planned.

Locke previously said the project had passed a point where it could not easily be stopped, pointing to contracts already signed. Wesgroup's redevelopment plan had stalled on the same site for years before the City agreed to the arena project.

Residents can follow the council's decisions on the arena and McCallum's other promises at the [Surrey promise tracker](/bc/surrey-2026/tracker).

## Sitemap

See the full [sitemap](/bc/surrey-2026/sitemap.md) for all pages.