Surrey opens its first city-backed medical clinic

Surrey’s first city-supported medical has opened its doors, but some mayoral candidates are raising concerns about the costs to taxpayers.

Mayor Brenda Locke opened the Total Life Care Surrey City Centre clinic on Friday, the first to open under the city’sCommunity Medical Clinics Initiative, which aims to help attract and retain family physicians in Surrey.   

“Health care is a is not the responsibility of local governments, but the need in Surrey was too urgent to simply wait for solutions,” said Locke. “We brought partners together to make it easier for family doctors to practice here, and I want to thank Dr. Karan Grewal, TLC Medical Clinics and our City staff for helping make this clinic a reality.” 

Located at #210 – 10362 King George Blvd., the clinic will seek to employ 10 doctors that will each attach to a minimum of 1,250 Surrey residents. 

Imagine Surrey mayoral candidate Mike Starchuk, however, wants to know the true cost to taxpayers of this project.

Surrey’s general manager of corporate services told council on Feb. 9 the two clinics will cost taxpayers about $100,000 each per year. He went on to say, “The City will lease space for each clinic at an estimated cost of approximately $100,000 per year, per clinic. Once we finalize clinic sites and specific lease terms we’ll bring forward those reports to Council for approval.”

Starchuk wants to know where those reports are.

“The taxpayers of Surrey deserve to know the costs for these clinics” said Starchuk. “There seems to be a culture of dismissing the content of their (corporate reports) and ignoring the comments from staff when asked for clarity, when the matters surround taxpayer dollars.” 

Surrey First councillor and candidate for mayor Linda Annis says city hall should not be competing with Surrey’s existing medical clinics that have to pay property taxes and other costs, including competing for doctors that are already in short supply.

“All of us want more doctors and more access, that’s something we all agree on,” said Annis. “But using scarce city property taxes to get into the health-care sector, which is a provincial responsibility, and competing with existing clinics makes no sense. Existing clinics across our city have to pay property taxes and other costs, and do not have the City of Surrey underwriting them. Now we are in direct and unfair competition.”

Annis said the city could have looked at a variety of incentives that would allow existing clinics to expand, and new clinics to set up without city hall getting into the funding and operation of medical clinics. 

“City hall could have used property tax incentives and the quick turnaround of permit approvals to give existing clinics the chance to expand or add new clinics,” said Annis. “Instead, we are now competing unfairly with our city’s existing clinics and we’re using scarce city property taxes to do it.”

Under the Community Medical Clinics Initiative, the city provides clinic space and other support, while TLC Medical Clinics manages day-to-day clinic operations, allowing physicians to focus on delivering quality patient care. Priority will be given to Surrey residents looking for a family doctor. 

“This first clinic gives us a foundation to build on as we work toward supporting up to 10 clinics across Surrey,” saidJoey Brar, general manager of corporate services. “It demonstrates what’s possible when the City brings the right partners together to address a community need.” 

A second medical clinic is anticipated to open in Newton this fall.