An uncertain economic outlook doesn’t seem to be dampening the eagerness to build and occupy large industrial spaces in Metro Vancouver, especially those required for activity at the Port of Vancouver. 

Brunswick Property Holdings is developing an industrial project in Surrey designed for port-related logistics and distribution companies to keep pace with resilient demand in the sector. 

The Bridgeview Logistics Centre is to be located at the intersection of Scott Road and 104 Ave. The two-building centre is being marketed for lease by Avison Young and is described as an institutional-grade industrial space in the geographic centre of Metro Vancouver.

The 17.7-acre property is currently under site preparation and will deliver a total of more than 393,000 sq. ft. of new space to the market.

Ryan Kerr, a principal with Avison Young, said the complex will be built on spec and designed for logistics operators that need large-bay spaces connected to the port and major transit routes. It is ideally suited for port distribution users and regional distribution hubs seeking a central location within Metro Vancouver’s transportation and trade network.

Project arranged in ground lease with port 

The Port of Vancouver owns the land, but made it available to Brunswick to develop on a 99-year land lease. 

"We are scheduled to deliver the building in 2028," Kerr told RENX in an interview. He said the occupiers will handle a large number of containers that arrive through the port. 

Kerr said the port has roughly 4.5 million square feet of off-dock logistics space on its industrial land, under its ground lease programs. Sub-tenants at Bridgeview must qualify by providing port-related activity.

"We've had no shortage of demand for that type of user," he said. "We currently track plus or minus six-million-square-feet of port-related occupiers looking for space in Metro Vancouver."

Many tenants are either trying to secure new space or expand existing footprints, he said. Among the large occupiers already in place are companies like Container World, Amazon, Ikea, Coast 2000 Terminals, West Link and Nippon Express, among others.

"All of these groups use enough container throughput from the main ports of Vancouver to qualify for the use restrictions," Kerr said.

He said investment in Canada's port is a crucial driver for GDP in B.C. and Canada, so the port has a mandate to develop partnerships to get new spaces like these developed to accommodate companies that want to move products through the ports. 

Vacancy coming down, especially for large centres 

Kerr said the region's industrial vacancy is stable despite global macroeconomic troubles and uncertainty.

"If you're looking for spaces over 80,000 sq. ft., vacancy is actually right around one per cent," he said. "It's likely that the industrial market recovery in Vancouver is going to be led top-down, meaning from the largest occupiers down to the smallest, and it's already very much in play."

Total industrial vacancy in the region dropped quarter-over-quarter from 4.5 per cent to 4.1 per cent, according to Avison Young's 2026 Q1 Metro Vancouver industrial market report. The report said smaller units under 10,000 sq. ft. and large-bay units above 100,000 sq. ft continue to experience strong demand, with vacancy declining across both size categories but especially in the larger category. 

"Demand is being driven by large occupiers, right-sizing businesses, and expanding operators seeking flexible, efficient space," the report states.

Brunswick expects stronger overseas activity 

Market conditions provide an opportunity for a project of this size in this location, said John Robertshaw, president of Brunswick Property Holdings. "Buildings over 150,000 feet, especially new buildings, are few and far between."

He said tariff disruptions with the U.S. will lead to more demand for overseas trade, which will likely boost container traffic at the port. 

The property arrangement was negotiated with the port about five years ago. "We have entered into… a 99-year pre-paid ground lease with the Port Authority." 

The overall shortage of industrial land continues to be a challenge, Robertshaw said, adding there are companies that want to locate in the region, or expand locally, but many are getting pushed to places like Calgary.

Brunswick has been operating in Canada for 20 years, said Robertshaw, who is originally from the U.K. His company has experience building large format industrial sites in the region, including an 850,000-sq- ft. complex with rail access in East Richmond, also developed in conjunction with the port.

He said pre-loading continues at the Surrey site and the company hopes to receive the detailed building permit from the Port Authority soon to start construction.