1/ Let me tell you about a property I've known since childhood - a building once known as the "Asian Centre", now the 104 Avenue Centre in Surrey. This structure, which I personally remember being built in my youth (1998), has remained a derelict eyesore for nearly my entire life.. #SurreyBC #LVT

2/ For decades, this building stood as a silent reminder of how our current property tax system fails to incentivize efficient land use, its windows blank or at times broken, its doors firmly shut, its perimeter eternally fenced off. Despite its proximity to the growing Surrey Central area, arguably the heart of Surrey, it remained unused and an eyesore, a stark contrast to the rapid growth around it.

3/ I've watched Surrey transform over the years, with new developments springing up left and right. Yet, the "Asian Centre" seems frozen in time. Under our current system, property owners can sit on valuable land, letting buildings deteriorate while still profiting from rising land values. This speculation often outpaces the cost of property taxes, leading to urban blight and wasted potential. The building is just one visible symptom of this larger problem.

4/ The info I've found surrounding this building is that the newest owner, an American, in his own words, "doesn’t want to lease to multiple tenants. The status of the building is that I have held the building for investment, not for the long term, and for one major tenant,” Pitt said. “I’m not interested in subdividing the building, and so there were a couple situations that involved a health-care user [Fraser Health], but that did not come to pass so the building remains available.”