Modern Burnaby 1955 - 2008

1955 pop. 75,000
2006 pop. 202,799

The growth of Burnaby during the 1950s and 1960s required the organization of a municipal planning program to guide urban development. The postwar boom had also provided Burnaby with significant public investment including the construction of the Trans Canada Highway, Simon Fraser University and the B.C. Institute of Technology.

The 1970s saw the creation of a regional town centre for the city at Metrotown and the designation of three other town centres at Edmonds, Lougheed and Brentwood, creating focus for commercial and residential redevelopment. In South Burnaby growth was accelerated by the introduction of SkyTrain in 1986.

This new tax base has enabled the community to rapidly expand public services and acquire park land, illustrated by the creation of Deer Lake Park and its cultural facilities adjacent to City Hall. The dramatic growth of the local economy placed Burnaby second only to the City of Vancouver as a centre of employment and output in British Columbia. Burnaby acquired new municipal status in 1992, becoming a ‘city’ on the Centennial of its incorporation.

The construction of the Millennium SkyTrain line through central Burnaby marks the beginning of a new era for the growth and development of the City.

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