70-year-old Surrey garage destroyed in fire will be rebuilt

An exact replica of Bulman's Garage will be built to replace the historic Surrey building that was destroyed last month.

A timeline for the replacement project won't be known until police wrap up their investigation into the explosion and subsequent fire that occurred on Oct. 21, leaving the garage structurally unsound.

A body was recovered from the building and RCMP investigators are treating the fire as suspicious.

Councillor Linda Annis, who chairs the city's Heritage Advisory Commission, says she was devastated when she first saw the damage.

"It was tragic because there was a life that was lost," she said.

"As far as historical significance is concerned, that was a real tragedy as well."

Bulman's Garage

It was 1948 when Everett Bulman built the garage on Harvie Road near 88 Avenue, just down the road from the fire hall where he was a volunteer member of the fire department.

Bulman serviced cars and farm vehicles in the Port Kells area until the mid-1980s when he was forced to step away from the business due to a health issue.

Everett's son James, who worked for his father in the garage when he was growing up, went to go see the damage when he heard about the fire.

"It was kind of disheartening to see the building gone," he said.

"It's a good thing that they plan on rebuilding it."

Annis says it's sad to lose to the original building but a replica will help preserve the Bulman's legacy in Surrey.

"His family was an integral part of the community," Annis said.

"There are many heritage sites around Port Kells, but this particular corner is of significant value."

Rebuilding history

The garage fell into a state of disrepair after Everett Bulman's death but it was restored and turned into a convenience store in 2017.

"It was pretty close to the real McCoy," James said.

"They did a very nice job."

Around the same time, the Surrey Fire Fighters Union revitalized the old fire hall, breathing new life into the corner where Bulman spent much of his time decades ago.

Union president Mark McRae says he was relieved to hear the garage will be rebuilt.

"One of the big things with us and restoring this building was to keep some of that heritage here in this area," he said.

"Losing that garage next door was certainly a piece of history in Port Kells that fit in with the current neighbourhood around here."