Ambleside is West Vancouver's historic commercial centre and the focus for community activities. Its extensive retail and commercial enterprises meet the daily shopping and service needs of many local residents and generate employment in the community. The area is strengthened by its extraordinary location adjacent to the waterfront and major parks, its proximity to major civic facilities and the high-density apartment area, its pedestrian scale and excellent accessibility by transit and roads. Major community events are held in Ambleside and include the Community Day Parade, Canada Day celebrations, Harmony Arts Festival and Coho Festival. Several exciting planning initiatives are underway in the Ambleside Area to further enhance its important role as the heart of the community. These include a long term vision and plan for Ambleside Park, the Argyle waterfront lands, and commercial area enhancement and revitalization.

Ambleside offers a wide range of housing choices. The commercial centre includes mixed commercial and residential developments in 2-3 storey buildings surrounded by low, mid and high rise apartments, townhomes, duplexes and single family homes, all within walking distance to the centre. The higher densities of the apartment zone directly adjacent to the commercial core contribute to vitality. Design guidelines for the town centre aim to promote a village character.

Ambleside offers excellent roadway and transit service. West Vancouver's Blue Bus Transit system operates throughout West Vancouver and provides service to downtown Vancouver, the University of British Columbia, Village of Lions Bay and direct service to the mid Lonsdale/Lions Gate Hospital and Lynn Valley Centre areas in North Vancouver. The majority of bus routes stop directly in the Ambleside Town Centre and offer easy connections at nearby Park Royal. The distinctive Blue Buses operate under contract to TransLink and are one of the most modern fleets in the industry providing accessible service for wheelchairs and scooters. Recent installation of bicycle racks has further increased travel options for passengers.

With many civic functions centralized in the Ambleside area, the District of West Vancouver is the major employer. Convenient access to major transportation routes, transit, shops, restaurants, waterfront parks and community amenities makes this a very attractive place to work.

Ambleside is a place where community residents can look forward to meeting familiar faces while obtaining the services that they need or participating in cultural and leisure activities. Financial, medical, grocery, home and garden services, dining and niche market retailing are all available. Civic facilities and amenities within the Ambleside Town Centre: - Ambleside Park, John Lawson Park & Waterfront Seawalk- Ferry Building Gallery and Silk Purse Arts Centre- Main Fire Hall- Municipal Hall- West Vancouver Museum and Archives- Police Station- Chamber of Commerce  nearby: - West Vancouver Memorial Library - West Vancouver Community Centre - West Vancouver Seniors Centre - Community Health Centre- Hollyburn Elementary School - Pauline Johnson Elementary School (French Immersion)- West Vancouver Secondary School and Kay Meek Centre for the Performing Arts - Park Royal Shopping Centre

Edmonds is one of three municipal town centres in Burnaby. Located in the southeast quadrant of the city, Edmonds is rapidly developing into a complete community with a range of housing types, a retail commercial core, alternative transportation options, and abundant community amenities and green space.

Edmonds Town Centre has experienced rapid growth in recent years and is developing into a vibrant, mixed-used community with a focus on high-rise towers and low-rise apartments. Southoaks Crescent and the Village, south of Kingsway, consists of two high-rises and grade-level townhousing. City in the Park, south of the Edmonds Skytrain station, is a high-rise development with extensive garden areas as well as a medium-sized grocery store. The Highgate Village development (on the former Middlegate Mall site) includes four high-rise towers, low-rise units, integrated retail and commercial components, and public open space. The area bounded by Kingsway, Edmonds Street, Griffiths Drive, and 10th Avenue includes older single-family and low density multiple-family housing, as well as industrial lands. The area has long term multiple-family redevelopment potential.

Edmonds Town Centre is well served by public transit. The Edmonds Skytrain Station provides quick connections to Metrotown and Lougheed Town Centres, as well as to Downtown Vancouver, New Westminster, and Surrey. Four buses at the Edmonds bus interchange also provide passengers with local service. Pedestrian and cycle routes include the BC Parkway, Highland Park Line, and a trail system through Taylor and Byrne Creek Ravine Parks. A number of street improvements are also planned for the core area to enhance the pedestrian experience. Kingsway and Southridge Drive/10th Avenue are the main east-west arterials in the Edmonds community. They provide convenient access to Vancouver and New Westminster, as well as to other parts of the region by means of the Trans Canada Highway and Highway 91. Griffiths Drive serves as the community's main north-south arterial.

Commercial development in Edmonds Town Centre continues to strengthen. The BC Hydro Headquarters Complex located in the area in the early 1990s. Construction of Highgate Village at the former Middlegate Mall site is currently underway. The development will include a 40,000 sq.ft. grocery store, 18,000 sq.ft. drug store, liquor store, 550 seat bingo hall, and pedestrian-oriented street-front retail. Over 12,000 sq.ft. of office space is also planned for Highgate. This development will add significantly to the existing retail and commercial services along the Kingsway corridor between Sperling Street and Edmonds Street. It will also complement the various restaurants, local grocers, and retail shops located in the Edmonds Street commercial area, between Kingsway and Canada Way.

Edmonds Town Centre has a broad range of community services, amenities, and public open spaces. Resources at the Eastburn Community Centre include a gymnasium, weight room, games room, and banquet hall. The City owns two child care centres in the area (Hanna Court and Taylor Park), both of which are operated on the City's behalf by a non-profit society. The City-owned Edmonds Resource Centre at Canada Way and Edmonds Street accommodates non-profit agencies, which provide a range of community services (e.g. basic English language training for new immigrants, programs and services for at-risk youth). The City-owned Alan Emmott Centre, a recently renovated heritage building, includes a banquet hall and program space for a non-profit seniors organization. The Nikkei Heritage Centre, a multi-use facility near Kingsway and Sperling, offers programs, services, and special events for the Japanese-Canadian community and includes a public garden and museum. Two new schools have been constructed in the rapidly developing Edmonds Town Centre South area: Taylor Park Elementary School (which opened in September 2004) and Southeast Secondary School (scheduled for a September 2005 or January 2006 opening). Additional redevelopment projects in the Edmonds community will further benefit area residents. The Highgate Village development currently under construction will include a new Community Police Station, town square, and garden. A new state of the art firehall has recently been constructed on Edmonds Street within the town centre. There are also plans to replace the existing Kingsway Branch Library with a new building at the corner of Kingsway and Edmonds. Byrne Creek Ravine and Taylor Parks are integral components of the parks and open space system in Edmonds Town Centre. Smaller neighbourhood parks further contribute to this park-rich community. Many of these green spaces are linked by the BC Parkway, Highland Park Line, and the trail system in the Edmonds Town Centre South area, which permit pedestrian and bicycle travel and offer outdoor recreation opportunities. The Byrne Creek Streamkeepers is an active stream stewardship group in the Edmonds area.

Lougheed is one of three municipal town centres in Burnaby. Located in the northeast quadrant of the city at the foot of Burnaby Mountain, Lougheed is planned as a complete community with a wide range of housing types and a strong retail core. It has good transit and automobile connections to other parts of the region as well as an abundance of public green space.

Lougheed Town Centre has a broad array of housing opportunities. Sullivan Heights, which lies north of the core area, is a mature, single-family neighbourhood. Simon Fraser Hills, northwest of the core, is a well-established townhouse community. An established low, medium, and high-density multiple family housing area is found south of Lougheed Highway and within walking distance of the core and Skytrain. Planned redevelopment of the core area will add to existing housing choices and focus primarily on multiple-family housing. A townhouse development was recently completed just west of Cameron District Park, and another is under construction just east of the park. A current development proposal at Cameron Street and North Road includes three apartment towers, 150,000 sq.ft. of integrated retail and commercial space, and low-rise and townhouse units.

The town centre's major public transportation hub is located near the Lougheed Highway-Austin Road intersection. The Lougheed Town Centre Skytrain station, on the new Millenium Line, connects passengers to downtown Vancouver, New Westminster, and Surrey in 25 minutes or less. If the northwest alignment is chosen for the Northeast Sector Rapid Transit line, rapid transit will also extend from Lougheed Station to Coquitlam Town Centre. If LRT is the selected technology, the potential exists to establish a new station at Cameron Street and North Road. Eleven bus routes converge at the Lougheed bus interchange and provide service to Burnaby's other town centres as well as to New Westminster, Coquitlam, and Port Moody. Several cyclist routes and pedestrian walkways add to the range of transportation options in the Lougheed community. Residents and employees in the Lougheed community can easily access other parts of the region by means of the Trans Canada Highway via Gaglardi Way. The Lougheed Highway also provides quick connections to the Tri-City area of Port Moody, Coquitlam, and Port Coquitlam. North Road, Burnaby's easterly boundary, serves as a major north-south arterial for the community.

Lougheed Town Centre Mall is the core of retail activity in the community. It underwent a $20 million renovation in 2003 and currently has over 649,000 sq.ft. of retail space, five major anchors and 175 stores. The mall is a catalyst for further retail and commercial development in the town centre. Pedestrian-oriented street-front retail is proposed as part of a mixed-use development at North Road and Cameron Street. There is also potential redevelopment of part of the mall property into high-rise office and residential towers. The North Road commercial corridor has an active Business Improvement Association in place, and provides area residents with convenient access to the variety of retail commercial services along the west and east (Coquitlam) sides of the road. The Lougheed Town Centre is also in close proximity to two major employment centres: Simon Fraser University and the Lake City Business Centre.

Lougheed Town Centre offers a wide range of community services and amenities, mainly concentrated at the Cameron Recreation Complex. Resources include a public library, gymnasium, weight room, indoor cycling studio, seniors' centre, and indoor tennis and racquet courts. Lougheed also has active stream stewardship groups and an extensive parks and open space system. Stoney Creek Park and its associated riparian area, the community's ecological gem, are the backbone of this system and connect Burnaby Mountain, Burnaby Lake Regional Park, and the Brunette River. Cameron District Park and several neighbourhood parks also serve the community's open space needs. The Burnaby Mountain Urban Trail provides walking and cycling opportunities. When the Central Valley Greenway is complete, pedestrians and cyclists will also be able to enjoy a convenient east-west connection between Vancouver, Burnaby, and New Westminster.