The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board honoured the best of commercial real estate south of the Fraser River at its 2nd annual Commercial Building Awards held on September 20 at the Langley Coast Hotel & Convention Centre. 

In partnership with the Business Fraser Valley (BFV) newspaper, FVREB presented 11 awards in nine categories with the highest honour, the Judges’ Choice Award, going to the Surrey City Centre Library.

Dennis Germyn is the Chair of FVREB’s Commercial Executive Council. “Surrey’s library is a spectacular building. Our judges recognized that it will become an iconic piece of architecture in our region because it fulfills the needs and aspirations of its users and the surrounding community.

“And that’s what these awards are dedicated to, recognizing innovation, talent and hard work from professionals committed to building better communities.”

The crowd of over 150 applauded as Sunridge Gardens in Langley received a special Green Building award for being the most energy efficient. The seniors’ residence awaits gold certification for new construction by Leed Canada’s green building rating system. It expects to save approximately 1,250 tonnes of carbon emissions each year.

Langley developments took home over half of the awards of the evening. Here are the other 2012 Commercial Building Award of Excellence winners:

Surrey City Centre Library, 10350 University Drive, Surrey (Community Institutional – in addition to being the Judges’ Choice Award)

Avalon Gardens at Murrayville, 22323 – 48 Avenue, Langley (Community – Seniors’ Housing)                 

Sandman Signature Hotel & Suites, 8828 201 Street, Langley (Hospitality)

Corix Langley Gateway Facility, Gateway 200 Business Park, 84 Avenue & 200 Street, Langley (Industrial)

The Crossing condominiums, 33538 Marshal Road, 33539 Holland Avenue & 1975 McCallum Road, Abbotsford (Mixed Use – Commercial/Residential)

Encore condominiums, 19899 55A Avenue, Langley (Multi Family)

Grandview Business Centre, 2626 Croydon Avenue, South Surrey (Office)

Kensington Prairie Community Centre, 16824 32 Avenue, South Surrey (Restoration)

Tamlin International Homes head office, 26020 31B Avenue, Aldergrove (Renovation)

Aldergrove Credit Union – Otter Community Branch, 3661 248 Street, Aldergrove (Retail)

In addition, eight Merit Awards were presented in five categories. All 29 nominees were evaluated on the following criteria:

• Does the development complement or add to the surrounding properties and neighbourhood?
• Is it esthetically pleasing?
• What construction materials were used in the overall design?
• Was it built in an environmentally sensitive manner?
• Does it incorporate any unique architectural features?
• How does this project compare to others in the same category?

The event’s main sponsor was RBC Financial. Also sponsoring the event were RE/MAX Commercial, Fortis BC and BFV. The event was coordinated by FVREB’s Commercial Division and BFV.

Click here to see photos of the winners of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board’s 2nd annual Commercial Building Awards.