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Superman may return to Cloverdale

Massive set may be constructed on Cloverdale Fairgrounds

Superman may be returning to Cloverdale this year.

According to a City of Surrey planning and development report, Manly Shore Production Services Inc. has applied to build a temporary set at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds for a new series called “Superman and Lois.” The set would be at the north end of the fairgrounds on the east side of the berm.

It’s been almost a decade since the Smallville TV series was shot in Cloverdale and other parts of B.C.

“The City and Fraser Valley Exhibition Society have been approached by Manly Shore Production Services Inc. (“Manly”), a subsidiary of Warner Brothers Entertainment Inc. to lease a 7.6 acre portion of the Cloverdale Fairgrounds site, including the Cloverdale Fairground Show Barn to allow the construction of a production set for the Superman and Lois Smallville production,” reads the report.

Manly’s application is for three years with a possible three year extension. If given the go-ahead, crews could be filming before the end of the year.

“The establishment of the production set will assist in alleviating financial constraints and provide a high‐profile venue for Cloverdale,” the report also says. “Manly has agreed to program filming activity around major scheduled events at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds, such as the Cloverdale Rodeo.”

Paul Orazietti, executive director for the Cloverdale BIA, said the possible production is welcome news.

“This is a positive for Cloverdale in many ways,” he said. “It generates revenue for the City, local business, and the fairgrounds and it creates local entertainment jobs.”

Orazietti said the BIA and the Cloverdale Fairgrounds have really embraced film productions.

“We are supporting this,” he explained. “In addition to creating revenue, it also allows us to continue to build good relationships with production companies. We have several productions going ahead and hopefully many more to come.”

Orazietti also said the proposed Smallville town set, which will also use the Agriplex as a construction area, will not impinge on the footprint for the on-again-off-again proposed Cloverdale Arena project on the west side of the berm.

“The mayor spoke about (the arena) recently on a Zoom call and he said there may be a restart for the arena at some point in the future.”

As for the site, the proposed set will consist of Smallville’s main street and be mostly made up of building facades, although some buildings, such as the Gazette building, a post office, and a cafe will be built out so that filming can take place inside those structures.

“We also had discussions about possibly opening up the set to the public during the rodeo,” added Orazietti.

The City’s planning and development report recommended “approval for temporary use permit to proceed to public notification.”

The full report, including more pictures of what the set could look like, can be found by visiting surrey.ca.



editor@cloverdalereporter.com

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Malin Jordan

About the Author: Malin Jordan

Malin is the editor of the Cloverdale Reporter.
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