Tsawwassen Mills

Community Building

Tsawwassen Mills is a monumental retail project situated in the heart of Tsawwassen First Nation, British Columbia.

This transformative endeavor was envisioned as a true partnership between one of Canada’s leading pension funds and the Tsawwassen First Nation.

The project would eventually result in the creation of a world class shopping centre, a best in market power centre and the infrastructure required for the full build-out of the Tsawwassen First Nation community plan.

This project became a model of how B.C.’s treaty process can work, and how successful outcomes can be achieved for all parties involved.

Project Roles

Development Management

Key Partners

Tsawwassen First Nation
Ivanhoe Cambridge
Property Development Group
Gracorp
Forgestone Capital

Project Statistics

1.2 million SF
200 Retailers
1,100 Seat Food Court
110 Acres of Land
4.5 kms of New Roads & Services
22 Unique Art Pieces, by Local & Tsawwassen First Nation artists

Sustainability & Impact

LEED Core & Shell Certified

Realizing Tsawwassen’s Community Vision

In 2009, Tsawwassen First Nation (TFN) became the first Nation in BC to enter into a treaty providing self governance status. TFN began working on their community vision, resulting in the creation of the TFN Neighbourhood Plan in 2011.

At the same time, Ivanhoe Cambridge had been searching for a site large enough to accommodate a “Mills” centre in BC’s Lower Mainland. In the land constrained market of the Lower Mainland, this exercise had proven to be very difficult. Suddenly, with TFN’s successful treaty status an opportunity presented itself: create a site large enough for a Mills centre and leverage Ivanhoe Cambridge’s development acumen to bring the TFN Neighbourhood Plan to life.

In 2012 Ivanhoe Cambridge and Tsawwassen First Nation begin working on a plan that would appoint Ivanhoe Cambridge to act as master developer for the Tsawwassen Mills shopping centre and the associated road network and land servicing for the remaining commercial, residential and industrial lands.

Ivanhoe Cambridge led the process of creating master servicing agreements for the required infrastructure and cost sharing agreements with other commercial developers. Ivanhoe Cambridge led the negotiations with government agencies such as BC Hydro, the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Environment to ensure that the community received the required infrastructure investments.

Ultimately, Ivanhoe Cambridge managed the construction of the roads and servicing of the commercial lands in addition to the construction of Tsawwassen Mills.

In 2016, Ivanhoe Cambridge opened Tsawwassen Mills to the public. In the first week nearly 300,000 people were welcomed to the newly created commercial project and surrounding infrastructure.