Building a Community and Creating a Sense of Community at UniverCity
UniverCity – the Community at Simon Fraser is living up to expectations…the vision for a sustainable community has quickly come to fruition: UniverCity is walkable; provides families with a sense of community in a healthy environment; supports economic development and jobs; and offers a range of housing, commercial, and transportation options.
When UniverCity hosted the third event in Showcasing Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver: The 2007 Series, this provided an opportunity to talk about the vision that is guiding development of this high density community atop Burnaby Mountain. Chris Hartman, Vice-President of the SFU Community Trust, delivered a presentation titled Building a Community: Creating a Sense of Place
Living in a sustainable community means having shops, services and amenities within walking distance to your home. Now that the built environment at UniverCity is taking shape, the emphasis shifts to creating the cultural environment. Chris Hartman described goals, principles and considerations that have shaped the UniverCity Development Plan and its implementation. 
Chris Hartman informed the audience that it was nine years ago when former SFU President John Stubbs outlined the vision for this community by saying: “The University intends to design and develop a model community…that will bring international acclaim, both to the university and to the City of Burnaby.”
About the SFU Community Trust:
Formerly known as the Burnaby Mountain Community Corporation, ithe SFU Community Trust was incorporated in February 1999 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Simon Fraser University.
The mandate of the SFU Community Trust is to manage the planning and development of a complete new community on approximately 65 hectares (160 acres) of land surrounding the SFU campus on Burnaby Mountain.
Posted November 2007