Langley SkyTrain extension forcing the closure of 45-year-old White Spot

A White Spot restaurant in Langley is shutting its doors for the last time next month, as its location is marked to be the first SkyTrain station in the city.

The restaurant, near the Willowbrook Mall on Fraser Highway, has been operating for almost 45 years, since 1979. Its last day of service is Dec. 30.

In a statement, White Spot says it shared the “disappointing news with its employees back in September, and it is working to try and place as many as possible in other locations.”

It says it is also doing what it can to support those now looking at retiring or forced to find a job elsewhere.

Township of Langley Mayor Eric Woodward says as of right now, the White Spot is the only business he is aware of having to close due to the Expo Line extension from Surrey to Langley.

Woodward says he understands there’s a lot of development in the area due to the extension.

“We’re currently going to consider slowing that down a little bit, but that’s still going to be significant growth within the township, especially in the Willowbrook and Willoughby areas,” he told CityNews.

“We’re going to be seeing a lot of our growth on that 200 Street corridor, and that’ll help us preserve our character elsewhere.”

Earlier this month, B.C.’s minister of transportation Rob FLeming said construction for the Surrey Langley SkyTrain is set to begin in 2024.

The Skytrain project is set to be completed in 2028 and will extend 16 kilometres along the Fraser Highway from the King George Skytrain station in Surrey to Langley. The line will have eight new stations and three transit exchanges and is estimated to cost $4.01 billion.

“We expect, in a few months’ time, in the new year, to be awarding contracts. The procurement is proceeding, we will begin this project in 2024 and it’s all going to be done in one phase,” he explained at the time.

White Spot tells CityNews there are no plans to open up a new location in Langley.